Mark Davis/Getty ImagesKelly Ripa is on the hunt for a new daytime sidekick—and there's no time to be wasted.
After learning—albeit suddenly and without adequate warning—that Michael Strahan was departing his post next to her on Live! to join Good Morning America, the multi-decade co-host knew that finding his replacement would not be a seamless nor speedy decision.
"We have to now find another great person, which is fun but challenging," she told People. "Our show is one based on chemistry and camaraderie and trust. All those things don't just happen; it doesn't fall out of the sky. It takes a lot of work, and it takes a group discussion."
While Strahan initially told audiences he would remain at Kelly's side until September, that plan swiftly changed less than a week later.
"Michael's last day on Live will be on Friday, May 13, which not only gives the show the chance to have a nice send-off for him during the May book, but to also immediately begin the on-air search for a new co-host," a show spokesperson told E! News in late April. "This plan also allows GMA to start integrating Michael into the show more often this summer before his full-time start in September."
It was a line of reasoning Ripa fully supported.
"What we've explained to them is, well, if you had asked us, we would have told you, 'Guys, we need to start looking because we have summer hiatus, we have vacation time. We need to find people. If we're going to have this list narrowed down at least to a manageable size by the fall, we need to start now,'" she told the magazine.
Despite months of searching planned, it seems fans of the show keep returning to the same name—Anderson Cooper. When asked about the possibility of the journalist joining on full-time, Ripa told People just to "stay tuned." One thing is certain—there will be two hosts.
"I like having a partner," she added. "I don't think it works otherwise. I need someone sitting next to me."
In the interim, Ripa is moving on with the show with the advice of the man she used to sit next to years ago—Regis Philbin.
"We just keep doing it one show at a time," she said. "We always try to remind ourselves it's never as good as we think it is and it's never as bad as we think is. We just keep marching forward. That's what we've done for years. It's not a formula I invented. This is a formula that Regis created, and we're sticking to it."