She May Be Coming Back to TV — But No Talk Shows

Chelsea Handler made some waves when she announced two months ago that she was leaving Chelsea Lately to "exercise [her] brain" — though with what, she still isn't sure. And yet, as her eight-year contract with E! slowly winds to a close (it expires officially at the end of the year), Handler has hired a new manager, Irving Azoff, who recently revealed in the duo's Billboard Magazine cover story that Handler will "definitely" pursue some options in television. However, despite some earlier CBS-centric speculation, it will also definitely not be another talk show — or, at the very least, "a little more mindful, and not as stupid" as her current gig.

Indeed, Handler has been especially vocal throughout this process about needing to escape the sometimes mind-numbing world of late night. Though her interviews are often entertaining as they are incisive — see: her frank sex talk with both Cameron Diaz and Amy Schumer — it's understandable that spending night after night, well, having frank sex talks with Hollywood's leading ladies might get tiresome after seven-plus years.

I think Handler needs a place in which she can really be polemic, as that's when her acerbic deadpan shines brightest. I mean, remember when she told Joy Behar she would rather retire than apologize, even for a throwaway joke about Angelina Jolie? Or, better yet, when she laid into Adam Carolla on her own show for his pretty indefensible ignorance regarding female comedians? My personal favorite will always be when, this past March, Handler went on Piers Morgan's show in its dying days and positively ripped the host a new one for being "a terrible interviewer," verbatim, to his face, without even flinching.

In the Billboard article, Azoff and Handler also discuss the possibility of a move to radio — which seems like a perfect fit for her quick-witted interview capabilities and penchant for taking down those ridiculous and hypocritical around her. Just imagine Handler with her own Rush Limbaugh-like power hour, a gaping time slot to fill with whatever she chose (including, I'm sure, plenty of jokes about gaping slots).

Because, lest we forget, Handler's stand-up career is what got her into the biz in the first place, her jaded "been there, drank that" raunch a precursor for today's Amy Schumers. Perhaps the two could team up? Maybe even throw Diaz in the mix for some more vagina gab?

Watching Handler perform even as early as 2001 (relish, please, the jokes about The Wedding Planner and "Matthew McConaugh-fuck"), it's clear that she's one of those people who's simply at home behind a microphone, whose drawl we're probably going to be hearing for years to come. Now, it's up to her and Azoff to decide exactly how.