Still Jealous? 8 Shocking Things That Happened As Kelly Ripa & Michael Strahan Reunite On 'Live!' For First Time

So much that Kelly pulled a no-show the following morning after the announcement, refusing to appear with Michael on the show. A day later, Kelly and her husband jetted overseas for some personal time — and ironically, to celebrate her 20th wedding anniversary with her husband.

That's when the behind-the-scenes buzz really kicked in: Michael's exit reportedly blindsided Kelly, leaving many to wonder when the 15-year veteran would return to the show. And as Star reported, Kelly still wasn't taking calls from Michael nor ABC execs, all due to the fact that she was reportedly "livid" that she found out minutes before the press received news about Michael's departure.

Finally, on Tuesday morning, Kelly and Michael put on a united front to greet a cheering audience: "I'm so happy you're back and one thing I know about you is you love this show, you love the fans, you love the staff, I love you. I'm so happy you're here because you brought me here with Seth Gelman and this show has been transforming for me and I know the show will move on because you're the queen of morning TV," Michael said.

"I am thrilled for Michael. I am thrilled for you. This is a tremendous opportunity and I couldn't be and we couldn't be prouder of you and everything we accomplished together," Kelly said, later throwing some cryptic disses at his promotion.

"Guys, our long national nightmare. I first want to honestly sincerely thank you for welcoming me back to the show. I'm fairly certain that there are trained snipers with tranquilizer darts in case I go off-message," added Kelly.

"The show of support to this bizarre time has really been overwhelming. I needed a couple of days to gather my thoughts; after 26 years with this company, I earned the right," Kelly told the audience on April 26.

"In that time, I gained some perspective. I always speak from the heart. I didn't want to come out here and just like say something I might regret," Kelly said.

"Apologies have been made and the best thing to come out all of this is that our parent company has assured me that 'Live' is a priority," the talk show hostess said.

"There is a commitment to this show and to the people that work here and most importantly to you the viewers," she said.