Viewers think Holly Willoughby's statement about Phillip Schofield on This Morning 'mirrored' Jennifer Aniston's in AppleTV+ series The Morning Show.
Willoughby appeared on screen today (5 June) for the first time following the departure of her former co-host Schofield, amid the revelation of his 'unwise, but not illegal' affair with a younger ITV male employee.
In her statement, the presenter says she felt 'shaken, troubled, let down and worried'.
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The 42-year-old - who was sat next to her temporary co-host Josie Gibson - said: “Josie, thank you for being here. Right, deep breath.”
She continued: “Firstly, are you OK? I hope so. It feels very strange indeed sitting here without Phil. And I imagine that you might have been feeling a lot like I have – shaken, troubled, let down, worried for the wellbeing of people on all sides of what’s been going on, and full of questions.”
She continued: “You, me and all of us at This Morning gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt that they had to resign from ITV, and step down from a career that they loved. That is a lot to process.
“And it’s equally hard to see the toll that it’s taken on their own mental health.
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“I think what unites us all now is a desire to heal, for the health and wellbeing of everyone.”
After delivering her speech, viewers couldn't help but compare it to Aniston's character, Alex Levy, in the opening episode on The Morning Show.
The first season focused on TV presenter Alex, who is in the middle of her co-anchor Mitch Kessler's (played by Steve Carell) #MeToo scandal.
Alex address Mitch's exit with an on-air speech, which read: "Good morning. I'm bringing you some sad and upsetting news.
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"Mitch Kessler, my cohost and partner of years, was fired today for sexual misconduct.
"All right. Stay strong. First and foremost, I want to offer our sympathy and support to the women.
"We are devastated that this happened on our watch, and our hearts are with you.
"And to you at home, I understand how you must be feeling because I and the whole team here at The Morning Show are feeling the same way. Shock, disappointment, disbelief."
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Taking to Twitter, one person thought: "Literally mirroring The Morning Show on Apple. Especially with the 'thanks for being here Josie'."
"This is uncanny. Just like The Morning Show with Jennifer Anniston and Steve Carell!!" a second added.
"Feels like the morning show icl, you guys need to be creative and create some original drama," a third wrote.
"Anyone else getting Jennifer Aniston 'the morning show' vibes??" wrote a fourth.
Topics: Holly Willoughby, Jennifer Aniston, Phillip Schofield, ITV, TV and Film
Anish Vij