Mark Consuelos Insists His 'Live' Co-Hosting Debut 'Felt Like Home' Amid Criticism

Mark Consuelos isn’t allowing criticism of his new television gig go to his head. 

In an interview with Us Weekly published shortly after he made his debut Monday as the permanent co-host of ABC’s newly renamed “Live With Kelly and Mark,” Consuelos said the experience of working alongside his wife of 27 years, Kelly Ripa, “truly felt like home.” 

“I always feel at home with Kelly but [working] together this morning just felt so right,” he told the publication. “Kelly and I have always [felt] the most [at] ease when we’re together and I feel so lucky we get to do that daily.”

He went on to note: “I can’t wait to see where we can go from here.”

Consuelos, whose acting credits include “All My Children” and “Riverdale,” joined the daytime talk show following Ryan Seacrest’s departure last week. Seacrest had been a co-host on the ABC series since 2017.  

Though Consuelos had made appearances as a guest co-host on the show several times, his first few days on the job as a permanent co-host have been met with mixed reviews on social media. 

Though much of the response was positive, the New York Post and other media outlets made efforts to emphasize the criticism. 

“Kelly Ripa, Mark Consuelos Face More Criticism After ‘Painful’ Second ‘Live’ Show,” one Post headline read. 

Added another on the SheKnows site: “Kelly Ripa & Mark Consuelos Are in Hot Water With Viewers After Sharing a Little Too Much While Co-Hosting Live.” 

Among those to defend Consuelos’ performance, however, was longtime pal Andy Cohen. 

“This is a national show that gets, I think, like 5 million viewers a day. It’s the number one morning show,” Cohen said on his SiriusXM show Wednesday. “There’s not a show that you could write about that you couldn’t say, ‘Well, guess what? People on Twitter hated it.’”

Similarly, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly published Monday, Ripa praised her husband for “how good he is at this job — I’ve done it with him many, many times over the years.” 

“I just know Mark and I are capable of feeding off each other’s energy,” she explained. “We don’t see eye to eye on a lot, which makes our marriage interesting. We have vastly different opinions about a lot of stuff, and Mark is not afraid to disagree with me or mix it up with me. And I think that’s compelling television.”