Don’t call it a “hiatus.” Joy Behar announced that she’s taking a break from The View. However, she didn’t like the way it was portrayed in the media. The longtime host cleared up all the rumors about her upcoming extended leave. Keep reading to find out what’s really going on in her own words.
Joy Behar Clears Up Rumors Amid Absence
Joy Behar, 83, has been on The View for 27 of the show’s 29 seasons. She took a two-year hiatus in 2013, allegedly due to contract negotiations, but she’s been a staple on the show since her return in 2015. Unfortunately, viewers won’t see her this week or the next.
The comedian is in Europe for two weeks performing her play in Paris and London. Joy Behar wrote and stars in the play My First Ex-Husband. It debuted Off-Broadway in New York City last year.
Now, she’s taking it overseas. American actress Jackie Hoffman (Only Murders in the Building, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) stars alongside The View host in the overseas production. Whoopi Goldberg and soap star Susan Lucci were among the guest cast during the play’s Off-Broadway run.
“This is your last podcast for a little bit, because next week you’re not going to be here,” the show’s executive producer, Brian Teta, said during Joy Behar’s appearance on the Behind the Table podcast last week.
However, Joy Behar didn’t like the way her break from the show was covered in the media. She addressed it at the end of Friday’s episode. “There’s been a lot of media attention on me lately because I’m taking off the next two weeks. They’re calling it a hiatus. It’s not a hiatus,” she said.
Sara Haines chimed in to add (incorrectly) that “hiatus” means to stop working, and her co-host will be working the whole time she’s gone. However, “hiatus” is defined as “an interruption in time or continuity.” So, the word correctly describes Joy Behar’s break from the show. However, she apparently didn’t like the implication.
The View Fans React To Her Leaving
Joy Behar admitted that leaving the audience was the hardest part of taking breaks from the show. She jokingly asked her co-hosts if they’ll miss her, then asked if that sounded “needy.”
Her co-hosts assured her that they’ll miss her. The View fans will miss her, too. They took to Reddit to discuss Joy Behar’s two-week absence.
- “Joy is the whole reason I watch the show. The brief period of time she wasn’t on the panel, I stopped watching.”
- “She’s like an annoying aunt sometimes, but that’s just who she is.”
- “I actually now like her hosting better than Whoopi.”
- “My absolute favorite of the show. She will be missed.”
- “The glue that holds that place together.”
Joy Behar once said that she’ll never retire from her career because she’s always working on a play or a comedy show. She may eventually leave The View, but not any time soon. Don’t call her trip to Europe a hiatus. She’ll be back before you know it.
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger
