Trae Patton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty (2) ; John Britt/USA Network/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty The Biggest Loseraired from 2004 to 2020, first on NBC and later on USA Network The weight loss competition was hosted by Caroline Rhea, Alison Sweeney and Bob Harper throughout the years The show is the subject of the Netflix docuseriesFit for TV:The Reality of the Biggest Loser, for which Harper and Sweeney were interviewed The Biggest Loser— hosted over the years byCaroline Rhea,Alison SweeneyandBob Harper— was once one of NBC's biggest winners. The series — which featured people competing to lose weight for a prize of $250,000 — launched in 2004 and quickly began picking up steam. At its peak in 2009, 13.4 million viewers tuned in to watch the finale, according toThe New York Times. Comedian andSabrina the Teenage Witchstar Rhea was the show's original host, leading the series for seasons 1 through 3 beforeDays of Our Livesactress Sweeney took over. For the final two seasons, longtimeBiggest Losertrainer Harper took the helm before the series ended in 2020. The rise and fall ofThe Biggest Loserwas documented in a 2025 Netflix docuseries calledFit For TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser, which features the unfiltered thoughts and experiences of its creators, producers, the show's physician Dr. Robert Huizenga, contestants,winnersand two of its hosts — Harper and Sweeney.Fit for TVquestions if the show — which encouraged contestants to lose weight quickly through extreme dieting and exercise — was beneficial or harmful for participants. Here's where the formerBiggest Loserhosts Caroline Rhea, Alison Sweeney and Bob Harper are now. 01 of 03 Trae Patton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty ; Phillip Faraone/WireImage Rhea was the original host ofThe Biggest Loserwhen it premiered in 2004. She only hosted the first three seasons before leaving "to pursue other interests," perVariety. Shortly after leavingThe Biggest Loser, Rhea welcomed a daughter namedAva Economopouloswith husband Costaki Economopoulos in October 2008. "She's like my little miracle baby," she told PEOPLE at the time. "All the bad stuff, and all the good stuff, it all leads you to the place that you're meant to be." Though Rhea took a break from acting and comedy to raise her little girl, she eventually returned to Hollywood. "I thought I have to be an interesting person for my child," she said. "I have in no way sacrificed anything because she's given me everything in raising her and being with her, but I want her to have a passion in her life that she loves and a purpose." Since then, she's appeared in several TV holiday movies, made a guest appearance onSabrina the Teenage WitchspinoffThe Chilling Adventures of Sabrinaand starred in Disney seriesSydney to the Maxfrom 2019 to 2021. She's also voiced Linda Flynn-Fletcher in beloved children's showPhineas and Ferbsince 2007. Rhea still performs stand-up at comedy clubs and festivals around the world. 02 of 03 Lewis Jacobs/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty ; JC Olivera/Getty Sweeney replaced Rhea asThe Biggest Loserhost in 2007 during the show's fourth season. "I am so proud to be part of the show," she toldThe Hollywood Reporterin January 2013. "I feel so good about the show — it's uplifting and inspiring and entertaining at the same time." In fact, working on the series inspired her to start doing marathons and triathlons. "The more I saw theBiggest Losercontestants do it ... I found that competitive spirit in myself and wanted to do it too," she said. However, in August 2015, she walked away from the show after eight years. "It's been an amazing run. I'm so proud," she told PEOPLE at the time. "[But] times change and situations change ... We talked and it wasn't an easy decision. It was just the right time for me to do something different." Sweeney has kept busy with acting since leavingThe Biggest Loser. She's continued her role asSami BradyinDays of Our Lives, helmed theHannah Swensenseries of movie mysteries on theHallmark Channeland has appeared in all of theLacey Chabert-ledThe Wedding Veilfilms. Her kids, son Benjamin Sanov and daughter Megan Sanov, withhusband David Sanov, areall grown up— and her son even worked with her on her the 2023 filmA Zest for Death: A Hannah Swensen Mystery. "As a parent, I always strive to teach my kids new life skills," she told PEOPLE in October 2023. "From being on set, he's developed a new understanding and appreciation of camera operations, which has been fun to watch him explore." Sweeney opened up more about her experience onThe Biggest Loserin Netflix's 2025 docuseries,Fit For TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser. "When people talk about the show negatively or have critiques of the show, I totally understand," she said. "I'm not naive or have rose-colored glasses. I see." Still, she stands behind it after seeing some of the contestants change their lives. "My goal was to have that conversation about health and wellness and giving people that idea that it's possible," she added. 03 of 03 Tyler Golden/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty ; Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images Harper appeared in all 18 seasons ofThe Biggest Loser, training contestants in the first 16 seasons andhosting the final two. In 2025'sFit For TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser, Harper shared that he thought the show was "going to be huge" before it even aired. Subsequently, he and fellow trainerJillian Michaelsplayed to the cameras. "Always remember we were trying to make anentertainingshow," he said. "What's more important for weight loss? We all know it's diet, but that becomes boring television. You know what's not boring television? To see us in a gym yelling, screaming ... and producers loved that s---. They were like, 'We want them to puke! We want the madness of it all!' " However, Harper shared that there were times that he wasn't proud of, like when he yelled at season 7's Joelle Gwynn. He also said he was "in horror" when he saw one contestant, Rachel Frederickson, come back for the finale weighing only 105 lbs. Still, he says he "will stand behind everything that I've ever done on that show." Harper added that he "would never put anyone in harm's way." In February 2017 — while the show was on hiatus — Harper suffered a heart attack that left him unconscious for two days. The experience gave him a new sense of camaraderie with theBiggest Losercontestants. "I couldn't walk around the block. I know that it's like to have to look at everything that I eat and have to change how I live and what I do," he said onFit for TV. "I understand more than I ever knew before." These days, Harper is still a fitness trainer who focuses on "all things health and wellness," according to hisInstagram. In June 2019, he got married to husband Anton Gutierrez. The couple share three dogs named Karl, Vivienne and Ralph. In January 2025, he appeared on another NBC show,The Traitorsseason 3, where he placed 15th. Harper and Michaels are no longer friends, he shared onFit for TV. "We were really closeon television," he said. "After I had my heart attack, she's the one person I never heard from.That, to me, spoke volumes." Read the original article onPeople
