Melissa Leong responds rumours about why she was axed from MasterChef Australia

MasterChef Australia’s first female and Asian judge Melissa Leong is rising above the rumours and has set the record straight about why she was axed from the popular reality show.

Melissa Leong has clapped back at rumours about why she was axed from MasterChef Australia.

Melissa Leong is like a good souffle, she rises to the top.

The Dessert Masters host is used to shutting out the noise, it goes with the territory after becoming MasterChef Australia’s first female and Asian judge.

And she refuses to be flattened.

This week the noise became deafening when Channel 10 revealed at their 2024 Upfronts to announce the network’s slate of programs for next year, that she would no longer be judging the reality cooking show alongside fellow judge Andy Allen.

A croquembouche sized mountain of whys, what happened, to more salty serves like was there a falling out all followed.

One ingredient missing from all the whispers, was there was already a cherry on top.

It was a candied cherry in the form of Leong hosting Dessert Masters alongside international pastry chef Amaury Guichon.

Suffice to say hosting back-to-back reality shows would have been untenable. But who wants to get in the way of delicious shafting rumours.

Speaking to Page 13 on Friday at Melbourne’s Paramount Network 10 Upfronts at South Yarra’s swish Beverly Rooftop, Leong said she refuses to let women diminish each other and fall into negative predictable tropes and stereotypes.

“I spend my life empowering women to occupy the room that they’re in with every embodiment of who they are. How could I not do the same?” Leong asked standing her ground and turning up the heat on haters.

“I like to be direct. I like to be heartfelt in everything that I strive to be as real.

“We are all humans, humans are complex and you are allowed to have off days. For me it’s about being real and that resonates with people.

“That’s why I’m here and I’m not going to shake that determination to continue being unapologetically me.”

Leong is in it for the long game.