Kelly Ripa Blindsided By ABC! Network Wanted Ryan Seacrest As Part Of A Bigger Plan Than Just ‘Live’

Kelly Ripa found out the real reason why Ryan Seacrest is the new co-host of her show – and the decision had nothing to do with ratings. Radar Online reports that executives hired Seacrest in hopes they can bring American Idol to ABC. How did Ripa react to the news?

“It’s like Kelly has been betrayed all over again. Ryan wasn’t her first choice, but she was convinced by the network that he would bring in A list guests and ratings,” an insider shared. “Now she has found out that it is all about Idol and not really just about her!”

The source added that Live with Kelly and Ryan will make plenty of money for the network, but it is nothing compared to what American Idol could generate. Unfortunately for Ripa, this is the third time ABC has betrayed her trust and acted without her knowledge.

“She seems livid. Ryan knew all along what was going on, but once again, everyone kept her in the dark,” the insider stated.

Ripa’s most recent betrayal prior to Seacrest happened during Michael Strahan’s exit last year. Ripa had no idea that Strahan had landed a spot on Good Morning America and was blindsided when he made the announcement on live television. Ripa has been hosting the show by herself ever since, along with a variety of co-hosts.

Ripa made the big announcement last week. While the show traditionally runs live, Radar Online reports that some Friday installments are actually pre-taped to accommodate Seacrest’s busy L.A. schedule.

“Some Fridays will be live on the morning show, but not every one. They clearly want to make sure they don’t exhaust Ryan in his new $15 million a year job!” an insider revealed.

The insider added that Seacrest wasn’t Kelly Ripa’s first choice as co-host. Ripa allegedly preferred a lesser known celebrity but ABC executives went behind her back and hired Seacrest. We now know why Seacrest was brought on, but ABC still hasn’t officially announced whether or not it has acquired the rights to American Idol.

Seacrest has not commented on ABC’s plans with the hit singing competition. He has, however, talked about why he decided to take on co-hosting responsibilities, despite his busy schedule in L.A.

“It was easy for me to say I wanted to work with Kelly, but the complicated part was that I have a job – and jobs – on the West Coast. And this show is obviously live from the East Coast every day. So we had to figure out if this would really work. What are the logistics? That was really the big issue,” he explained.

Seacrest added that he will be traveling from coast to coast while filming for Live is underway. This is definitely going to be a challenge for Seacrest, who helps produce a number of different reality TV shows and hosts his own radio show on iHeartRadio.

According to Us Magazine, ABC actually acquired the rights to American Idol late last week. The series originally aired on Fox between 2002 and 2016. Seacrest hasn’t confirmed that he’ll host the show again, but it looks like ABC has grand plans for rebooting the series.

An insider revealed that Seacrest has a lot of love for American Idol, especially considering how it helped launch his career. He hasn’t been in formal negotiations to host the new series, but the source claims he is open to the idea. The only hurdle is getting around Seacrest’s busy schedule, which now includes his co-hosting gig with Ripa.

While we wait to learn more, fans can watch Ripa and Ryan co-host Live with Kelly and Ryan weekdays on ABC.

Tell us! What do you think of the chemistry between Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest so far? Let us know in the comments below.

[Featured Image by Disney/ABC]