Rumblings that Chelsea Handler is unhappy with her relationship with E! came to a head on Sunday.
Handler's publicist Slate PR's Stephen Huvane, her manager Irving Azoff and others close to Handler told TheWrap that she's going to leave the network when her contract expires at the end of 2014.
“Chelsea wants to leave and she's going to go,” Azoff told TheWrap. As to the reason why she's leaving, Azoff quipped, “She's a girl.”
One insider told TheWrap that Handler isn't happy with E!'s programming and doesn't believe that it's helping her show's ratings.
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Though E! owns the “Chelsea Lately” show and format, she'll be shopping new ideas to another network or digital service, but her next iteration of the project will likely be a weekly not daily show.
Recently, Handler told Howard Stern that she is eyeing Netflix as the show's next home.
“They don't know what they're doing [at E!]. They have no ideas. It's a failure,” she told SiriusXM's Stern earlier this month.
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She went on to say that Netflix would be the ideal situation as it will allow people to watch her show whenever they want.
“Chelsea has nine months left on her contract and E! will not comment on the future of ‘Chelsea Lately’ at this time,” an E! representative told TheWrap.
Produced by Handler's production company Borderline Amazing, “Chelsea Lately” debuted on July 16, 2007. The series has been losing viewers steadily over the years. In 2011, “Chelsea Lately” averaged 960,000 viewers per episode. By the end of 2013, it had fallen to 571,000 viewers.
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Handler, who also produces E!'s weekly late night talk show from Ross Mathews, has several projects in the works. She's currently developing a pilot for FX created by and starring “Chelsea Lately” writer Jen Kirkman.
Earlier this month, Handler's fifth book, “Uganda Be Kidding Me,” was released.
CAA, Azoff and attorney Craig Jacobson represent Handler.
The post Insiders: Chelsea Handler Leaving E! When Contract Expires appeared first on TheWrap.
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