Hollywood actor to replace Sharon Osbourne on The Talk

An actor who has appeared in films including Jerry Maguire and Stand By Me will replace Sharon Osbourne on US chat show, The Talk.

Jerry O’Connell has been named a permanent co-host on The Talk, replacing Sharon Osbourne after her racially charged scandal.

“It’s fun, and it works, and we’re going to have a lot of fun,” the Stand By Me actor, 47, said on Wednesday’s episode, which aired on his 14th wedding anniversary with Rebecca Romijn.

O’Connell is the first male to hold the position full-time, although he has been a frequent guest host in the past.

Jerry O’Connell has joined The Talk.

He joins panellists Amanda Kloots, Elaine Welteroth, Sheryl Underwood and Carrie Ann Inaba.

“You ladies have been so welcoming to me,” he told them on Wednesday. “I mean, I came here as a guest months ago, and just from the moment I walked in, you’re just gracious, you’re kind, you’re fun and it worked.”

The CBS daytime show (which airs in Australia on Channel 10 each morning) also shared the news on Twitter with a clip of their newest host wearing a Rocky-like costume set to Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger.

“Join us in welcoming @MrJerryOC to The Talk family,” they captioned the video with a hands-up emoji.

🚨NEW HOST ALERT🚨
Join us in welcoming @MrJerryOC to The Talk family 🙌 pic.twitter.com/agEbTwagJL

— The Talk (@TheTalkCBS) July 14, 2021

In the clip, which aired at the top of Wednesday’s episode, O’Connell cheerfully greeted several people from the crew before changing into a suit and getting bouquets of flowers to gift his fellow co-hosts.

“Yay! Here he is, the newest member of The Talk, Jerry O’Connell!” Underwood, 57, then told the audience amid a roar of cheers.

Kloots, 39, welcomed the newbie by saying on the show: “We have all loved getting to know you the last couple of months.”

Executive producers Heather Gray and Kristin Matthews, meanwhile, said in a statement that they are “beyond thrilled” to have O’Connell on the show.

“We loved his infectious enthusiasm, humour, openness and insights as a guest co-host and look forward to him now bringing those dynamic qualities to the show every day,” the EPs added. “As an accomplished actor, devoted husband and father, Jerry will bring a unique and entertaining perspective to the conversation.”

Jerry O’Connell in Tomcats. Picture: Revolution Studios/Richard Foreman

RELATED: Sheryl Underwood describes ‘trauma’ of spat with Sharon Osbourne

The camaraderie is a far cry from the turmoil that made headlines earlier in Season 11.

In March, Osbourne, 68, was awarded a massive payout after she quit The Talk over an on-air disagreement she had with Underwood over her friend Piers Morgan’s disdain for Meghan Markle.

Following the spat, Page Six exclusively reported that an internal investigation had been launched after Welteroth, 34, and her hairstylist complained about an allegedly “racially insensitive and hostile environment” on the show following the explosive March 10 broadcast.

Then a bombshell report citing multiple sources, including former The Talk co-host Leah Remini, claimed Osbourne had used racist slurs when talking about others on the show.

The former Kings of Queens star, 51, alleged Osbourne had referred to Talk alum Julie Chen, who is Chinese American, as a “wonton” and “slanty eyes” and former co-host Sara Gilbert, who is a lesbian, as a “pu**y licker”.

Osbourne referred to the accusations as a “pile-on”.

Sharon Osbourne on The Talk. Picture: The Talk

“Everybody’s got an opinion and everybody’s got a voice – it’s fine,” she told the Daily Mail. “It’s about knowing somebody’s been called out for something and then somebody else is like, ‘Yes! I’m going to add something too.’”

The Talk premiered on CBS in 2010.

Osbourne’s rep declined to comment on the announcement of O’Connell replacing her.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission