Quote from Oladosun Joshua Segun on February 26, 2026, 7:44 AM

Oprah Winfrey may not have given Kelly Ripa a car, but she did give her some insightful career guidance. When she asked whether it was time to finally leave her talk show after 25 years, the co-host of Live with Kelly and Mark shared the sage advice she was given.

“Let me give Oprah credit,” Kelly stated in an interview with Variety that was released on February 25. “She left her show at the 25-year mark, and I said to her, ‘Should this be my signal?’ She’s like, ‘Don’t leave. Don’t do it. Right now, you’ll regret it.’”

The 55-year-old added, “She said, ‘With you and Mark, the dynamic, the show is more important than ever. People really relate to it, and they need that in this world of a lot of darkness and an endless 24-hour, never-ending news cycle.’”

In 2001, Kelly joined Regis Philbin as Live's co-host. Michael Strahan joined Kelly from 2012 to 2016 and Ryan Seacrest from 2017 until 2023 after he departed the show in 2011. In April 2023, her husband Mark Consuelos became a permanent co-host of the program after making multiple guest hosting appearances over the years.

Kelly stated that she can't help but wonder when she will formally leave the talk show, but today is not that day, keeping in mind Oprah's counsel.

“I need to actually ask her, ‘You said not to leave at 25, but what year? What are we thinking? Give me an idea of how far beyond 25 I should go,’” she joked. “But I always say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. We are really having a very good time.”

“I want to see this show stay on the air as long as linear TV lives,” the former All My Children star went on. “The show is far more important than any two hosts, so I just want the show to live forever because it’s a really, really great piece of history. It’s also a great way for people to have worry-free TV that they can watch with their kids.”

Kelly's desire to participate in a family-friendly activity is not surprising. After all, she and Mark are parents to three children: a daughter named Lola, 24, a son named Michael, 28, and a son named Joaquin, 22. Their children frequently appear on the talk show.

Actually, in celebration of Kelly's 25-year tenure on the show, Michael just made an unexpected guest on the episode airing on February 20. Before sharing some of his fondest recollections from the years, he arrived with a bunch of flowers for his mother.

“There’s so many,” Michael stated. “But if I had to narrow it down to just a handful, I’d say the swamp tour in Louisiana, where I threw the snake on you. That was pretty awesome.”

While Joaquin is preparing for his Broadway debut in Death of a Salesman and Lola is presently residing in London, Kelly and Mark's other children were unable to attend in person. Nevertheless, they recorded video messages for their mother, which were also presented during the program.

“I’m so proud of the life that you’ve made for yourself and for Michael, Quino and me and dad,” in her taped message, Lola added. “We really wouldn’t have anything without you, and I think a lot of people would agree with me that there would be a lot less joy in this world without you and your pretty face on the air every day.”

Joaquin sweetly went on to say, “Love you, proud of you. Here’s to 25 more.”