Daytime talk show Dr. Phil is set to conclude later this year after 21 seasons on the air. According to Variety, series star and producer Dr. Phil McGraw opted to not continue the series, noting he “made the call to end production of the hourlong series.” CBS Media Ventures will reportedly keep the series going through syndicated repeats through the next year. They go on to report that each episode of the series is “averaging about 2 million viewers.” As TV viewers will recall, Dr. Phil’s television career began as a recurring guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show, spinning out of it into his own series back in 2002 and going on to be nominated for 31 Emmy Awards along the way.
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“I have been blessed with over 25 wonderful years in daytime television,” McGraw said in a statement. “With this show, we have helped thousands of guests and millions of viewers through everything from addiction and marriage to mental wellness and raising children. This has been an incredible chapter of my life and career, but while I’m moving on from daytime, there is so much more I wish to do.”
“Phil is a valued partner and member of the CBS/King World family, and while his show may be ending after 21 years, I’m happy to say our relationship is not,” added Steve LoCascio, president of CBS Media Ventures. “Phil changed the daytime landscape as the force behind one of the most popular talk shows ever on daytime TV. We plan to be in the ‘Dr. Phil’ business with the library for years to come and welcome opportunities to work together in the future.”
With over 3500 episodes produced over the years, the Dr. Phil show has found itself in the spotlight thanks to some of the colorful guests that have appeared on it. Among those were the likes of the “cash me outside” girl Danielle Bregoli, while others have veered into the sensational with Burke Ramsey, brother of the late Jonbenet Ramsey, plus other reality figures like “Octomom” and “Mama June” of Honey Boo Boo fame.
(Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)
