Twenty years after her elimination from 'American Idol,' Jennifer Hudson is reaching new heights in her ever-evolving career. Her talk show “The Jennifer Hudson Show”, which premiered in 2022, was renewed for a third season earlier this year.
Hudson said she has come a long way since her Idol days, but the passion she had when she first started has remained.
“I'm so blessed to have been able to do so many things because I do it out of love and passion,” she said Monday on CBS Mornings. “When I got eliminated from 'American Idol,' I thought, 'Well, you still have your talent and as long as you continue with it, you have no choice but to give in.'
That talent led her to receive Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards, making her one of the few EGOT award winners in Hollywood.
Her talk show has been recognized with four Daytime Emmy nominations. It also received other awards, including the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Talk Series and a GLAAD Excellence in Media Award this year.
As her third season kicks off, Hudson will lend her talented voice to an upcoming segment with country singer Chris Stapleton.
“I love combining my roles with music, and you know, just being a host and having artists that I like and admire, and Chris Stapleton is one of my favorites,” she said.
In addition to singing and hosting, Hudson stars in the new post-apocalyptic thriller 'Breathe'.
The 42-year-old actress said her new role will challenge her as an actress as it was her first action film and she got to do some of her own stunts.
In the middle of it all, Hudson is balancing raising her son David, who gave her a touching Mother's Day surprise with a heartfelt letter.
“I had no idea that he, you know, wrote me a Mother's Day letter. I could barely read through the tears. I thought it was the sweetest thing,” she said.
