After a cross-country move from L.A. to NYC and surviving the writers strike, “The Kelly Clarkson Show” will return with its fifth season on Oct. 16.
Clarkson’s talk show will film in Studio 6A in 30 Rock, which has previously been home to “Late Night” with David Letterman, Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Fallon. Ahead of its Oct. 16 premiere, “The Kelly Clarkson Show” will begin filming on Oct. 10 in its new, state-of-the-art studio, which is said to have a relaxed and intimate vibe, a prominent platform for her house band and 200 seats to welcome fans to participate in a live, in-studio experience.
“I’m so excited to start our fifth season at the iconic 30 Rock,” Clarkson said. “There is such a unique energy and creative spirit that comes with filming in New York City. Y’all ready?”
The talk show had previously been in pre-production while its new set was being built in New York. For the past four seasons, “The Kelly Clarkson Show” filmed at the Universal Lot in Los Angeles, Calif. Over the summer, “The Kelly Clarkson Show” moved from the Universal Lot to 30 Rock.
“We launched the past two season premieres in New York with great success. When the opportunity to bring the show under the same roof as ‘Today,’ Seth, Jimmy and ‘SNL’ presented itself, we felt it was the perfect way to re-energize the show going into the fifth season,” said Tracie Wilson,executive vice president of syndication studios and E! News, NBCUniversal Entertainment.
Alex Duda, showrunner of “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” commented: “We can’t wait to welcome a vibrant audience to join us in studio. There will be lots of surprises and plenty of giveaways. Kellyoke fans can expect to see Kelly and her band perform impromptuduets with our 30 Rock neighbors and talent from Broadway, plus more ‘Songs & Stories’ episodes with artists such as P!NK, Garth Brooks and Chris Martin. We’ll also do our signature ‘Good Neighbor’ segment, highlighting everyday people doing extraordinary things in their communities.”
“The Kelly Clarkson Show” was one of the few shows that hadn’t announced a premiere date during the writers strike, avoiding backlash from the WGA, which targeted shows like “The Drew Barrymore Show,” “The Talk,” “The View” and “The Jennifer Hudson Show.” Now that the writers strike has come to an end, Clarkson’s show — which is covered by the WGA — doesn’t have to worry about the public relations crisis of navigating blowback during the writers strike that plagued Barrymore’s show, especially.
When the writers strike began in May, production on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” was shut down. The talk show had pre-taped episodes in advance, so for the remainder of its fourth season, it was able to air new episodes that were already in the can before WGA went on strike.
PvNew previously reported that Clarkson paid the show’s staff out of her own pocket for the days they had already been scheduled to work on Season 4 in the spring.
While SAG-AFTRA is still on strike, talk shows hosts like Clarkson are not violating strike rules because daytime hosts are covered by a different contract than the one in dispute by actors. The contract that covers talk shows, game shows, variety shows and soap operas was renewed and ratified by union members in 2022. But talk shows that are returning amid the SAG-AFTRA strike will still have to grapple with how to handle celebrity guests. Actors who appear as guests will have to follow union rules, which means they cannot discuss or promote any struck projects. And many actors and writers may opt to not appear at all, no matter what they discuss, in an effort to stand in solidarity with their union.
Of course, by the time Clarkson returns to daytime, the actors strike could be over, as SAG-AFTRA has been back at the negotiating table this week.
This past week, “The Jennifer Hudson Show” returned, and next week, “The Talk” will be back. Barrymore’s show is expected to return in October, though no premiere date has been set. Other shows that already had returned include “Live! With Kelly and Mark,” “Tamron Hall,” “The View” and “Sherri.”
