Eboni K. Williams said she is both ’emotionally and spiritually touched’ by ‘the opportunity’ to soon guest-host on ‘The View,’ in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HL.
Eboni K. Williams, 38, is getting ready to take on a new gig and she’s calling it “a dream come true.” The Real Housewives of New York City star is guest-hosting The View as one of the several ladies who will be temporarily taking Meghan McCain‘s place on some of the upcoming episodes, and told HollywoodLife that she’s so “excited” because hosting the show has been one of her “childhood goals.”
“I’m super excited! I make no secret of the fact that this is a childhood dream and goal come true, every single day, recording it, watching it after school,” she EXCLUSIVELY told us on the Sept. 13 episode of TVTalk, which can be seen above. “I remember seeing Star Jones, who’s an OG. Star Jones was very inspirational to me personally because Star was a lawyer by trait as well and watching her be so incredible on The View for nine years… It showed me what was possible as a female attorney.”
She added, “It showed me the broadness of what my career could really offer and so yeah, to be able to sit at that table, even for a handful of days coming up soon, it’s literally a dream come true. I can’t overstate how emotionally and spiritually I am touched by this opportunity.”
As far as whether or not Eboni, who was the first black woman to become a cast member on RHONY, feels “pressure” in trying to fill Meghan’s shoes, she admitted she doesn’t because as a television host herself, she has connected with Meghan and they have a “tremendous amount of respect” for each other. “Meghan and I go way back. I’ve worked with Megan for many years during our days at Fox News, respectfully,” she explained. “The great thing is, Meghan and I have a tremendous amount of respect for one another.”
“I was very flattered when she referred to me on an episode of The View when I was a hot topic,” she continued. “She said, ‘Eboni made for a lovely sparring partner,’ which tells you that Meghan and I, while rooted in some mutual respect as professionals, often come at topics of political engagement from different points of view. So no, I’m not going on my guest hosting opportunities as a fill-in for Meghan McCain. I’m going on there as Eboni K. Williams and that’s been clearly stated by both me and the network, so it’s going to be a different vibe.”
“I do think some of the other guest hosts might be more ideologically aligned with Meghan, but the interesting thing about me is I’m not an ideal log,” she further explained. “I’m a card carrying independent. I have been for 18 years, so I’m just not somebody who’s going to be put in a box when it comes to political ideology. That can be a challenge, actually, in this industry, where people are very expected of people being far left, far right, then arguing to the death. I think it’s a dangerous political tactic and I’m going to be insistent on my own moral and intellectual honesty during my stint on The View.”
Eboni’s stint on The View does open doors for a possible full-time hosting gig on the popular talk show in the future, and it turns out that she’s more than willing to do it even if she’s still a cast member on the RHONY. “Any job, any role where I get to represent the complexity and intersection of womanhood and black womanhood and this kind of generational renaissance that I think I’m blessed to be a part of, I’m way into it and I think The View is vintage that way,” she said. “I think The View is the intersection of informed opinion, passionate debate and also introspective and important news making interviews. I think it would be a dream job and I would be blessed with any opportunity to do it for a day, a year and a lifetime.”
Check out our full interview with Eboni in the Instagram video above.