Melissa Rivers is stepping into her mom’s ‘Fashion Police’ shoes
It’s been nine months since the world lost Joan Rivers: Comedian, author, pioneer, talk show host, and funny-lady extraordinaire. But today, a different one of Joan’s tremendous titles is what’s being called to mind: Mother.
E!’s Fashion Police, the show which Joan was still working on when she passed away, will return to air on August 31 just in time to dish its signature snark and sass on the MTV Video Music Awards. The newest host? Melissa Rivers — Joan’s daughter.
The cast and show have been in flux since Joan’s death — the controversial Zendaya comments, Kathy Griffin leaving, Kelly Osbourne leaving — and the inclusion of Melissa, who has served as executive producer of the show since the beginning, might be just the right note to strike. Melissa will continue being the executive producer as she co-hosts with current Fashion Police stars Giuliana Rancic and Brad Goreski.
“As an executive producer since the beginning, Melissa helped shape Fashion Police into an iconic TV series that couples fashion with comedy,” Jeff Olde, executive vice president, programming, and development for E!, said in a statement. “We are pleased to now also feature Melissa in front of the Fashion Police cameras, as she joins returning panelists Giuliana and Brad. And with the added flavor of rotating panelists, the show will deliver fresh, different, and unpredictable fashion reviews with each new episode.”
With Melissa stepping up to the plate, we have a feeling things will be much more steady in the world of Fashion Police. “My mother was fearless,” Melissa said during The Hollywood Reporter‘s Women in Entertainment Breakfast last December — the first time she spoke about Joan after her death. “And I don’t mean she didn’t have any fears, I mean that even though she was only 5’2,” she stood tall and walked through it. And that’s what made her such a brilliant performer. She was willing to say what others were thinking and too frightened to admit.”
Melissa described her mother as “brave,” first and foremost. “Truth be told, my mother never thought of herself as a woman working in a man’s world,” she said at the breakfast. “She thought of herself as a comic that had to be funnier than anyone else . . . she just wanted to do her job and that was to make people laugh.”
Now, we are thrilled to see Joan’s daughter step up to the plate and continue her legacy. “I’m very excited to be given the opportunity to continue to work with my E! and Fashion Police family,” Melissa explained of her new position in a statement.
Like mother, like daughter. We cannot wait to see what happens with Fashion Police and what Melissa brings to the table — or should we say, runway — this August.
[Images , via]
