When Karl Stefanovic got the phone call telling him that his “mentor” and friend Tracy Grimshaw was leaving A Current Affair, the $1 million job that everybody wants, he was in complete shock.
Watch Below: Tracy Grimshaw announces she’s leaving A Current Affair
Tracy’s unexpected decision to quit live on-air last week left some of Australia’s biggest TV and news presenters scrambling to take over.
According to insiders, tensions were running high at Nine the following day with closed-door meetings with executives, and negotiations underway as some of the network’s most respected stars started campaigning to fill Tracy’s shoes.
“It was like The Hunger Games in there,” quipped one source, adding the list of hopefuls grew by the hour.
“It may be just one job among many at Nine, but this decision could have an impact on any number of careers.”
“You need to remember Tracy has been in the chair for 17 years, and whoever replaces her will also be there for a long, long time. They really do need to get it right.”
At the time of print, Nine was yet to announce just who would take on the coveted role, but veteran Today co-host Karl Stefanovic has always been touted as the frontrunner.
Despite this, sources say Nine is said to be desperate to keep him at Today, and the network would be considering all options, including much-loved former Sunrise co-host Melissa Doyle.
“There’s a feeling in Nine that it would be great to replace Tracy with another female host, and Mel Doyle is perfect for it, and very much on the market,” confirms one TV executive.”
“She’s worked for Seven and Nine recently, and is a great fit with the demo.
“Sunrise is still rating a lot better than Today, but Karl and Ally (Langdon) have a great chemistry and the execs would prefer not to mess with that.”
While Karl, 48, and Mel, 52, would no doubt be perfect at the helm of the program, there’s no shortage of other TV stars who would love to step up.
Sources confirm that Nine’s executives have already had some pretty interesting – and heated – discussions about who should get the job.
“Let’s just say Karl didn’t look happy when he stormed out of meetings on Wednesday,” reveals one Nine insider.
TV Blackbox co-creator Rob McKnight, a former executive producer of Studio 10, says that Karl has long wanted to take over from Tracy to escape the 3am starts at Today.
“It’s one of the best jobs in Australian television, but it’s just one of the pieces in a big puzzle,” he explains.
“If they give it to Karl, who do they get to take his job on Today, and will that person work well with Ally? It’s definitely a problem for them.”
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