After six seasons, Ryan Seacrest has officially said “Seacrest, out!” to Live With Kelly and Ryan, after his final show aired this morning.
For both Seacrest and his co-host Kelly Ripa, it was an emotional show with plenty of tears shed.
In February, the 48-year-old media personality announced he was departing the syndicated morning talk show, calling the decision “bittersweet.” Seacrest resides in Los Angeles, where he also continues to host American Idol, so hosting the New York-based Live was often a challenge.
“The hundreds of hours I spent each year flying, it became a lot. It was longer than I anticipated, but it’s because of her and the great people here,” he told Variety last month. “Over the last couple of years, I had said to Kelly, ‘This is not going to be something that’s right for me forever for all the obvious geographical reasons,’ and she understood it.”
While Seacrest has his reasons for leaving the show, it didn’t make his farewell any less emotional: throughout the final episode, both co-hosts teared up delivering emotional remarks.
“It’s not lost on me how fortunate I am to have held this seat for the last six years,” Seacrest said. “I’ve spent my entire career talking … but today it’s hard to put into words how deeply I’ve appreciated being here and being with you, being invited into your homes every day. I’m honored to be part of this family.”
Kelly Ripa also got emotional saying her goodbye to Ryan.
“I just want to say a few words to you. It’s on behalf of myself and all of us — but mostly me,” Ripa said. “This has, without question, been the fastest six years of my life. And although you and I have been friends for decades and decades, I feel like I’ve gained through this process a younger brother/oldest son.”
“I am so grateful that our success together on this show has led to us developing an even closer — yet codependent — relationship.”
