Amidst Whoopi Goldberg’s The View Suspension, The Talk Show Is Bringing Back Some OG Favorites

The hosting lineup for the Emmy-winning ABC daytime talk show The View certainly has been shaken up lately. Even before Whoopi Goldberg’s suspension following controversial comments about the Holocaust, the show was bringing in guest hosts, as some of its mainstays dealt with COVID exposures. Well, just keep the carousel turning, because The View has announced that it's bringing back some fan favorites to celebrate the show’s 25th season.

The View announced that it is welcoming back former hosts Star Jones, Meredith Vieira and Elisabeth Hasselbeck as guest co-hosts throughout this month to celebrate the milestone. Jones returned to the Hot Topics table February 4, and Vieira and Hasselbeck will appear on different episodes sometime this month. 

Meredith Vieira was the original moderator of The View when the daytime talk show premiered in 1997. She left during the show’s ninth season. Similarly, Star Jones was one of the original co-hosts and left the show in 2006 around the same time as Vieira. Jones’ departure, however, was mired in drama after she unexpectedly announced she was leaving two days before they had planned to release that information. Creator Barbara Walters said she felt “betrayed” by Jones, and Jones said she felt like she’d been fired.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck, meanwhile, joined The View in 2003. Hasselbeck famously held the conservative seat at the table and was with the show for 10 years before being fired in 2013 and joining Fox News. 

The return of some of the OG hosts comes at a time that The View has seen its co-hosts come and go for unforeseen reasons. Whoopi Goldberg was suspended for two weeks after she made comments related to the role that race played in the Holocaust. Goldberg issued a public apology after making the comments on the January 31 episode, but it was announced on the February 2 episode that Goldberg would be suspended for two weeks. 

Whoopi Goldberg’s suspension has prompted a number of responses. Former co-host Meghan McCain stopped short of calling for Goldberg to be fired, but said a double standard exists regarding the show’s liberal- and conservative-leaning pundits. Gina Carano promoted “conversation over cancellation,” as she herself was fired by Disney for comments. Joshua Malina seemed to agree with that assessment, saying Goldberg “misspoke or needed to clarify or educate or discuss.”

While the suspension should end around February 16, Whoopi Goldberg apparently disagreed with how ABC handled the situation. While a source told The New York Post that Goldberg had threatened to quit over the suspension, the source didn’t actually think it would come to that. 

The View crew was also struck by COVID recently, with both Whoopi Goldberg and Sara Haines missing time on the show due to a positive test and exposure to COVID, respectively. Back in September, Sunny Hostin and Ana Navarro were pulled off the stage mid-show for allegedly testing positive for COVID, though they later said they both had received false positives. 

Hopefully the co-host swapping this month will be void of the drama that has ensnared its leaders over the past few months, and longtime viewers can simply enjoy seeing some familiar faces around the table. The View airs Monday through Friday at 11 a.m. ET on ABC.