In a recent revelation, Whoopi Goldberg flaunted her substantial earnings from her role on The View, despite previously claiming she couldn’t afford to retire.
The beloved host, who has anchored the daytime discussion since 2007, stepped into the spotlight after Rosie O’Donnell’s abrupt departure following her heated exchange with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
Reports from 2016, highlighted by Ramin Sotoodeh’s bestseller Ladies Who Punch, indicated that Goldberg’s paycheck ranged between $5 million and $6 million, according to Variety.
Last month, a source alleged that Goldberg was the highest-paid host of the ABC series with a salary estimated to be in the seven figures, according to Page Six.
Yet, shortly after the 2024 election, Goldberg expressed on air that she was like any “working person” and would gladly retire if her finances allowed, lamenting: ‘If I had all the money in the world, I would not be here, okay?’
Despite her prior comments, she recently boasted on the podcast Baby, This Is Keke Palmer that viewers would be astonished at her earnings.
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Goldberg and ABC for comment.
Whoopi Goldberg bragged about her massive paycheck from The View , less than two years after she claimed she was financially unable to retire
‘Listen, you would be shocked,’ Goldberg told Palmer, adding that ‘as soon as they showed you that check, you’d be like: “What the f***?”‘
The Oscar-winning actress refrained from providing any specific numbers but said slyly: ‘It is what it is,’ as Palmer whooped: ‘Praise God!’
Goldberg, who holds an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony), also airily divulged that she would be willing to leave The View for another project.
The Sister Act star let slip that ‘I constantly say to people: “Yes, I’m still open for this.” And especially now, ’cause people say: “Well, you’re on The View, you can’t do anything.” You know, if I need to go, I go. If I need to go.’
When Palmer asked whether The View was ‘the best paying job you’ve had over the course of all the things you’ve done,’ Goldberg said without hesitation: ‘No.’
Goldberg now comperes The View alongside Joy Behar – the show’s longest-lasting star – Sunny Hostin, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Sara Haines and Ana Navarro.
Shortly after the 2024 election, Goldberg was participating in a roundtable discussion on the show about working class Americans who had voted for Donald Trump when she claimed that she herself could not afford to retire.
‘If I had all the money in the world, I would not be here, okay? So, I’m a working person,’ she said on the episode, a day before her 69th birthday.
Goldberg, who holds an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony), also airily divulged that she would be willing to leave The View for another project; pictured last month
Goldberg and her co-hosts Sara Haines, Joy Behar, Ana Navarro, Sunny Hostin and Alyssa Farah Griffin are pictured interviewing US Vice President JD Vance in June
‘I appreciate that people are having a hard time. Me too. I work for a living,’ the Ghost actress insisted. ‘My kid has to feed her family. My great-granddaughter has to be fed by her family. I know it’s hard out there.’
However last month, it was reported that although multiple hosts on The View had seen their salaries slashed, Goldberg was still making seven figures, via Page Six.
Meanwhile Alyssa Farah Griffin’s request for a substantial increase to her purported mid-six-figure salary was alleged to have been refused.
An insider also claimed that the anchors had reacted with exasperation to news that the show’s wardrobe budget had suffered cuts.
‘They’re all mad because they were all wearing really expensive designer clothes, and now it’s the same budget of a Wendy Williams-type show versus a marquee daytime show,’ said the source. ‘They keep downsizing and downsizing and downsizing.’