Everyone involved in The Kelly Clarkson Show is eagerly awaiting the results of retests after several staffers tested positive for Covid-19. The positive tests automatically triggered local guidelines, and now contact tracing, retesting and other measures are reportedly being put in place to discern whether the show can continue filming or will need to pause production.
Details of the outbreak have been reported in waves. First, Deadline announced the initial positive tests on Friday. The outlet claimed staff members working on the show were tested as part of standard Covid safety protocols. A few tested positive, others were sent home to quarantine and a larger plan was developed. Over the weekend, Entertainment Tonight followed up with another report. It claimed at least four people were exposed and sent home to quarantine on Thursday with positive results officially coming back later. Clarkson herself was also tested since she reportedly was exposed to workers who tested positive, but her results apparently came back negative.
Of course, The Kelly Clarkson Show is far from the only production that has been shut down or affected by the virus. Back in March, the entire industry was basically forced to shut down and halt everything. Over the past few months, a good percentage have returned to shooting (including The Kelly Clarkson Show which went back in August), but as rates have surged over the past few weeks, many have started running into issues again. Both the new Jurassic World movie and The Batman with Robert Pattinson ran into issues with positive tests and had to temporarily pause shooting, and now we’ve started to see many of those same issues with TV shows.
With hope of a vaccine on the horizon, the entertainment industry’s mid-term future is starting to look more optimistic. Unfortunately, the short-term is still a huge question mark. Both studios and actors seem eager to return to work, and the general public is certainly ready for new movies and TV episodes. Unfortunately, outbreaks like this are just a part of life right now in the United States. No one wants to contribute to the spread, and of course, shutdowns are extremely costly for whoever is putting up the money.
Right now, it’s unclear what will happen with The Kelly Clarkson Show moving forward. Friday was a planned off day, but production is reportedly scheduled for early this coming week. Right now, that’s in limbo until the retesting is finished and local officials can figure out how bad the outbreak is. Other outlets covering the news seem confident the show will return to production on November 17th, but they've all offered the caveat that the return is pending good test results. As numerous professional sports teams have regrettably discovered over the past several months, however, sometimes these positive results linger for a lot longer than expected. So, I too am hopeful this outbreak will just be confined to the four staff members who are reportedly quarantining, but I think we need to keep our fingers crossed until we know for sure.
There was some question as to how Kelly Clarkson would take to life as a TV host, but she has started building a following and many admirers for her conversational and hilariously candid approach. In short, she’s just a delightful personality, and her likeable energy is starting to really come through during broadcasts. Regardless of what happens here with this outbreak, it should just be a blip in a long and fruitful TV career.
