Sara Haines Tears Up Discussing Father-in-Law's Death on "The View"

Sara Haines became emotional on "The View" Thursday as she revealed the "brutal" reason for her unexpected absence from the show the previous day: the death of her father-in-law.

"I wanted to share why I was missing yesterday," Haines, 48, said. "My father-in-law passed away. He had been in hospice for a week, so we knew it was coming."

Haines, who is married to Max Shifrin, explained that she learned of his father's passing just before Wednesday's live broadcast. "I think the second that landed, it kind of allowed a load [we were] carrying [to] gush out," she added, tearing up.

She noted that her father-in-law was a pivotal figure in her husband's life. "[He] was the most important person in Max’s life," she said. "I think I learned about this man on my first date because [he] was Max’s North Star, so it’s the chapter we’re in, and we’ll all be part of this club eventually. But wow, it’s brutal."

Haines, who has three children with Shifrin—son Alec, 10, daughter Sandra, 8, and son Caleb, 7—said her husband had been away and was returning to be with the family. "Max has been gone. He hasn’t seen the kids, and now he’s finally back and we’re pouring love into him," she said.

Haines, who previously left "The View" in 2018 before returning in 2020, stated that she wanted to "quell any rumors going around" about her sudden absence. This followed speculation that arose after an exchange between co-hosts Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg on Wednesday's show. Behar had clarified that Haines was not sick, which co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin later joked had made the situation sound "scandalous."

Goldberg herself is preparing for a two-week absence from "The View" to film the movie "Women Like Us," a project produced by Barack and Michelle Obama.