As it turns out, for the last 22 seasons of The Voice, we could have been watching Reba turn her red chair around instead of Blake Shelton.
Blake shared this astounding news a couple of years ago in an interview, and I’m not anti-Blake, but damn, this would’ve been a fun switch…
And a couple of years ago, in a late-night interview with Andy Cohen, Reba shared that this rumor was in fact true and expounded on the backstory a bit.
If you’re wondering why she turned down the opportunity, it’s rather simple, although Reba is known for being a firecracker, she just couldn’t imagine spending her days telling people they were no good at singing:
“It was a very popular show in Holland, I’m pretty sure. And I watched the tape and I said, ‘No, I’m gonna pass on that, because I don’t think I’d ever be able to tell somebody that they’re terrible or ya know, ‘go find another job, or hope you like your nighttime job.’
I couldn’t do that day in and day out. I just couldn’t do it, so I did pass on it!”
She went on to add that Blake was the perfect choice for the job, always giving credit to her fellow country music folks. But it makes me wish we would’ve seen a bit more Reba on our screens for all these years.
When Andy later asked if she regretted the decision to turn down the opportunity, Reba jokingly added that she wished she would have known how successful it would be with viewers:
“After you see a very successful show that’s been running what? Fifteen years! Ugh, yeah! I’m like shoot, I should have done that!”
She also told Billboard that filling those shoes is gonna be tough:
“To fill Blake’s chair? Wow. That’s gonna be tough… he did a great job and kudos to him.”
And Blake Shelton’s seat isn’t the only interesting role that Reba has had to forfeit in the past.
In 1997, she also turned down a filming role in the iconic Titanic drama playing Molly Brown, when a shift in the filming schedule interfered with her music tour.
