New York – Hollywood star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has quit the television show “The New Celebrity Apprentice,” according media reports Friday.
Schwarzenegger, 69, succeeded President Donald Trump as host of the show. His resignation comes after just one set of shows leading to a winner. Trump held the job from 2008-14 and filmed 14 series of shows.
The Austrian-born Schwarzenegger said he quit because Trump was still tied to the show and blamed the president for poor ratings, according to CNN.
“I loved every second of working with NBC and Mark Burnett. Everyone – from the celebrities to the crew to the marketing department – was a straight 10, and I would absolutely work with all of them again on a show that doesn’t have this baggage,” Schwarzenegger said in the statement quoted in the media reports.
NBC, the US television network that broadcasts the show, has not commented on Schwarzenegger’s decision. It was unclear whether the show would be renewed with another host.
The show’s ratings declined after the revamped series premiered in January with 4.9 million viewers.
Trump made fun of the low ratings last month at the National Prayer Breakfast, asking people to “pray for Arnold.”
Schwarzenegger responded by making a video in which he suggested the two of them switch jobs.
“You take over TV because you’re such an expert on ratings and I take over your job and then people can finally sleep comfortably again,” the former bodybuilder and actor famous for the “Terminator” movies said.
-dpa
