Sherri Shepherd Says Ellen DeGeneres and Oprah Are the Inspirations for Her New Show (Exclusive)

Shepherd also named Lizzo, Michelle Obama, and Michael B. Jordan as her dream guests.

Just a month away from the premiere of her new talk show, Sheri Shepherd is looking to the legends of daytime TV for inspiration. 

Fresh off her move to New York City for the show's launch, Shepherd said she's hoping to incorporate Ellen Degeneres-style humor with Oprah-esque interviews when Sherri premiers on September 12 on Fox. 

"A little bit of Ellen," Shepherd told ET's Rachel Smith. "A little bit of inspiration of Oprah, a lot of the laughter of Ellen and put that together, and then you got Sherri and I am like, let’s go!" 

In advance of her show's first season, Shepherd named Lizzo, Michelle Obama, and Michael B. Jordan as her dream guests. She was speaking at the Hertz headquarters in New York, where she and her movers returned the truck that brought her things across the country. In addition to handing out free rentals and upgrades for a handful of lucky customers, Shepherd also gave away a few items that wouldn't fit in her downsized NYC apartment. 

"I just had way too much stuff," she said, including several lamps, some cookware, a few blenders, and her blow-up duck for the pool. 

"I'm a big believer in pursuing every Let's Go Moment you can in life and Hertz is there for the journey whether it's crosstown or cross country," Shepherd said in a statement from the Hertz "Let's Go" campaign. 

Noam Galai, Getty Images

What did she keep? "I brought every single wig with me," Shepherd told ET. "I didn’t care, they were like, 'The truck is full' and I was like, nope nope nope we got some more wigs that you have to get."

She also held on to all of her son Jeffrey's old artwork. At 17, he also joined her for the Big Apple move. 

A former co-host of The View and guest host for Wendy Williams, Shepherd will film her new show in front of a live audience at New York's Chelsea Studios. The program will feature "a daily dose of pop culture, comedy, conversations and a plentiful supply of daytime talk staples, including celebrity and human interest interviews," the press release said in June. 

On Monday, she told ET she hasn’t spoken to Williams since hosting the finale of The Wendy Williams Show. "I wish everyone well and I'm really focused on launching the Sherri show on September 12th," she said.

In May, Williams opened up about Shepherd's new show on Instagram Live with rapper Fat Joe, who also served as guest host for The Wendy Williams Show.

"I like her, but I won't be watching her because I know what she's going to be doing and that's really not my thing," Williams said. 

Shepherd later responded to the comments and asked viewers to keep Williams in their thoughts. "I would say that everyone should be praying for Wendy right now," she said. "I'm truly concerned for her because I don't feel like there's anybody over there protecting her."

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