- Seven’s popular US correspondent David Woiwod to take over hosting duties
- He will work over the summer to win over viewers before returning to the ratings.
Channel Seven star David Woiwod will replace Matt Doran on Weekend Sunrise effective immediately as the network looks to ‘integrate’ its new line-up of presenters during the summer ratings blackout period.
Sunrise hosts Nat Barr and Matt Shirvington welcomed Woiwod to the hit live breakfast show team shortly after 8am on Thursday after revealing the popular US correspondent would be joining co-host Monique Wright on the couch.
Seven executives wasted no time in naming a successor after Doran last appeared on the show last Sunday.
Woiwod, who has worked as the network’s foreign correspondent in Los Angeles since July 2020, was immediately called to the channel’s headquarters in Sydney to take up the position starting this weekend.
It had been speculated that several network stars, including Michael Usher and meteorologist Sam Mac, would have a chance to reclaim the role as they filled it over the summer.
But sources said the network wanted to move quickly to ensure audiences were familiar with Doran’s replacement by the time the official ratings season began on Sunday, February 9 next year.
The move will see Woiwod return to his Sunrise roots, having worked as a reporter on the show for four years after joining Seven in 2016.
Seven’s star foreign correspondent David Woiwod has been recalled from the US so he can replace Matt Doran as co-host of Weekend Sunrise effective immediately.
Woiwod is already a familiar face among Sunrise viewers, having started his career as a reporter on the country’s highest-rated breakfast show.
He moved to Los Angeles in July 2020 to become the network’s US correspondent and was promoted to US bureau chief in April of last year.
Woiwod has earned a reputation for his engaging personality and cheeky banter in reporting.
In 2020, Woiwod blushed while appearing on Sunrise when he mispronounced American actress Ellen DeGeneres’ name as ‘Allan’.
It comes after Doran’s shock decision ended his five years at Weekend Sunrise around three weeks ago.
The Seven star, who recently opened up about his struggle with depression on The Morning Show, said he would take the time to focus on family and pursue other opportunities.
“Before we leave today, some breaking news from the Doran household,” he said.
‘I want to share with you a decision I made, with my beautiful wife Kendall – and of course in sincere consultation with our beloved Italian greyhound Murphy – and that is that, after five years at Weekend Sunrise, I will end at the end of the year.
Former host Matt Doran announces he is leaving the show (and the network) after five years on the Weekend Sunrise couch.
Monique Wright sheds tears as Doran reveals he won’t be returning to Sunrise in 2025.
‘This is something I have agonized over because it is honest to say it is one of the best jobs in the world, but we believe it is right and at the right time – for our little family.
“Even though I’m sad and doing my best not to look Monique in the eye, where I am now is honestly a place of incredible gratitude for the laughter, the lessons, and the tears.
“I unwaveringly believe that this role – specifically, telling people’s most intimate and personal stories – is one of the most privileged positions on the planet.”