Some Live With Kelly and Mark viewers aren’t huge fans of Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos’ prerecorded episodes. The couple were branded “lazy” by social media users after several broadcasts were filmed in advance.
On Tuesday, January 2, Live kicked off with a banner flashing on the bottom of the screen to tell viewers that the episode was “previously recorded.” Kelly, 53, and Mark, 52, took their seats at the news desk, with Mark wishing the audience a happy New Year. Many felt deceived considering the episode was clearly taped before the ball dropped in Times Square to usher in 2024.
“‘Previously recorded’ = change channel,” one person wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Laziest multimillionaires in daytime TV.”
Just before Christmas in 2023, Kelly and Mark pretaped a bunch of episodes to air during the holidays, per The Sun. While the content and the interviews with celebrity guests in all of the shows is new, the couple are not actually reporting live as promised.
Another person chimed in on X, writing, “You are not live yet. It’s after New Year's. Please get back to work we miss the live.”
“Please bring back live shows,” a third comment said.
The All My Children alums have gotten called out by viewers for prerecorded episodes many times in the past. In September 2023, Live fans expressed disappointment in the show for airing yet another episode that was taped in advance.
"When they changed the host name, [they] should have changed the title of the program to Prerecorded with Kelly and Mark. How many days a week did they agree to work? #itsnotlive," a person voiced on X.
Mark became Kelly’s official cohost on the show in April 2023 after Ryan Seacrest left the program. During his first month of cohosting the long-running series, the Riverdale alum took part in multiple previously recorded episodes.
“I wish I had a job that you only work [three] days a week,” one viewer wrote on X that month. “Maybe you should call the show Recorded With Kelly and Mark.”
For some longtime fans, it seemed like a rather odd way to start off Mark’s Live cohosting career.
“Can you believe this? Previously recorded last Thursday, Friday and again today. I think it may be time to switch to a different programming. Crazy,” another angered Live viewer wrote on X that month.
Last year, it was believed that Kelly and Mark scheduled multiple filming dates to record Live episodes in advance ahead of their 2023 summer break.
“The opening monologue for the prerecorded episodes is very general, like, discussing relationships and Mark and Kelly’s marriage and life with the kids,” The Sun reported.
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