Karl Stefanovic’s likely departure from Nine at the end of 2026 is one of the worst-kept secrets in the industry – and now even he has admitted that radio is very likely in his future.
Stefanovic’s lucrative contract (rumoured to be over $2 million) is up in December, prompting all kinds of speculation.
The TV star has certainly done nothing to squash rumours and in an interview today at the annual creative summit, Cairns Crocodiles, by global television executive Maz Farrelly, he got very candid.
The event, advertised as Stefanovic “off script”, certainly delivered, with the television star being incredibly honest about his future.
“I probably will do radio, and I will more than likely just dip my toe in the water to see if I like it before I even thought about going to do breakfast radio,” he said.
“I want exposure, I want to see what radio is like. I will continue doing TV, and this show (The Karl Stefanovic Podcast) right now is my biggest priority outside of my commitments for Channel 9 because I just think there’s so much room for growth.”
News.com.au previously reported that Stefanovic was being eyed by ARN executives to take on a radio role, well before The Kyle and Jackie O Show was cancelled.
At this point, nothing is set in stone, but Stefanovic could possibly take over the drivetime slot and replace Will and Woody, whose contracts are also up at the end of 2026.
There is also talk that he could be enlisted to help bolster ARN’s podcast arm, and he could even join ARN’S GOLD network.
Stefanovic has been well aware that his time at Nine could be running out after he signed a one-year contract with the broadcaster in 2025. He was previously on multimillion-dollar, three-year deals.
This tough reality prompted Stefanovic to get hustling and launch The Karl Stefanovic Podcast independently.
The show’s first season, spanning just over three months, has amassed more than 7.9 million listeners and 49.5 million views across YouTube and Spotify.
The podcast success caught the eye of ARN executives, many of whom were previously at Nine, including Michael ‘Stevo’ Stephenson and Kerri Elstub.
In Stefanovic’s chat with Farrelly, he admitted that his move to podcasting was partly influenced by the current “challenges” mainstream media is facing.
“Towards the end of last year it was very apparent to me that mainstream media is going to face enormous challenges,” he said.
“And no matter how big a personality or paid employee I am, I think all employees in mainstream media should be very aware and have a realisation that they’re going to be diminishing returns of talent, and that is sad, but it’s a fact of life.”
The Today Show star explained that podcasts turning into vodcasts also pushed him to start his own thing outside of Nine.
“About three or four years ago, I saw what was happening in the podcast world, and I saw the freedom of it, I saw the expression of it. I found it invigorating to listen to. I especially loved when they started doing visuals with it,” he said.
“I think the video podcasts to me was like, ‘Wow’, that’s transformative for me!”
Stefanovic admitted it was a tough sell with his employers at Nine, though, to let him do it independently.
He finally got approval in November last year, right around when salary negotiations would have been happening and launched in January.
“Then it took me three years to get clearance with the Nine Network in order to do it,” he said.
“And I don’t think it’s any secret that they’re probably a little surprised at how well it’s gone. But for me, it was something that I had to do!.”
“I had be part of it because I love long-form interviews. And I think for me, doing 21 years of live TV, I did a three-and-a-half-hour show, but inside that three and half-hour show, it’s broken up into five-minute segments and I was craving for longer format stuff.”
Stefanovic said that, at the end of the day, there is just less money in media, which means talent can’t be paid as much.
“Advertisers are looking for, you know, for the return on their investments as they should, and I don’t think they’re seeing it,” he said.
“So there’s less money to circle around, less money for production, less money for talent, and that’s a sad thing.”
Stefanovic added that doing things like live shows for The Karl Stefanovic Show is also an affordable move for him, but wouldn’t be for a major broadcaster.
“I mean, when I can go to Albury and do a two-hour live show, and it costs me four grand, you know, when it would have cost Nine, probably $50k to $100k, you know that there’s some challenges coming to the industry,” he said.
“I’m 51, I am out there doing these live shows in country Australia, or wherever I please, in Ketchum, I go to London, next month I’m going to do some live shows over there with Piers Morgan.
“I am an agile man, and I’m cheap to run, and I can produce huge amounts of content.”