Giuliana Rancic Returns As Co-Host Of ‘E! News’ With Jason Kennedy
Giuliana Rancic is returning to E! News and will co-host the weeknight program with Jason Kennedy starting September 4, E! Entertainment announced today.
The hire announcement is the first since co-host Maria Menounos’ departure from E! News last July after she revealed she’d been diagnosed with a brain tumor; she later underwent surgery to remove it.
Co-host Catt Sadler, who was part of a rotating team of correspondents, left in December. Sadler resigned after learning, she said, that her co-host Kennedy was being paid close to double her salary for some time.
Rancic recently helped host E!’s Met Gala special as well as coverage of the royal wedding, and also covered both the 2018 SAG and Grammy Awards.
Rancic, who has been part of the E! family since 2002 when she first joined as correspondent at E! News, last co-anchored the program from 2005-2015.
Three years ago next month, E! announced Rancic “will be officially transitioning out of her day-to-day role” on E! News, saying she would continue as a co-host on Fashion Police and Live From The Red Carpet.
Rancic made headlines back then when she made a comment on Fashion Police about K.C. Undercover star Zendaya Coleman’s new dreadlocks, which earned her severe criticism for what many considered a racially insensitive remark. She quickly apologized on Twitter and on E!, though in a a subsequent interview on NBC’s Today show she blamed the comment on an editor’s script.
At the time of her departure, Rancic said in a statement: “For more than a decade, I was fortunate enough to play a role in the success of E! News and will miss my family at the show. At the same time … this is such a thrilling time for me, and I thank the gang at E! for understanding my desire to embark on this next chapter in my life.”
In today’s announcement, John Najarian, E! Executive Vice President & General Manager, News & Digital called Rancic “an incredibly charismatic and well-respected entertainment journalist.”
Rancic returned the favor, saying in a statement, “Returning to host ‘E! News’ is every bit as thrilling to me today as it was 16 years ago when I joined the show and embarked on this wonderful career.” She called Kennedy “one of my best friends.”
Airing in more than 160 countries, E! News has a monthly reach of 77 million people across linear and digital in the U.S., and is produced by E! Entertainment Television and executive produced by Jennifer Lavin.
While resuming co-hosting duties on E! News, Rancic will continue to co-host E!’s signature Live From the Red Carpet.
Related stories
E! Pushes Back At Debra Messing Remarks About Pay Gender Inequality During Rose McGowan Panel At TCA
Catt Sadler Exits E! News Citing "Massive" Salary Disparity With Male Co-Host
Ryan Seacrest Denies Behaving "Inappropriately" To E! Stylist, Channel Investigating
Get more from Deadline.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
