CBS’ The Talk was supposed to be back on live today to address the fallout stemming from allegations against Sharon Osbourne, and her defense of Piers Morgan over his criticism of Meghan Markle. Instead, the program announced it will extend its “hiatus” until next Tuesday. This comes as new allegations surface against Osbourne. Journalist Yashar Ali details accounts of racist behavior based on multiple sources including former co-host Leah Remini. He writes Osbourne “would frequently refer to then-co-host Julie Chen, who is Chinese American, as ‘wonton’ and ‘slanty eyes.'”
3. After Osbourne's former colleague Holly Robinson Peete said Osbourne referred to her as "ghetto" and got her fired from "The Talk", Osbourne had her attorneys send a cease and desist letter saying if she didn't delete the tweet below, she would be sued
https://t.co/yxDdy7SDyZ— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) March 16, 2021
Ali says in response to his story, Osbourne’s publicist brushed off the allegations of racist language as coming from a “disgruntled former employee.”
We are also hearing from Osbourne herself today, she spoke with Entertainment Tonight to specifically address what happened on the show last week when she said, “I very much feel like I’m about to be put in the electric chair because I have a friend, who many people think is a racist, so that makes me a racist?” She was criticized for telling co-host Sheryl Underwood “don’t try and cry, because if anyone should be crying, it should be me.”
Now Osbourne admits she wasn’t fair to Underwood, who she considers a long time friend, “I should never have dismissed her feelings on national TV, but I said it, I have to own it and I was so angry… at a company, I worked at for 11 years.”
“I am not a racist and if you can’t have a go at your friend who happens to be Black, does that make me racist because I said certain things to my friend, but I said them on camera? I will keep on apologizing to Sheryl, even if I decide not to go back, I will still keep apologizing to Sheryl. I have nothing but respect and so much affection for Sheryl. I don’t want to hurt her.”
But Osbourne isn’t taking the blame for much else. She says executives put her in a bad position, “This is the biggest setup ever.” She also says “It’s the cancel culture, throw her under the bus.”
So where does the show go from here? That is obviously being debated behind the scenes. Osbourne says it’s still unclear what her future on the show will be:
“I wish that we could go on and have an adult conversation calmy and work it out, but I don’t know whether we can, whether if it’s gone past that, but I don’t know whether I even want to go back. I don’t know whether I’m wanted there.”
Watch Osbourne’s interview with ET above.