Kelly Ripa Names Ryan Seacrest as Her New 'Live' Co-Host (Video)

Stay-at-home moms and dads, get ready for “Live With Kelly & Ryan Seacrest.”

On Monday, Kelly Ripa (finally) named Seacrest the new permanent co-host for her Disney-ABC syndicated daytime talk show. The search took quite some time (by design, if you ask executives) — her former partner of four years, Michael Strahan, left the show nearly a year ago.

Ripa tried out 67 guest co-hosts over 195 original episodes before deciding on Seacrest. TheWrap has measured the Nielsen TV ratings of every single one: Click here for the ratings average of each guest co-host, and go here for every individual episode ranked.

Also Read: Kelly Ripa's 67 Best and Worst 'Live' Guest Co-Hosts, Ranked by Average TV Rating (Photos)

“I couldn’t be more excited to be here with you,” Seacrest told Ripa.

Seacrest has guest hosted “Live” five times since Strahan departed the show. Ripa teased the big reveal before the first commercial break and finally named the former host of Fox’s “American Idol” as her new co-host. He started immediately, joining Ripa for the remainder of the program.

The show attempted to keep Seacrest’s identity a secret and even showed footage of him hiding in a car as it pulled into the studio on Monday morning. Despite the attempts to surprise viewers with the identity of Ripa’s new co-host, the news was reported early Monday morning by CNN’s Chloe Melas.

Seacrest is no stranger to ABC as he also hosts “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” on the network. He will host the show from New York Monday through Thursday and typically spend the rest of the week in Los Angeles, according to CNN. The Friday episode is usually taped in advance.

Ripa teased her announcement on Sunday, posting the following not-so-cryptic message on Twitter:

We're going to need a bigger mug. #TuneInToLive #BigAnnouncement #LiveKellyCohost pic.twitter.com/QRKQ9S9NGn

— Kelly Ripa (@KellyRipa) April 30, 2017

We all got the hint, and now she’s got a co-host.

Check out the announcement above.

Kelly Ripa's 68 Best and Worst 'Live' Guest Co-Hosts, Ranked by Average TV Rating (Photos)

Kelly Ripa did 205 "Live" episodes with guest co-hosts since former partner Michael Strahan walked away from the program last May. Some of the substitutes performed better than others, and almost one-third even out-rated Ryan Seacrest. Here's how each individual ranks by their average TV rating, rounded out to three decimal places.

Also Read: Kelly Ripa’s 173 Guest Co-Hosted ‘Live’ Episodes, Ranked by TV Ratings (Photos)
Rank: 68
Co-Host: John Leguizamo
No. of Episodes: 10
Average Rating: 2.27

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Van Jones
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Priyanka Chopra
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Ciara
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Ilana Glazer
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Matt Bomer
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Leslie Mann
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Rita Ora
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Zach Braff
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Taye Diggs
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Guillermo Diaz
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 57 (tie)
Co-Host: Busy Phillips
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.3

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Rank: 56
Co-Host: Josh Gad
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.333

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Rank: 52 (tie)
Co-Host: Keegan-Michael Key
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.35

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Rank: 52 (tie)
Co-Host: Tony Goldwyn
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.35

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Rank: 52 (tie)
Co-Host: Michael Weatherly
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.35

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CBS
Rank: 52 (tie)
Co-Host: Morris Chestnut
No. of Episodes: 6
Average Rating: 2.35

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Rank: 51
Co-Host: Christian Slater
No. of Episodes: 13
Average Rating: 2.354

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Rank: 50
Co-Host: Scott Wolf
No. of Episodes: 11
Average Rating: 2.355

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Getty
Rank: 48 (tie)
Co-Host: Jeffrey Dean Morgan
No. of Episodes: 4
Average Rating: 2.375

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Rank: 48 (tie)
Co-Host: Carrie Ann Inaba
No. of Episodes: 8
Average Rating: 2.375

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Rank: 47
Co-Host: Chris Hardwick
No. of Episodes: 6
Average Rating: 2.383

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Comedy Central
Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Jason Silva
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4
Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Alan Cumming
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Nick Lachey
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Zachary Quinto
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Vince Vaughn
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Octavia Spencer
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Alex Rodriguez
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Billy Eichner
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Billy Gardell
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Taraji P. Henson
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Getty
Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: John Mulaney
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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Rank: 35 (tie)
Co-Host: Jason Derulo
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.4

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CBS
Rank: 34
Co-Host: Jerry O'Connell
No. of Episodes: 18
Average Rating: 2.428

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Rank: 33
Co-Host: Chris Harrison
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.433

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Rank: 31 (tie)
Co-Host: Max Greenfield
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.45

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TBS
Rank: 31 (tie)
Co-Host: Neil Patrick Harris
No. of Episodes: 4
Average Rating: 2.45

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Rank: 30
Co-Host: Josh Groban
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.467

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Rank: 29
Co-Host: Richard Curtis (contest winner)
No. of Episodes: 5
Average Rating: 2.48

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Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Alec Baldwin
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.5

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YouTube
Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Tyler Perry
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.5

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Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Sam Champion
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.5

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Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Corbin Bleu
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.5

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Getty
Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Michael Buble
No. of Episodes: 3
Average Rating: 2.5

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NBC
Rank: 23 (tie)
Co-Host: Fred Savage
No. of Episodes: 8
Average Rating: 2.5

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Rank: 22
Co-Host: Andy Cohen
No. of Episodes: 4
Average Rating: 2.525

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Rank: 20 (tie)
Co-Host: Jussie Smollett
No. of Episodes: 6
Average Rating: 2.55

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Rank: 20 (tie)
Co-Host: Jim Parsons
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.55

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Rank: 19
Co-Host: Ryan Seacrest
No. of Episodes: 5
Average Rating: 2.56

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Fox
Rank: 18
Co-Host: Anderson Cooper
No. of Episodes: 11
Average Rating: 2.564

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Rank: 17
Co-Host: Joel McHale
No. of Episodes: 4
Average Rating: 2.575

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Rank: 16
Co-Host: Mark Consuelos
No. of Episodes: 10
Average Rating: 2.58

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Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: Chris Pratt
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.6

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NBC
Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: Mark Cuban
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.6

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NBC
Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: Bellamy Young
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.6

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Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: Ashton Kutcher
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.6

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Getty
Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: Joe Jonas
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.6

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Rank: 10 (tie)
Co-Host: D.L. Hughley
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.6

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Rank: 9
Co-Host: Dwyane Wade
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.7

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Rank: 8
Co-Host: David Muir
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.75

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Rank: 5 (tie)
Co-Host: Kevin Hart
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.8

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Rank: 5 (tie)
Co-Host: Common
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.8

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Rank: 5 (tie)
Co-Host: Cedric The Entertainer
No. of Episodes: 2
Average Rating: 2.8

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Rank: 3 (tie)
Co-Host: Daniel Dae Kim
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.9

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Rank: 3 (tie)
Co-Host: Seal
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 2.9

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Rank: 2
Co-Host: Megyn Kelly
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 3.0

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Getty
Rank: 1
Co-Host: Jimmy Kimmel
No. of Episodes: 1
Average Rating: 3.3

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ABC
So did Ripa make the right pick? Let us know in the comments section.

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1 of 70

Ryan Seacrest squeezed his way into the Top 20

Kelly Ripa did 205 "Live" episodes with guest co-hosts since former partner Michael Strahan walked away from the program last May. Some of the substitutes performed better than others, and almost one-third even out-rated Ryan Seacrest. Here's how each individual ranks by their average TV rating, rounded out to three decimal places.

Also Read: Kelly Ripa’s 173 Guest Co-Hosted ‘Live’ Episodes, Ranked by TV Ratings (Photos)

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Kelly Ripa's 68 Best and Worst 'Live' Guest Co-Hosts, Ranked by Average TV Rating (Photos)

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