Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos are fully ready to “work out” their marriage issues on live television. The longtime married couple, who tied the knot back in May 1996, are officially set to also become partners (again) on-screen as Mark takes over for Ryan Seacrest on Live! starting April 17 — but this time, they aren’t acting like they were on All My Children.
“I don’t understand when people say, ‘We never fight.’ I go, ‘Oh, they’re in trouble,'” Kelly said of her marriage in People‘s cover story on May 12. “Many people we know have gone through a divorce and a separation and when you ask ‘Why did you guys wind up getting a divorce?’, it’s always the same answer: ‘I don’t really know.’ I feel like we could have over the years let something small turn into that and [instead] we just put our heads down, got together and said ‘Let’s work it out…'” she explained, adding, “Now we can work it out on camera!”
The longstanding Hollywood couple met on-set when they played each other’s life interests on the daytime soap opera, which iconically starred Susan Lucci. They quickly started an off-screen romance, leading to a Vegas elopement in 1996 — and they duo, who share there kids, are still going strong. To have Mark join me at that desk every day, it’s a dream come true…it’s a full circle moment,” Kelly also said in her cover story with Mark. “We’ve been so uniquely blessed.”
Mark, who has gained newfound popularity with the younger generations as Veronica (Camila Mendes) conniving dad Hiram Lodge, expressed that he is “grateful” for the opportunity to join Kelly on-screen again. “[The feeling]’s indescribable [and] we’re super, super grateful,” dad to Michael, 25, Lola, 21, and Joaquin, 20, shared.
“I had filled in so many times and had a blast every single time,” he said. “Some people would die to have this opportunity. No one does it like she does… I can’t think of anybody that I feel more safe with, and protected by, than Kelly.”