Extra has been one of the most popular newsmagazine Hollywood gossip talk shows since its inception in 1994. In the time since, the show has been associated mostly in the past few years with the now-former host of the show, Mario Lopez. The former Saved by the Bell star himself has been so strongly linked to the show that it would be easy to forget that he briefly had a co-host during the early 2010s in the form of Maria Menounos.
As one of Hollywood's most popular go-to media reporters, Maria Menounos is a name that should not be so easily forgotten among the legacy of Extra. So what happened? Why is it so forgotten and ignored by fans and just about everyone involved? Well, it may stem from the fact that the former Dancing with the Stars contestant's time there was greatly overshadowed by rumors that the two co-hosts had a rivalry brewing. Were these rumors true? If so, why? Let's break it down with a comprehensive timeline.
13 Mario Joins Extra
To accurately tell any story like this, we must start at the beginning. And this story all started when Mario Lopez joined the cast of Extra as a host in 2008. Within two years, his star power was able to boost the show's views to become the fourth most syndicated newsmagazine talk show in America. But as the sole host of the show, Lopez still needed a Robin to his Batman.
12 Maria Joins Extra
Enter Maria Menounos, the proverbial Robin in question. She joined Lopez's side as the regular co-host for Extra in 2011 and instant onscreen chemistry blossomed between them from the very start. It was already very clear to audiences that the two were already inseparable and they loved working on the set together for every second of the day. Or did they?
11 The Rumors Circulate
Contrary to the perception that we may have received from our television sets, we received a whole different story if we circulated the internet for rumors at the time. Online, there were growing reports suggesting that the two had beef. One source told Page Six that the two "barely even speak to each other" in between takes.
10 What Was The Beef About?
In the same Page Six report, different sources gave different accounts trying to explain what this alleged beef could be about. One source claimed that it all started when Maria suggested that she wanted to leave the show (we'll expand on that later). Another source stated that there was beef long before Maria even considered making her exit, accusing her of acting like "a diva." On the contraire, another report claimed that it was actually Lopez who acted like a diva.
9 Mario Denies Rumors That Maria's Leaving Extra
In an attempt to save face in the midst of these rumors, Mario Lopez served as a guest on Andy Cohen's Watch What Happens Live. When asked a question from a fan on the state of new rumors about her leaving the show and where he stands with Menounos, he didn't quite clarify if they got along, but he promised that she was not leaving the show anytime soon."Until I see her not there [anymore], she's there," he doubled down.
8 Maria Exits Extra
Welp, so much for saving face. Shortly after Lopez's guest spot with Andy Cohen, official word got out straight from the horse's mouth herself announcing that she would be exiting the show after sharing co-hosting duties with Mario Lopez for just over three years between 2011 and 2014.
7 Was She Fired? No
Since Menounos neglected to publicly clarify why she was leaving Extra or the state of her relationship with Mario Lopez, this left the public to wildly speculate what happened. Some rumors suggested that she was abruptly fired, while others suggested that Menounos' contract with Extra simply ran out and the producers refused to renew it, possibly because Lopez refused to work with her again.
6 Mario Denies Getting Her Fired
In the case of the latter rumor, Lopez opted to save face once again to clear his name. This time, by speaking to Fox News Latino, to whom he assured that "Those are just rumors ... We're fine. There is no truth to that." Even if Lopez's words are to be believed, that still leaves us a big question mark as far as why did she leave Extra in the first place, if not because of Lopez.
5 Leaving For New Opportunities
Another one of the unnamed sources in that aforementioned Page Six report stated that Maria Menounos was leaving simply to pursue new opportunities. "She has decided to move on," claimed the source. "She is deciding between a number of other opportunities." To her credit, upon leaving Extra, Maria Menounos did indulge in a number of different opportunities for media appearances, including those in radio, at E! News, and even in wrestling.
4 Tracey Edmonds Replaces Maria
To fill the void and the co-host chair that was originally filled by Maria Menounos, Extra made a call to Tracey Edmonds - who may be better remembered to readers as the former partner of Eddie Murphy and current partner of Deion Sanders - to fill that spot. She co-hosted alongside Lopez until she herself opted to leave the show in 2017.
3 Maria Finally Addresses Rumors In 2018
For much of the last decade, Maria Menounos kept her mouth hush on anything related to Mario Lopez in hopes of moving on to better and newer opportunities, but in a 2018 interview with Sway in the Morning, she finally set the record straight: she felt no ill will at all towards Lopez. Not only did she squash any idea that a beef was ever-present between them, but went on to list five things she loved about Mario Lopez.
2 Mario Exits Extra
If there were any rumors of beef and if it was true that Lopez did not want her on the show, it truthfully all amounted to naught as Lopez himself exited the show within a few years of time. In 2019, he left the show to pursue a new hosting gig on Access Hollywood, a job which he still retains. His Extra job went over to Billy Bush.
1 Where Are They Now? Neither With Extra
Ultimately, it does not matter who hated who or who wanted who off of the show, since neither are working for Extra as of this writing. They both have moved on to bigger and better things, with Lopez moving on with Access Hollywood and three children with a wife he married in 2012, while Maria Menounos has moved on as a WWE ambassador with her own podcast; she also co-created AfterBuzz TV and serves as its CEO. Lopez and Menounos are now more than happy to keep both Extra and whatever beef that did or did not exist in their rearview mirror.