In the wake of the death of legendary comedian Joan Rivers, it was unclear what the future held in store for E!’s clothes-themed show Fashion Police. Now, according to new reports, the series is moving forward, with perhaps the most obvious replacement host taking over the big chair.
Variety has learned that when Fashion Police returns to E! later this summer, in August, Joan’s daughter Melissa Rivers will take over the hosting duties following the passing of her mother. Not only does this make perfect sense because of the familial connection, but the younger Rivers has also served as an executive producer on the show since the beginning, has appeared on countless similar programs, and regularly hosts red carpet coverage that largely revolves around fashion. Oh, and she has also shown up on eight episodes of Fashion Police, so there’s that.
Joan Rivers passed away last September at the age of 81, and it seems strange it has taken so long to make this decision—Kathy Griffin stepped into the spotlight for a time after Rivers’ death, but that didn’t go particularly well. Perhaps Melissa took some convincing, or it has something to do with waiting a respectful time, but as far as continuity, theme, and direction are concerned, you can’t imagine a more fitting choice to take over the mantle.
Melissa Rivers taking over as the face of the series isn’t the only change fans can expect to see from Fashion Police when it comes back. While Giuliana Rancic and Brad Goreski are both set to return in their co-hosting capacities, the new look will feature a pair of rotating guest chairs where random celebrities and fashion personalities will stop by and add their two cents to the mix, which will serve to stir the pot some.
Panelist Kelly Osbourne left the show back in February after Rancic made what many construed as a racist comment during their coverage of the Academy Awards red carpet. Griffin followed suit a week later, after only seven episodes, citing a mismatch between her goals and style of comedy and the aims of the series, later admitting she probably shouldn’t have taken the job in the first place.
The new run of Fashion Police is scheduled to debut on August 31 as they cover the annual MTV Video Music Awards, which should provide much fodder for discussion. All in all, six more episodes are slated to air between now and the end of 2015—you have to imagine that many will coincide with prestigious end of the year awards—so if you’ve been missing that biting Rivers flair, you might want to mark this one on your calendar.
