Holly Willoughby is reportedly being tipped to become the next Cilla Black, with the presenter lining up a string of big-money deals worth up to £10 million.
The presenter, 44, has begun to distance herself from ITV despite over a decade as one of their biggest stars, having declined an offer to return for a full series of rebooted game show You Bet! and flagship series Dancing On Ice facing the axe.
Sources are claiming that with Holly now firmly on a new path in her career following her exit from This Morning, she is set to line up several lucrative deals from streamers, including a second series of Netflix’s Celebrity Bear Hunt.
It’s also thought that there also offers from the BBC on the table, including hosting a reboot of the iconic game show Blind Date, which Cilla hosted from 1985 to 2003.
The revival is already being considered by Holly’s husband Dan Baldwin, and the star had previously stepped into Cilla’s shoes when she hosted a reboot of Surprise Surprise.
An insider told The Sun: ‘There might not sound like obvious parallels between Holly and Cilla, but they’re both two of the biggest stars of modern telly.
‘Emulating Cilla isn’t just about taking on her shows, it’s as much about carving out a niche as a solo presenter with serious clout in the world of telly.
Holly Willoughby is reportedly being tipped to become the next Cilla Black, with the presenter lining up a string of big-money deals worth up to £10 million
‘But together with her husband Dan, they form the ultimate power couple in TV. She has the public appeal that gets viewers tuning in, while he has a track record of making hugely successful TV shows.’
MailOnline has contacted a representative for Holly Willoughby for comment.
Dan’s production company Hungry Bear has also been behind the hugely-successful revival of Gladiators.
When asked about other shows he’d love to reboot, Dan suggested Blind Date, saying: ‘Another one you’d like to see back, Blind Date, are we ready for that? What a Saturday night that was. I’m thinking Blind Date with Claudia Winkleman on BBC1.’
Cilla was also married to a big figure in the TV industry, with her husband Robert ‘Bobby’ Willis, taking over as her manager after Brian Epstein’s death in 1967, and negotiating her deal with LWT, that made her one of TV’s highest-paid stars.
During Blind Date’s final year, Cilla was said to be earning £17,000 a week, or £884,000 a year, which is the equivalent of £2 million in today’s money.
Holly had also praised Cilla for being a huge trailblazer for TV presenters in the 1980s and 1990s. The legendary star died in 2015 aged 72.
ITV were said to be disappointed that Holly has turned down the chance to return as the host for a second series of You Bet!
Sources are claiming the presenter is firmly on a new path in her career, and is set to line up several deals from streamers, including a second series of Netflix’s Celebrity Bear Hunt
It’s also thought that there also offers from the BBC on the table, including hosting a reboot of the iconic game show Blind Date, which Cilla (pictured) hosted from 1985 to 2003
The presenter has begun to distance herself from ITV, having declined an offer to return for a full series of rebooted game show You Bet! and flagship series Dancing On Ice facing the axe
Sources told The Mail that she is ‘busy with other commitments’, which meant she was unable to return to the programme she hosted a two part special last year alongside Stephen Mulhern.
An ITV spokesman said: ‘Unfortunately Holly couldn’t commit to the dates to host the new series of You Bet!, but will hopefully appear as a guest panellist on one of the shows in the new series.’
While it is not yet known what her other role is, Holly recently found global fame on Netflix’s Celebrity Bear Hunt – her first big role away from ITV, and it’s thought that a filming is already being planned for a second series later this year.
Holly impressed bosses at the streaming giant so much that insiders there say they are ‘very keen’ to work with her more on shows which would be screened across the world.
It’s thought that the success of Celebrity Bear Hunt has seen executives considering the new prospect that one star so heavily associated with a terristrial channel could find new success on a streaming giant, with huge salaries to match.
At a time when channels such as BBC and ITV are struggling to gain ad revenue, sources say they’d struggle to compete with the huge payouts streamers could offer Holly, as well as other stars.
Dancing On Ice’s future has also appeared less and less certain, with sources saying on Monday that the show will be axed in a matter of days.
According to The Sun the series could be rested, before being revamped and relaunched at a later date, similar to when the show was axed in 2014 and brought back four years later.
A source told the publication: ‘Viewing figures are remarkably less than they were but they still had almost three million watch the launch show. There’s no denying, though, that the format has become tired and they’re not getting the big names they once did’.
Cilla became one of ITV’s highest-paid presenters, hosting both Blind Date and Surprise Surprise, with her salary reaching the equivalent of £2 million per year in 2003
ITV were said to be disappointed that Holly has turned down the chance to return as the host for a second series of You Bet! alongside Stephen Mulhern
‘Changes are needed and it’s likely it’ll be rested and given a new lease of life’ but said staff were ‘not holding out much hope’.
Before adding: ‘The show’s future hinges on the meetings that follow last night’s finale. Dancing On Ice is an expensive production and there are questions over whether ITV is getting bang for its buck’.
A ITV Spokesperson said: ‘The Dancing on Ice team has been fully concentrating on the much anticipated series finale last night and therefore no decision has been made.’
Last week source told The Mirror: ‘There are very real fears this is the end of the road for Dancing on Ice. It’s had a good run for nearly 20 years and has a very loyal set of viewers who really love it but the sad truth is there’s just not enough of them.
‘We need bums on seats but the ratings have dropped to a point where it’s difficult to justify the cost.’
Holly has also shared her excitement at fronting a series solo, when Celebrity Bear Hunt hit Netflix last month.
She said: ‘I’d just got to that stage in my life where I thought, ‘I want to try something new.’ I was nervous about it, because it was a real departure from what I normally do.
‘Everything you do and everything that feels new always feels like a new chapter.’
Holly stood in for Ant McPartlin on I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! back in 2018 and also hosted The Xtra Factor and a reboot of Surprise, Surprise.
She quit This Morning in October 2023 after 14 years when she learned of a terrifying plot to kidnap, rape and murder her by former security guard Gavin Plumb.
He was later found guilty on all three charges and was sentenced to life in prison, but must serve at least 15 years in custody.
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