American Idol viewers were all over Twitter on Sunday night’s big finale, but the major topic of discussion wasn’t who was named this season’s winner and whether it was deserved — it was about Ryan Seacrest‘s health!
The longtime host, who was sitting at a desk in his home for the socially distanced live finale, came back from a commercial break near the end of the show, and viewers couldn’t help but notice his left eye suddenly looked far wider than the right — or possibly that the right was half-closed? Some also noted slurred or delayed speech.
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Both could be signs of a stroke or other neurological event, and considering the show was aired live, many fans sincerely feared that’s what they were seeing.
Here are just a few of the very concerned comments:
“Is @RyanSeacrest okay? Not making light of this. He went from normal to his speech being off and his eye shutting halfway.”
“Ryan Seacrest are you ok?? You look like something’s wrong.”
“Is anyone else concerned with @RyanSeacrest and his eyes right now or is it just me?”
“Has anyone else been checking Twitter/Google continuously since the end of the American Idol finale tonight to see if there are any updates regarding @RyanSeacrest’s health? Such a bizarre ending to @AmericanIdol. I hope he’s okay…”
“I think Something is wrong with Ryan Seacrest, BIG TIME. Did Anyone else notice his eye and the delay in speech ?”
“So like… I’m not a doctor and I don’t play one on TV but did Ryan Seacrest have a stroke on national TV tonight?”
See what had everyone worried for yourself [and SPOILER ALERT the announcement of this season’s winner] in the clip (below):
On top of the concern over Ryan’s appearance was his lack of appearance. On Monday morning’s Live With Kelly And Ryan, the 45-year-old was unexpectedly absent. The rare day off only served to fuel speculation something had happened.
But not to worry!
Ryan’s rep released a statement to People reassuring fans:
“Ryan did not have any kind of stroke last night.”
So, what’s going on? Why did he take the day off from Live? The statement explained:
“Like many people right now, Ryan is adjusting to the new normal and finding work-home balance, with the added stress of having to put on live shows from home. Between Live with Kelly and Ryan, American Idol, On Air with Ryan Seacrest, and the Disney Family Singalong specials, he has been juggling three to four on-air jobs over the last few weeks and he’s in need of rest. So today he took a well-deserved day off.”
Is anyone else concerned there was ZERO explanation for Ryan’s appearance on Idol? Of course, we understand the hard-working host being a human being for once and needing time off — but is that really all this is??
We certainly hope so. Whatever is going on, we are sending our best wishes to Ryan to get well soon.
[Image via American Idol/YouTube.]
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