Top 10 Times Talk Show Hosts Cried on TV

While Kelly may have spent the past few decades making us all cry with her stunning vocals and heartbreaking lyrics, she is now on the receiving end of that sob-fest as she meets with inspiring guests on her talk show. This was perhaps most evident during her interview with Rachel Handy, a domestic abuse survivor and mother of five who has faced financial struggles due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite being laid off from her job and almost losing her house, Handy and her family decided to make meals for the homeless as a way of giving back to their community. It’s safe to say this was enough to have Kelly choking back a few tears.

We may not know what it’s like, but we can imagine that having a street named after you is a pretty emotional experience. During a surprise celebration for Steve’s 58th birthday, his family, friends and Cleveland mayor Frank Jackson gave the talk show host the gift of a lifetime: naming part of the street he grew up on “Steve Harvey Way”, as well as declaring January 17 - Steve’s birthday - “Steve Harvey Day”. While Steve was visibly emotional during the entire surprise, it wasn’t until the camera panned to video footage of his late mom’s old house that Steve got so emotional that he had to turn his back to the audience.

After a terrorist attack killed four pedestrians and injured many more in London, James Corden took to his talk show to speak about the tragedy that took place in his hometown. Corden got visibly upset while speaking about the horrifying incident. While he held back most of the physical evidence of tears, he clearly got choked up while expressing his feelings of homesickness and his desire to be with his family and fellow Londoners during the heartbreaking time. While Corden was not able to be home in the wake of the Westminster attack, Corden sadly had to address another attack in London on London Bridge a few months later - though he was able to do so on his own terms this time, from his beloved hometown.

While Ellen is no stranger to the world of animal adoption, with 7 adopted pets of her own as of 2020. Unfortunately, she didn’t read the fine print when adopting dog ‘Iggy’ in 2007, when her and wife Portia de Rossi still had 6 pets. After realizing that she wouldn’t have enough time or energy to ensure Iggy got along with their other animals, Ellen decided to give the dog to her hairdresser’s family. However, this ultimately went against the contractual agreement of the adoption, and resulted in the dog being taken away from the heartbroken family. After finding out the dog had been taken away, Ellen went on her show to weepingly plead for Iggy to be returned to the family. She was notably unable to keep her composure as she talked about how guilty she felt about the situation.

Oprah was a staple on TV screens across the world for 25 years, so her departure from her widely famous talk show 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' was sure to be an emotional one. Despite the series' tremendous success and incredibly dedicated fanbase, Oprah made the decision to step away from the show in 2009 following its 25th season in 2011. Despite keeping her composure through most of the announcement, the host could be seen choking back tears as she begins thanking her audience for inviting her into their lives for so long and for “enriching [her] life”. Can someone pass the tissues?

While ‘The View’ is known for its fiery hot topic conversations and sometimes controversial takes, it is rare that we get to see emotional moments on the show quite like the return of host Meghan McCain following the death of her father. Meghan, who spoke openly about her father’s battle with brain cancer leading up to his death, was holding back tears as she received a warm welcome from audience members and her ‘View’ colleagues. While Meghan was visibly emotional for the entire segment, it wasn’t until she began discussing the support she had received from her fellow hosts that she completely broke down crying, saying that [“none of us agree at this table on very much when it comes to politics and the world, but we are all sisters here supporting each other”.]

After the shocking 2020 news that legendary basketball player Kobe Bryant passed away in a tragic helicopter crash alongside his daughter Gianna and 7 other victims, many talk shows hosts took time to remember the NBA star and pay tribute to all the lives lost. Among the most emotional were hosts Jimmy Kimmel, who opted to tape the tribute episode without a studio audience as it “didn’t feel right”; Jimmy Fallon, who teared up as he shared the hilarious memory of how the two had met; and Ellen, who struggled to keep herself together as she urged her audience to “celebrate life” in the face of such a devastating tragedy.

Jimmy Kimmel is not shy about his love for his hometown of Las Vegas, so when the incredibly disturbing Las Vegas mass shooting occurred in 2017 it was evident that the long-time host would be heartbroken by it. While Kimmel was teary eyed through the entire opening monologue, he also appeared upset and frustrated as he discussed the prevalence of mass shootings in the U.S. and pleaded for stronger gun control. In true Kimmel fashion, Jimmy also went on to call out the hypocrisy of politicians who sent out their thoughts and prayers while simultaneously “letting the gun lobby run this country”.

Jimmy Fallon doesn’t stray from his lighthearted demeanor often. However, following the passing of his mother, Jimmy returned to the Tonight Show where he got candid about his mother's death. During the episode, Fallon was emotional while retelling a childhood memory of his mom squeezing his hand three times to say "I love you", while going on to say that he repeated the sentiment to her while she was in the hospital. If that’s not enough to make you cry, later in the show Taylor Swift performed her song 'New Years Day,’ which includes the lyrics SB ["squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi"] - the coincidence, according to ‘Tonight Show’ producer Mike DiCenzo, was enough to bring Jimmy to tears once again.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Portia de Rossi Surprises Ellen for Her 60th Birthday
“The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (2003-)

Jay Leno Says Goodbye to “The Tonight Show”
“The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” (1992-2014)

Craig Ferguson Eulogizes His Mom
“The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” (2005-14)

Jon Stewart Says Goodbye to “The Daily Show”
“The Daily Show” (1996-)

Whoopi Goldberg Cries Over the Death of Mike Nichols
“The View” (1997-)

Jimmy Kimmel is no stranger to getting choked up during his shows, but when he revealed that his son Billy was born with a heart condition and had to undergo heart surgery at just three days old - it was a different story. Kimmel, who returned to hosting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ less than two weeks after Billy’s birth, was rightfully emotional while retelling the story and struggled to get through thanking all the doctors and nurses who had saved his son. Jimmy didn’t stop there though, as he went on to emotionally discuss the proposed defunding of the National Institute of Health and the detrimental effects that it would have on families around America.