Jenny McCarthy surprised a lot of fans when she revealed that after just one season on ABC’s The View, she would be leaving to pursue another career opportunity.
McCarthy is just one part of the show’s major shake-up for its 18th season, which sees Sherri Shepherd departing after seven years.
On Monday, she appeared on Howard Stern’s radio show and explained her reasoning behind her exit to host her own SiriusXM show.
She told Stern she wasn’t able to be her “full self” and she realized this about halfway through her first season.
"It’s like halfway into it, it was probably around February, I went, 'God I’m not allowed to be the best of me here,’” she said. “I feel like to have a voice, to be able to speak without having to interrupt people … It’s very difficult, and I don’t like doing it, it’s very uncomfortable, so I felt like, 'You know what? Maybe this is just a stepping stone for me to go somewhere where I can actually be my full self.'"
McCarthy also said she loved working with Barbara Walters, who is now retired, so with her gone it just didn’t make sense to stay.
"If I wanted to stay with Rosie [O'Donnell] and I was a Republican, I would still be there right now," she said.
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