On the Dec. 8 episode of the competition series, Goldman was suddenly missing as a judge at the end. Host Jesse Palmer joked about the Ace of Cakes star needing to leave early for a “Chrismukkah party” But what really happened?
Goldman’s fellow Holiday Baking Championship hosts Kardea Brown and Nancy Fuller were left to wrap up the episode without him on Dec. 8. Fast-forward to the Dec. 15 episode, and he was again MIA—this time, with a guest judge, Stephanie Boswell, filling in. She is set to return for the Season 12 finale on Dec. 22.
Another Redditor wrote, “I thought it was weird that he went missing from the final judging of the last episode. It didn’t make sense that he had to leave early for ‘a party.'”
Someone else speculated, “Don’t know how far ahead this show is filmed, but he had a serious hand injury in a car crash last February. Heard he was still recovering and relearning how to use it in the kitchen again.”
One Instagram one viewer shared, “Think he was filming a couple of episodes of Wildcard Kitchen, he’s a contestant. I’ve seen the promos for the show lately.”
A second Instagram user wondered, “Did Duff leave because of the new format?” as many other viewers complained about the changes made to this season.
Meanwhile, yet another Reddit user commented, “Thought I read that he and his wife had a baby. Perhaps it’s paternity leave.”
Although it’s true that Duff’s hand was was crushed and required sitches after a drunk driver swerved into his lane in February 2024, it’s unlikely that was the reason for his absence. Duff and his wife, Johnna Colbry, did, however, announce via Instagram on Nov. 28 that she was pregnant with their second child; it’s unclear when her due date is.
“Oh boy! @johnnapgoldman has another bun in the oven!” he captioned the update. “I think Josephine is going to be the best big sister ever.”
As of writing, Goldman has not publicly addressed the reason for abrupt Holiday Baking Championship exit. Hopefully all is well, and fans will see him again soon!
