Giuliana Rancic Returning to E! News

Giuliana Rancic (Credit: E!)

E! News is welcoming back a familiar face.

Giuliana Rancic is returning to the program three years after she left, E! announced Friday.

“Giuliana is an incredibly charismatic and well-respected entertainment journalist,” said John Najarian, executive vice president and general manager of news and digital at E!, in a statement. “As a longtime member of the E! family, it’s exciting to welcome her back home to E! News.”

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Rancic joined E! News as a correspondent in 2002, and co-anchored the program from 2005 to 2015.

Her first day back will be Sept. 4.

“Returning to host ‘E! News’ is every bit as thrilling to me today as it was 16 years ago when I joined the show and embarked on this wonderful career,” Rancic said in a statement. “I can’t wait to reconnect with the ‘E! News’ audience and go on this journey together once again.”

Her departure came after she made controversial remarks about actress Zendaya’s dreadlocked hairstyle at the 2015 Academy Awards. During a segment on Fashion Police, Rancic said the Disney star’s hair appeared as if it smelled of “patchouli oil” or “weed.” Zendaya hit back on Instagram by calling the comments “outrageously offensive.”

Rancic apologized and left E! News a short time later.

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Her return comes after Maria Menounos announced she had a brain tumor and departed the program in the summer of 2017.

More recently, Catt Sadler left E! News when she said in a blogpost that she learned she was making significantly less than her co-host Jason Kennedy. E! responded to Sadler’s claims by saying she and Kennedy had “different roles.”

Since leaving her full-time hosting job on E! News, Rancic has remained a contributor on the network and frequently hosts its Live From the Red Carpet programs.