Sara Gilbert made headlines back in April when she announced that she was leaving The Talk as a cohost. On board as creator and cohost from the very beginning, Gilbert was a key part of the show, and fans understandably wondered who The Talk could find to fill the void left by her absence. Well, they can stop wondering, as The Talk has found Gilbert's replacement in the form of Marie Osmond.
Marie Osmond is a pretty safe bet for The Talk to select as Sara Gilbert's replacement, all things considered. Osmond has appeared on the show in no fewer than 40 episodes as a guest cohost over the nine seasons so far. It's safe to say that she knows what she's doing, and viewers undoubtedly have responded well to her presence on the show. Sara Gilbert's departure is the second significant cast shake-up in the past year, so a familiar face as replacement has to be a good choice.
Fans shouldn't count on seeing her on The Talk daily just yet, though. Marie Osmond joins the panel full-time when Season 10 begins in the fall. Sara Gilbert will continue as a cohost through the end of Season 9. When Season 10 begins in September, the panel will be comprised of Eve, Carrie Ann Inaba (who has another gig on another network on top of The Talk), Sharon Osbourne, and Sheryl Underwood on top of Osmond.
The Marie Osmond casting announcement was made during the live broadcast of The Talk on May 7, with Osmond on hand to greet the audience. She was all smiles as the table of cohosts welcomed her.
Hopefully the casting of a Talk veteran -- even if only as a former guest cohost -- will soothe the sting of Sara Gilbert leaving for fans who are still bummed that one of the originals is bowing out after Season 9. Still, few can probably blame Gilbert after she shared her reasons for stepping back from The Talk, especially since she did state that she does plan on returning as a guest cohost herself.
When she dropped the bombshell that she was leaving The Talk, Sara Gilbert stated that she wanted to "develop more things to produce" and was "having opportunities to act," such as with The Conners on ABC. She also revealed that she just wasn't having time for "small things in my life," such as making a baby book for her four-year-old.
Seriously, who can fault Sara Gilbert for wanting more time with her family and to try new things in her career after the better part of a decade on The Talk? She already landed a role on a popular Netflix show on top of her work on The Conners, which received an order for more episodes (and bigger paydays) for the second season. It should be fun to see how Marie Osmond works as her replacement once Season 10 kicks off.
Tune in to CBS on weekdays at 2 p.m. ET for new episodes of The Talk.
