Sharon Osbourne alleges CBS set her up, called her 'not repentant' before 'The Talk' ousting
Charles TrepanySharon Osbourne is speaking out about her ousting from "The Talk" after an explosive on-air argument about racism ensued between her and her co-hosts.
In the four-part docuseries "Sharon Osbourne: To Hell & Back," now streaming on Fox Nation, Osbourne breaks down her side of the heated on-air exchange between herself and co-hosts Sheryl Underwood and Elaine Welteroth that preceded her departure.
USA TODAY has reached out to reps for Underwood and Welteroth for comment.
“I wanted to look into the camera and say ‘(expletive) you, (expletive) you, (expletive) you, (expletive) you, and CBS take that and walk off," Osbourne said, while waving her middle finger. "But I couldn’t do that. Can you imagine if I’d have done that what it would’ve done? It would’ve been suicidal for me to do that, but that’s what was inside me. And I honestly wanted to say, ‘CBS go (expletive) yourselves.' "
Here are the highlights from the fiery docuseries.
Sharon Osbourne maintains Piers Morgan 'isn't racist'
In March 2021, Osbourne took heat on "The Talk" for defending her former "America's Got Talent" co-judge Piers Morgan, a British journalist deemed racist by many at the time for criticizing Oprah Winfrey's tell-all interview with Duchess Megan and Prince Harry.
Morgan attracted a flood of complaints when he said on “Good Morning Britain” he did not “believe a word" Megan said, including her allegations of racism while a senior member of the royal family.
“I wouldn’t believe her if she read me a weather report," Morgan added.
Osbourne said she was falsely portrayed by her "Talk" co-hosts as racist for defending Morgan's right to freedom of speech.
“Piers isn’t a racist, has never written anything that’s racist, has never said anything that’s racist," she said. "He was branded a racist, and because I supported him, I was branded a racist,"
During the on-air discussion, Osbourne said she was "about to be put in the electric chair because I have a friend who many people think is a racist and that makes me a racist."
When Underwood, who is Black, asked what Osbourne would say to people who think it's racist to defend a person making the comments Morgan did, Osbourne said: "How could I be racist about anybody? How could I be racist about anybody or anything in my life? How can I?"
Underwood said the exchange left her "traumatized" and "fearful," and the show went on a month-long hiatus while CBS conducted an internal review of Osbourne. The network determined the event "did not align" with its "values for a respectful workplace," and Osbourne left that month.
Sharon Osbourne calls 'The Talk' showrunners 'weak women' after racism controversy fallout
Carrie Ann Inaba calls Sharon Osbourne's treatment 'unacceptable'
Carrie Ann Inaba, a co-host on "The Talk" from 2017 to 2021, recalled in the docuseries watching the argument unfold on TV while recovering from COVID at home.
"It was unfathomable, unfathomable that that happened on 'The Talk.' 'The Talk' was not meant to be a place where we create discomfort in our audience nor in each other. It was supposed to be a safe place," Inaba said. "What happened was unacceptable."
She added that "no one should ever have gone through what (Osbourne) went through that day."
"I was traumatized even though I wasn't there," she continued.
Sharon Osbourne speaks out after exiting 'The Talk' in racial controversy: 'I’m angry. I’m hurt.'
Sharon Osbourne said CBS exec 'couldn't stand' defense of Morgan
Following the episode, Osbourne said she demanded a meeting with showrunners Heather Gray and Kristin Matthews, which Underwood also joined. Gray died at age 50 in July due to illness.
"They all put us in some office room. I was like, 'If you want me out just, (expletive) tell me: Who told you to do this to me?' And Heather Gray and Kristin Matthews were crying, and Sheryl's rocking back and forward still crying," Osbourne said. "I'm like, 'Why are you crying? You all did this to me. Why did you do it? Who told you to do it?' "
Osbourne said the showrunners revealed that Amy Reisenbach, who oversees CBS' daytime programming, called for the segment. Osbourne said she believes Reisenbach did this as retaliation for Osbourne backing criticism of Winfrey's interview, which aired on CBS.
"And you know why I think they did it? They were pissed off with Piers that the jewel in their little plastic crown — Oprah, Megan and Harry — was being criticized," she said. "I worked for CBS, and I backed Piers up, and they couldn't stand that. They couldn't stand that."
CBS reiterated a statement it released when Osbourne left the show last year, which said "We did not find any evidence that CBS executives orchestrated the discussion or blindsided any of the hosts."
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Elaine Welteroth heard telling Sharon Osbourne 'I don't think you're racist'
Shortly after the episode, Osbourne said Welteroth entered her dressing room and revealed the showrunners initially asked her to confront Osbourne about racism. When Welterother refused, she said Underwood, whom Osbourne considered a close friend at the time, agreed to do it.
"I don't think you're racist," Welteroth can be heard telling Osbourne on recording from a hot mic obtained by the Daily Mail and shared in the documentary. "No one who knows you would ever say that or think that."
Welteroth continued: "Sheryl and I are held to a different standard by Black people and people of color out there, who expect us to say something about every racist anything, and it puts us in such a (messed) up position that even if we don't have the information, if we don't even really care, if we don't even really want to engage, it feels like a spotlight is on us."
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Sharon Osbourne says CBS called her 'not repentant enough' in investigation
While "The Talk" went on hiatus, CBS conducted an internal investigation of Osbourne, during which the TV personality said she was accused of being unrepentant.
"They said to me at one point, 'You're not repentant enough, and we don't believe that you can repent for what you've done,' " Osbourne said. "I'm like, 'What's this? Am in (expletive) church? Don't tell me when I'm repenting or not.' "
Osbourne described herself as "this lamb that was slaughtered that morning."
"I had this anger within me for CBS," she continued. "You’ve planted the seed, now I have to live with this. Cause once you plant the seed that someone’s a racist, whether you are or you aren’t, that lives with you.”
What else has Sharon Osbourne said since 'The Talk'?
Since her exit, Osbourne has spoken out several times about her anger over her ousting. In an interview with Megyn Kelly in October 2021, Osbourne said her longtime friends Gray and Matthews quickly turned on her after the episode.
"Weak, weak women, that didn’t have a backbone to turn around and say, ‘This is suicidal. We can’t do this,' " Osbourne told Kelly. "And to let it go after the break, so it was 20 minutes on national TV of bashing me. Twenty minutes … They just — it blindsided me.”
In the first episode after the controversy, Underwood reflected on the exchange.
"I knew I had to be an example for others to follow because I didn't want to be perceived as the angry Black woman," Underwood told viewers. "It is difficult to go back to that day because I just feel the trauma. I feel fearful, a little apprehensive."
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Contributing: Hannah Yasharoff, USA TODAY; Associated Press
