New Host 'Fashion Police' 2015: 7 Stars That Can Resurrect A Franchise In Disarray
It's been a turbulent time for E! staple Fashion Police. The shocking departure of host Kathy Griffin last week stunned pop culture outlets and social media revelers coming just days after popular FP panelist Kelly Osbourne quit the headline-making show. The moves also come on the heels of co-host Giuliana Rancic's controversial statements involving Disney Zendaya's dreadlocked Academy Awards hairdo. Apparently Ozy's shoot-from-the-hip daughter was none too impressed by her cohort's apology after she concluded that the 18-year-old talent's Oscar tress smelled like "patchouli oil… or weed.” Fans and critics charged Rancic with making a culturally insensitive insult as fans of the program went ballistic.
Griffin, who was brought on to replace the late great Joan Rivers and continue the sharp-tongued comedic style that has made Fashion Police must-see TV, saw the writing on the wall. "You’re kind of vulnerable...you’re there with the microphone and the audience, and you’re hoping to take this audience on a ride," she told the ladies of The View on Monday, calling the entire experience a "dog pile" that "felt disingenuous."
Continued Griffin: "Right now, on the red carpet, all these women look so great. I was hoping that we could talk about the events themselves and the shows and stuff like that. And so I didn’t want to say that Meryl Streep didn’t look great, because she looked great. But certainly, in my repertoire, I’ve said heinous things, I’m well aware of that, trust me!"
Since Griffin's and Kelly's departure there has been a behind-the-scenes race to fill their much coveted seats with such names as Khloé Kardashian and NeNe Leakes dominating rumors of being next in line. There is even talk that the powers-that-be at E! are looking to Fashion Police, but EnStars is having none of that. We present seven names that can save Fashion Police.
Kathy's Replacement: Melissa Rivers vs. Wendy Williams
Even as buzz of cancellation gets louder, Fashion Police may just be too big to fail given its status as one of E!'s flagship series. With that said, finding a replacement for Kathy Griffin is a priority. The sentimental choice would be Joan Rivers' lovable daughter and Fashion Police executive producer Melissa Rivers, who would present a much needed link to the past while moving forward to the future. But if Fashion Police wants to make a more challenging statement, picking talk show queen Wendy Williams would do the trick.
Remember, Williams is known for telling it like it is, straight-no-chaser. Her notorious reputation for hilariously taking on celebrities would provide her with the same cover Joan enjoyed. Bringing on Wendy Williams would make a HUGE splash. Or maybe the Fashion Police could bring on Melissa as lead host and allow Wendy to be the mean-chick of the show as a sort of anti-Kelly Osbourne. But we know Wendy's star (and ego) is much too big for that. For that move, Fashion Police should go to five other names to follow Kelly.
Kristin Cavallari
The Hills star and wife of embattled Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has been floated as one of the choices to replace Kelly. And she does have some fashion cred. She has appeared alongside Fashion Star standout Orly Shani on the E! show The Fabulist in 2004 and has hooked
up with Chinese Laundry on a shoe collection. If anything else, Cavallari would bring some spunk to the house that Joan Rivers built.
Ciara
Yes the R&B starlet already has a gig bagged up as a featured player on the upcoming NBC summer variety show I Can Do That! But the bubbly dancing machine would be a proverbial breath of fresh air on Fashion Police adding good girl balance.
Janet Mock
Mock, a transgender writer, activist, author and host of weekly culture show So POPular! on MSNBC's Shift, is a quick witted quote monster that balances heartfelt insight with straight-no-chaser hilarity. She's been called one of "the smartest women on twitter" by Fast Company. In other words, Mock would be an inspired pick that goes beyond its powerful sign-of-the-times statement.
Ashley Madekwe
On paper this pick is a no brainer. Like Kelly Osbourne, the stylish Ashley Madekwe is a British it girl. But the comparison ends there. Madekwe, an actress that has been featured prominently on the ABC show Revenge and can currently be seen on WGN America's supernatural witch
drama Salem, also runs the acclaimed fashion blog Ring My Bell. Hmmm...
Amber Rose
Talk about your wild cards. On first glance, the bald beauty doesn't quite fit the traditional profile of a Fashion Police talking head. But the provocative Amber Rose would be a television pipe bomb. From her very public battles with Team Kardashian (Franchise player Kim K. would undoubtedly put her foot down on the mere thought of Kanye West's ex-girlfriend coming aboard the E! ship) to her bootylicious, drop dead gorgeous Instagram romps, Rose would bring some much needed Philly edge to the somewhat vanilla series. If anything, having Amber and Wendy Williams on the same show would be pretty explosive.
