A change of pace. Gio Benitez and Stephanie Ramos are temporarily taking over as GMA3 hosts from T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach amid the reported relationship between the regular coanchors.
“Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes have the day off,” Ramos, 40 told viewers while introducing the Monday, December 5, episode alongside Benitez, 37.
Us Weekly confirmed that earlier that day, ABC president Kim Godwin announced during an editorial meeting that Robach, 49, and Holmes, 45, would not host the morning show for the foreseeable future after their relationship became an “internal and external distraction.” Variety subsequently reported that ABC News “wanted to do what’s best” for the network, despite the fact that the pair had not violated any company policies with their rumored romance.
The coanchors made headlines on Wednesday, November 30, after the Daily Mail published photos of them getting cozy during various outings around New York. In one photo, Robach and Holmes held hands in a car and in another image, the pair laughed during a night out. A third picture featured them engaging in some playful PDA during a trip upstate.
Neither of the ABC personalities — who are both married to other people — have publicly commented on the photos, although they have both deactivated their Instagram accounts. Robach’s husband, Andrew Shue, also removed all photos of the 20/20 cohost from his own social media page.
The duo seemingly appeared to nod at the rumors when they returned to GMA3 on Thursday, December 1, for the first time since the photos were published. “Who’s looking forward to the weekend?” Holmes asked, to which his cohost raised her hand. The following day, he joked about their “great week,” quipping, “I just want this one to keep going and going and going.”
“Speak for yourself,” Robach responded.
A source exclusively told Us on Friday that the duo were not attempting to hide their flirtation from coworkers ahead of the scandal. “The GMA staff for the most part all knew that something was happening between Amy and T.J., they were always playful with each other, like two people who were dating,” the insider said at the time. “Amy and T.J. didn’t seem like they were trying to keep their relationship secret anymore, everyone around the office could tell there was a spark between them for many months.”
Keep scrolling to learn more about Benitez as he begins filling in for Holmes: