CBS denies Sharon Osbourne left 'The Talk' for $10 million

CBS denies report Sharon Osbourne received up to $10 million for exiting ‘The Talk’

By Greg BraxtonSenior Writer, Culture and Representation

March 29, 2021 4:39 PM PT

CBS is denying a report that Sharon Osbourne received a payout of up to $10 million for exiting “The Talk” after making inflammatory comments about race on the daytime talk show earlier this month.

Page Six cited “a source” in reporting that Osbourne “is walking away with a $5 to $10 million minimum payout and was able to spin that it was her decision [to leave the show].” Another source cited said that Osbourne would be speaking out about her exit “when she is ready... She has been on that show for 11 years and knows all the secrets.”

A CBS spokesperson said of the report: “False, inaccurate or untrue. Take your pick.”

The network announced Friday that Osbourne, the last original panelist on “The Talk,” would be leaving the series following an internal investigation prompted by comments she made during the March 10 broadcast. The wife of rocker Ozzy Osbourne had a tense exchange with co-host Sheryl Underwood after defending her friend Piers Morgan over his criticism of former actress Meghan Markle. (In a piece for the “Daily Mail” published Monday, Morgan came to Osbourne’s defense, calling her a victim of “stinking hypocrisy.”)

In a recent interview with Oprah Winfrey, Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, said they were subject to racism within the royal family, including “concerns” about the skin color of their child. Morgan lashed out at Markle and questioned the veracity of her claim that she attempted suicide. Amid fierce criticism of his comments, he quit his gig on ITV’s “Good Morning Britain.”

“I feel even like I’m about to be put in the electric chair because I have a friend who many people think is a racist, so that makes me a racist,” Osbourne said of Morgan on March 10. She later said that neither she nor Morgan was racist, but admitted that she “had a go” at Underwood and asked for an education about what he’d said that was racist. Osbourne apologized for her behavior in a March 11 statement on Twitter.

In announcing Osbourne’s exit, CBS said the internal investigation concluded that Osbourne’s “behavior toward her co-hosts during the March 10 episode did not align with our values for a respectful workplace.”

“The Talk,” which has been on hiatus pending results of the CBS investigation, will return with original episodes on April 12.