Don’t adjust your television! Yes, Ryan Seacrest was back to co-host Live With Kelly on Tuesday, June 20. Even though Ryan, 48, left the show, he’ll be appearing alongside Kelly Ripa, 52, on a few upcoming episodes, along with a few different co-hosts, including his replacement and Kelly’s husband Mark Consuelos, 52. The episodes that Ryan appears in were all pre-recorded before his departure from the show in April, according to Entertainment Weekly.
While Ryan’s appearance on Tuesday may have surprised some fans (especially when he said that it was June 20), it’s not a permanent return. Ryan is expected to make appearances in quite a few pre-taped segments this week and throughout Live’s summer run. Kelly will be joined by a series of different co-hosts in pre-recorded episodes, including Mark, Anderson Cooper, and Andy Cohen.
Mark will also be joining Kelly during a Fourth of July special. There are also a series of themed weeks following that, including “Aches and Pains” week and “Dog Days of Summer” week, which will feature health tips and highlight puppies up for adoption, respectively.
The American Idol host announced that he’d be stepping away from Live in a February episode of the show. He said that it was a “tough decision,” but praised Kelly and shared that Mark would be stepping in as co-host. “Working alongside Kelly over the past six years has been a dream job and one of the highlights of my career,” he said. “She has been an amazing partner, friend, and confidant, and although we will always be a part of each other’s lives, I will miss our mornings together.”
Kelly said goodbye to Ryan after co-hosting together for six years on April 14. She got emotional while giving him a proper send-off. “I’m so grateful that our success together on this show has led to us developing an even closer, yet also co-dependent relationship,” she said in part. While Ryan is no longer co-hosting, the pre-taped segments are not his first return to the show! He made a surprise appearance on May 18, where he spoke about how much he’s enjoyed seeing Kelly and Mark co-host together.