The Soup is nearing The End. E! said this morning its weekly series skewering pop culture will bow out on December 18, ending the franchise’s 22-year run.
The show premiered in 1991 as Talk Soup and famously launched the career of original host Greg Kinnear, who hosted until 1995. He was followed by John Henson (1995-99), Hal Sparks (1999-2000) and Aisha Tyler (2001-02). It was re-launched as The Soup in 2004 with current host Joel McHale. The series earned a 2014 Emmy nom for Outstanding Short-Format Live-Action Entertainment Program’
This morning’s announcement comes a year after E! announced it extended its deal with McHale through 2016 to remain at the helm of the comedy show. That deal also called for McHale’s production company, Free Period Productions to continue its production development arrangement giving the network first-look rights to non-scripted series. That pact marked the first major talent deal to close under new E! programming chief Jeff Olde, who called McHale “a valued fixture at the network for both his industry know-how and comic relief.” At the time of that announcement, McHale quipped, “I’m confident that I can keep up the same quality of humorous observation of shows like Naked Dating and Bad Girls Club Season 12 Reunion Part 2 that the American people age 18-49 have come to expect and deserve.”
In today’s news, E! said the show would continue in originals until its December 18 finale, while noting that, over its 22-year history, Talk Soup and The Soup have welcomed such celebrated actors and singers, as well as incredibly desperate X-listers:
Stars and “stars” that have stopped by include Norman Reedus, Yvette Nicole Brown, Patrick Warburton, Alison Brie, Seth Green, Lucy Lawless, Chris Hardwick, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ken Jeong, RuPaul, Steven Yeun, Joe Manganiello, Wendy Williams, Simon Pegg, Jon Cryer, Joe Jonas, Kal Penn, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Adam Scott, Aaron Paul, Gabourey Sidibe, Larry King, Kelly Ripa, Allison Janney, Adam DeVine, Johnny Weir, Danny Trejo, Jeff Probst, James Corden, Adam Pally, Jane Lynch, Marilyn Manson, Jon Heder, Tyra Banks, Martha Stewart, Nene Leaks, Nancy Grace, Zachary Quinto, George Takei, Chevy Chase, Sean Combs, Evan Rachel Wood, Eminem, Demi Lovato, Sarah Hyland, Jake Pavelka, Katey Sagal, Mayim Bialik, Katie Lee Gifford, Ana Gasteyer, Tyrese Gibson, Anderson Cooper, Andy Cohen, Kylie Minogue, Kristin Davis, Shaquille O’Neal, Joan Rivers, Jack Black, Eli Roth, Busy Philipps, Jaime Pressly, Lea DeLaria, WWE Superstar The Miz … and Carrot Top.
The network did not detail plans for the series finale; The Soup is produced by Wilshire Studios with McHale, KP Anderson and Ed Boyd serving as executive producers.
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