Chris Wallace EXITS Fox News For CNN+

Chris Wallace said he is leaving Fox News, ending an 18-year-run as host of “Fox News Sunday,” the network’s flagship weekend show.

He'll be joining CNN’s soon-to-launch streaming platform CNN+.

Fox News said rotating hosts will replace Wallace until a permanent host is named, according to The Wall Street Journal.

“We are extremely proud of our journalism and the stellar team that Chris Wallace was a part of for 18 years,” Fox News said in a statement. “The legacy of Fox News Sunday will continue with our star journalists.”

Wallace said on his show that Fox News kept its promise not to interfere with the show’s guest bookings or meddle in questions.

“After 18 years, I have decided to leave Fox,” Wallace said. “I want to try something new, to go beyond politics to all the things I’m interested in. I’m ready for a new adventure.”

Statement from Chris Wallace as Aired This Morning on His Final FOX News Sunday:

“After 18 years — this is my final FOX News Sunday. It is the last time — and I say this with real sadness — we will meet like this. Eighteen years ago, the bosses here at Fox promised me they would never interfere with a guest I booked or a question I asked. And they kept that promise. I have been free to report to the best of my ability, to cover the stories I think are important, to hold our country’s leaders to account. It’s been a great ride. We’ve covered five presidential elections, interviewed every president since George H.W. Bush, travelled the world — sitting down with France’s Emanuel Macron and Russia’s Vladimir Putin. And I’ve gotten to spend Sunday mornings with you. It may sound corny, but I feel we’ve built a community here. There’s a lot you can do on Sunday mornings. The fact you’ve chosen to spend this hour with us is something I cherish. But after 18 years, I have decided to leave Fox. I want to try something new, to go beyond politics to all the things I’m interested in. I’m ready for a new adventure. And I hope you’ll check it out. And so —for the last time, dear friends — that’s it for today. Have a great week. And I hope you’ll keep watching FOX News Sunday.”

Wallace, a five-decade veteran of the broadcasting industry, joined Fox News in 2003. He has been among the most high-profile journalists in the network’s news division. He has won plaudits from colleagues in the news-media world for being tough on newsmakers in both parties in his interviews. His style has proved unpopular, at times, with some Fox News colleagues.

Wallace began his career at a local NBC station in New York in 1975, according to a biography on Fox News’s website. He worked his way into the upper ranks of NBC’s news division, covering major presidential contests throughout the 1980s and serving as chief White House correspondent. Later, Mr. Wallace spent 14 years at ABC News, where he served as a correspondent and substitute host for “Nightline.”

Wallace has won several major broadcasting awards, including three Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award.

Wallace said in a statement released by CNN that his show on CNN+ would feature interviews with newsmakers. “I am excited to explore the world of streaming,” Wallace said. “I look forward to the new freedom and flexibility streaming affords in interviewing major figures across the news landscape—and finding new ways to tell stories.”

Wallace’s move to CNN+ is one of the biggest signs yet that CNN is investing heavily in its pivot to direct-to-consumer streaming. Beyond bringing in on-air talent, CNN was planning to hire hundreds of producers, contributors and developers for the effort, The Wall Street Journal reported in June. The service will include a mix of live shows and longer content including documentaries.

Wallace, 74, is the latest marquee journalist in TV news to join CNN+. Earlier this year, the network said it had hired Kasie Hunt, a political journalist at NBC’s news division, to anchor a show on the service. Mr. Wallace will also pitch in on political news for the streaming service, including coverage of conventions, according to a person familiar with the situation.