Ross Mathews, Drew Barrymore and 50 Cent.Photo: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for The Podcast Academy/The Ambies, Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty, Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for STARZ
The Drew Barrymore Showhost, 47, announced via Instagram on Thursday thatshe tested positive for COVID-19. But fear not, as Barrymore has tapped a couple of high-profile names to step in amid her absence from her daytime series:Curtis “50 Cent” Jacksonand current co-hostRoss Mathews.
“I’ve got covid and lucky the cat! I’m good and will be back soon,” she captioned of photo herself, snuggled up with her cat in bed. “In the meantime @helloross and @50cent are taking over. So only good news to report!!!!!”
Barrymore then teased: “Maybe some other special surprises too!”
Commenting on her post, Mathews, 43, wrote: “LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!”
“I’ll keep your seat warm for you until you come back. ❤️,” he continued. “Rest. Take care of you. Watch the new season ofThe Crown. Text me if you need anything. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️.”
50 Cent, for his part, reshared Barrymore’s post on his Instagram Story. Additionally, a source exclusively tells PEOPLE that the 47-year-old “In da Club” rapper “loves Drew.”
“They are friends. So anything to help her out, he would do,” the source continued. “He moved his day around to make it happen. He’s sad she’s not here but was happy to fill in for her.”
Though the news of his hosting stint may come as a surprise to some viewers, thePowerstar has dabbled in this line of work before. Heguest co-hosteda 2016 episode ofThe Viewand evenflipped the tablesto interviewStephen Colbertin a 2018 episode ofThe Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
Drew Barrymore Showviewers, however, are already well-acquainted with Mathews. He is a co-host on the popular daytime series.
Prior to taking on the role, Mathews was a correspondent forThe Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He was also a co-host onLive from E!and a panelist onChelsea Lately. He even had a short-lived talk show calledHello Ross, which ran from September 2013 to May 2014.
Mathews is currently a judge onRuPaul’s Drag Raceand hosts theHello Rosspodcast.
The Drew Barrymore Showpremiered on CBS in September 2020. It has grown in popularity, particularlyincreasing in ratingsafter going through a format change.
Drew Barrymore.Drew’s News/CBS
As the series was renewed through 2023, Barrymore said she was “honored and grateful but I also want to take this show higher andcontinue to innovate and be a game-changerin the daytime space.”
“Rising to the occasion of finding people in the diverse way they watch is what I want to challenge myself with,” her statement continued. “Our show wants to be a bright spot not a blind spot and we just want to make people feel good. And I thank all the people who helped us get here.”
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The Drew Barrymore Showairs weekdays on CBS (check local listings).
source: people.com
