Is Joy Behar coming for Whoopi Goldberg’s moderator seat on The View?
Well, probably not, but that doesn’t mean the long-time television host doesn’t enjoy the gig.
Whoopi has been missing from the latest season of The View, which began earlier this week, due to COVID-19.
While Whoopi has been out of the moderator’s seat, Joy has taken her place.
Joy opened up on her experience as the moderator during Tuesday’s episode of The View: Behind the Table podcast, where she sat with executive producer Brian Teta.
One of the first things Brian asked Joy was how she felt about taking over for Whoopi.
Joy Behar admits she’s a ‘control freak’
“How does [Whoopi’s absence] change the way you prepare for a show [when] you find out you’re going to be moderating for the first time on a premiere episode?” Brian asked Joy.
The television host revealed that she had no issues taking over for Whoopi and enjoys being in the moderator’s seat.
“Well, I enjoy moderating. It’s no secret that I like it. I had my own show many times, and I like being in that position,” Joy explained.
“I guess maybe I’m a control freak.”
Brian sarcastically replied: “A little bit,” to which Joy replied: “OK, I’ll accept that.”
The View Season 27 kicks off without Whoopi Goldberg
The Season 27 premiere kicked off on Tuesday after the show took a long break for the end of summer.
Concern began to take over immediately when viewers noticed that Whoopi wasn’t in her seat as usual, but Joy quickly explained why.
“As you can see, Whoopi is not here today,” Joy told the audience. “She has Covid.”
“Yes! It’s back! It’s back!” Joy responded to the audience’s groans.
However, Whoopi is expecting to recover quickly and will be back on the show before too long, as she confirmed on Wednesday’s episode in a video call.
Whoopi appeared on the video screen wearing a face mask and joked that she was not stuck at Burning Man or in Italy filming a movie but that she did indeed have a case of COVID-19.
“I’m still testing positive, so I can’t come back. It might be a couple of days,” Whoopi said.
“I’m thrilled to see the new desk and the beautiful women,” she said, adding, “I can’t wait to get back and hang out.”
The View airs weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.