The back and forth between current American Pickers host Mike Wolfe and his former co-star has continued in recent days after Frank Fritz's exit from the series was confirmed. The basic gist is that Fritz will not be returning to the History series, but the reason why had not been laid bare until now. After Fritz called out his former co-star for a “bullshit” statement last week, Wolfe has opted to be transparent about why there will not be a return for the former reality star.
It should be noted that when Frank Fritz left American Pickers, he did so initially of his own accord. He said he was dealing with debilitating back issues and also used the time to go to rehab and cut alcohol out of his life. Unfortunately, though he says he is ready to get back to work, the show did not ultimately ask him to return.
Mike Wolfe previously crafted a statement that was pretty vague that thanked his former co-star for his time on the show. Other Pickers star Danielle Colby also talked about Frank causing “so much pain for himself” in relation to his ultimate exit from the series. For his part, Fritz has made it seem like his lack of a return was Wolfe wanting him out of the way, but the reality star says that is not the case at all. He told The Sun:
We all do care about Frank and we want him back on the show. I would love to talk with him again, we would absolutely love to, but he just can't get it right. Frank is just going through a lot personally with addictions. It's unfortunate that he's made decisions that have him the way he is.
Now Fritz has said repeatedly that he’s 11 months sober and that he’s ready and rearing to get back to work.
I went to rehab and I’ve been sober now for 11 months.I didn’t like drinking anymore. My mom was an alcoholic and she died five years ago and it was alcohol-related. My grandfather was an alcoholic and he died. That didn’t sit well with me.
However, while he was out the show went on without him. It seemingly was a good fit for the network and will be continuing to produce new episodes with Mike and Danielle at the forefront. In fact, Danielle Colby has said she’s been on the road working on new episodes in recent weeks on her Instagram page. Additionally, the two have been supportive of one another on social media in recent weeks.
So why did Mike Wolfe speak out more clearly on the matter now? It may have to do with Fritz making varying statements calling Wolfe out for not speaking to him for two years and also more recently claiming that the “official statement” his former co-star had crafted after his exit was “bullshit.” For her part, Danielle Colby has said she didn’t want to talk to the press about what happened, but she did share a little bit regarding her feelings on social media. As we’ve said before, the whole thing has played out in a complicated way, with lots of back and forth, but at this point a return to American Pickers does not seem likely.
