After being forced to postpone its previously planned season premiere last month following backlash stemming from the now-concluded WGA Strike, CBS’ “The Talk” announced on Monday that Season 14 will now premiere on Monday, October 9, officially marking the end of a production shutdown that left the series airing repeats since May.
In discussion with sources and based on material shared on social media, all five current co-hosts – Akbar Gbajabiamila, Natalie Morales, Sheryl Underwood, Amanda Kloots and Jerry O’Connell – will return for Season 14, which will be the third consecutive season where no changes have been made among the on-air talent for the daytime talk show, reversing a trend that has plagued the show just before or during seasons 2, 8, 9, 10 and 11.
In response to an Instagram post announcing the show’s return, Kloots and Morales shared their excitement over finally returning to work at the show’s Radford Studio Center location for the first time in just over five months. For her part, Kloots said, “Yay!! Miss you all so much.” Meanwhile, Morales commented, “Can’t wait to be back with you all!” Also sharing their enthusiasm was supervising producer Marc Anthony Nicolas, who added, “Let’s do this!!!”
While fans can expect to see familiar faces on-screen, behind the scenes, Rob Crabbe, who most recently served as the executive producer of “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” will take over as the show’s executive producer replacing Kristin Matthews, an original staff member who had been with the show since it first launched in October 2010.
“After 13 years, the time was right for me to make a change and I won’t be returning next season,” said Matthews in a statement released to Deadline in June. “I helped launch ‘The Talk’ in 2010 and I am so proud of all that we have accomplished with the show over the past 13 seasons. We have worked together to achieve so much success, laughter, ratings, Emmys, love and tears — everything you can experience producing over 2,500 episodes. I’m truly grateful to the incredible team I’ve had the opportunity to lead as well as all the outstanding staff, crew and hosts I’ve worked with during my time on the show.”
As for Crabbe, he noted in July, “I’ve loved my experience working with CBS these past 8 years, and am thrilled and honored that George [Cheeks, President and CEO, CBS and Chief Content Officer, News and Sports, Paramount+], Amy [Reisenbach, President, CBS Entertainment] and David [Stapf, President, CBS Studios,] have trusted me with their signature daytime talk show,” said Crabbe. “I’m excited by the opportunity to help bring some joy and thoughtful conversation to viewers with these five incredibly talented hosts.”
During his time at “The Late Late Show,” which ended its run in April, Crabbe received numerous Primetime Emmy nominations and helped create the popular “Carpool Karaoke” segment that later became a spinoff series for Apple TV+, among other projects.
In March, “The Talk” scored its largest overall audience in more than a year during the week of March 20-24, 2023, spearheaded by a week of shows featuring cast members from the daytime soap opera “The Young and the Restless” while it celebrated its 50th anniversary.