Fans worry after Ryan Seacrest 'has a stroke' during American Idol finale

The usually-polished TV presenter appeared to briefly slur his words and struggled to read off the script. Photo / ABC

Ryan Seacrest has rubbished rumours he has had a stroke.

The 45-year-old television presenter sparked fears that he was unwell when he appeared on the 'American Idol' finale on Sunday.

He appeared to briefly slur his words and struggled to read off the script. His left eye also appeared larger than his right and fans noted something seemed 'off' as they expressed their concerns for his health on Twitter.

Is @RyanSeacrest okay? Not making light of this. He went from normal to his speech being off and his eye shutting halfway. #ryanseacrest #AmericanIdol pic.twitter.com/9LCKTLjxpe

— M. Drake Krueger (@KingDraqula) May 18, 2020

He later missed an episode of 'Live with Kelly and Ryan' but his representative has since insisted he is fine and just needed some rest.

A spokesperson for Ryan said: "Ryan did not have any kind of stroke last night. Like many people right now, Ryan is adjusting to the new normal and finding work-home balance, with the added stress of having to put on live shows from home."

"Between 'Live with Kelly and Ryan', 'American Idol', 'On Air with Ryan Seacrest', and the Disney Family Singalong specials, he has been juggling three-four on-air jobs over the last few weeks and he's in need of rest. So today he took a well-deserved day off."

What the hell is wrong with @RyanSeacrest ‘s eyes? Has it always been like this and i’m just noticing now..? 🤨#AmericanIdol pic.twitter.com/KKVHatvmzr

— ♡ (@BBclips) May 18, 2020

Meanwhile, Ryan - who is in a relationship with Shayna Taylor - thinks he needs to "grow up" and find a work-life balance.

Recalling his busiest working time, he said: "There were five daily responsibilities. You lose the balance and you are drained by the end of every day and you've gotta go do it again the next day. So that's always been a tough struggle. I mean, maybe it's perhaps why I'm not married now. So thank you for this therapy! I do have to grow up a little bit and realise that there needs to be a work-life balance."

Ryan has always loved having an audience and his ambitions grew and grew after he landed his job on 'American Idol'.

View this post on Instagram

We’ve come a long way. From Hollywood stages to living rooms, and frosted tips to whatever I got going on now. One thing’s the same: you vote, you decide, and tonight we reveal. #IdolFinale starts NOW!

A post shared by Ryan Seacrest (@ryanseacrest) on May 17, 2020 at 5:00pm PDT

He said: "I always wanted it, I never had it and I couldn't believe I got it. I wanted to have a touch-point to an audience at every part of the day. So that would be wake up and drive in; that would be a primetime TV show; that would be a cable TV show; that would be an award show."

"My model was to always have a connection with the audience, no matter what time of day or day of the week."