Star Jones is returning to daytime television and the courtroom.
Just a little over a week into the new year, Jones announced that she had been named the latest host of the long-running show “Divorce Court.” Starting in September, audiences will be able to once again get their daily dose of the outspoken personality who helped launch the popular roundtable talkshow “The View.”
“As a fan of television’s longest-running court show, I was honored to be considered to take over the ‘Divorce Court’ TV bench, following in the footsteps of three incredible women, Judge Mablean Ephriam, Judge Lynn Toler, and Judge Faith Jenkins,” said Jones.
While Judge Ephriam and Toler both carried the show for multiple seasons, Judge Jenkins had only been at the helm since March 2020. Jones, 59, says her approach to mediating the often entertaining divorces will be both “meaningful” and “impactful.” “Star Jones will bring her life experiences, her knowledge as a litigator, and her forceful personality to that storied bench,” said Stephen Brown, executive vice president of Programming and Development for Fox First Run and Fox Television Stations.
Jones, who is best known for sparring with the women of “The View” for nine seasons, is far from a newbie when it comes to holding her own in the courtroom. Her resume boasts experience as a homicide prosecutor in Brooklyn, an assistant district attorney, a legal correspondent for both “The Today Show” and NBC’s “Nightly News.”
Following her 2006 departure from “The View” — where the former host insinuated she was fired despite show creator Barbara Walters saying otherwise —Jones also had her own short-lived court show, “Jones & Jury,” where she presided over small claims litigations.
“Since the beginning of my TV career, it’s been my mission to serve as a voice for the voiceless; and after more than 30 consecutive years on television and in people’s homes, that remains true,” said Jones. She continued, “I will offer the parties before Divorce Court, as well as viewers, a no-nonsense approach to the law and a decision driven by my proven legal expertise, compassion and empathy, personal experiences and hard-earned common sense.”
“Divorce Court” fans already have expressed enthusiasm to see Jones as the latest judge. On social, some have written, “The plaintiffs and defendants better come correct,” and “I have not watched Divorce Court in many years, but I would tune in to see you preside over the cases,” as well as several congratulatory messages and gifs.
This year is already off to quite the start as it pertains to courtroom series. Even comedian and multifaceted host Steve Harvey managed to add his own show, “Judge Steve Harvey,” to TV’s lineup, despite his lack of legal education and expertise.
“There are some heartfelt moments in it; there’s some ridiculousness to it. More than anything I use the one gift that I’ve always had and the one that’s gotten me pretty much everywhere in entertainment, and that’s my gift of comedy… it’s going to be flat-out funny!,” said Harvey of the that show premiered on Jan. 4.
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