Anne Burrell’s ‘Worst Cooks in America’ co-host Beau MacMillan reacts to her death: ‘Gut punch’

Anne Burrell left an impact on many of her former colleagues before her shocking death at the age of 55.

Beau MacMillan, who starred alongside Burrell on the first season of “Worst Cooks in America” in 2010, opened up about the fellow Food Network star in an exclusive statement to The Post.

“The news hit me like a gut punch,” MacMillan, 54, said on Wednesday, one day after Burrell’s death. “Anne was bigger than life, whether she was running a kitchen or filming a show, you knew she was in charge.”

“One of the most beloved icons of our industry, she inspired millions of people,” he continued to the Post. “She was smart, talented and so much fun to be around. She has left us way too soon.”

Besides the first season of “Worst Cooks in America,” MacMillan also appeared alongside Burrell and eight other contestants on Season 4 of Food Network’s “The Next Iron Chef.”

Although neither chef won the season, Burrell was named the fourth runner-up in the culinary competition. MacMillan was eliminated at the end of the fourth episode.

MacMillan previously paid tribute to his former co-host in a touching post shared on Instagram shortly after the news of Burrell’s sudden passing.

“Some of the most fun and best memories are with you ,, from the days before worst cooks ,,, to all the years after ,,, how honored I was to be your friend!” he wrote alongside a picture of the pair from “Worst Cooks in America” 15 years ago. “God speed Anne.”

Burrell’s loved ones announced her death in a statement on Tuesday.

“Anne was a beloved wife, sister, daughter, stepmother, and friend – her smile lit up every room she entered,” they said.

“Anne’s light radiated far beyond those she knew, touching millions across the world,” her family added. “Though she is no longer with us, her warmth, spirit, and boundless love remain eternal.”

The New York City Police Department later revealed that Burrell was found “unconscious and unresponsive” at her Brooklyn home Tuesday morning and pronounced dead at the scene.

While a spokesperson for the New York City Fire Department told Page Six that a 911 caller claimed Burrell suffered a “cardiac arrest,” her official cause of death has not yet been confirmed.

Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Burrell’s husband, Stuart Claxton, allegedly found her unresponsive on their shower floor “between six and seven hours” after he last saw her alive.

The Food Network and many other celebrity chefs who worked with Burrell and called her a friend have since spoken out to pay tribute to the beloved cooking icon.

“Anne was a remarkable person and culinary talent – teaching, competing and always sharing the importance of food in her life and the joy that a delicious meal can bring,” a rep for the Food Network told the Post.

“Our thoughts are with Anne’s family, friends and fans during this time of tremendous loss,” the network added.

Chef Tyler Florence, who starred with Burrell on several different seasons of “Worst Cooks in America” during its 28-year run, remembered her as a “legendary chef” and an “even better friend.”

“Anne was a legendary chef and an even better friend,” he told The Post. “She was the kind of person who showed up – for dinners, our kids birthday parties, or a swim in the ocean – and lit up every room she walked in to. I’ll never forget when our daughter Dorothy told me Anne was her favorite chef — we always got a kick out of that.”

“I’ll always picture Anne in her dressing room, knitting between takes, with one of her cats wandering in to say hello. She brought her generous heart, humor and feisty spirit to everything she did,” Florence, 54, added. “She will be deeply missed by the entire Florence Family.”

Rachael Ray, who not only worked with Burrell but also served as a bridgesmaid in her 2021 wedding to Claxton, also remembered the “rockstar” celebrity chef.

“The news about Anne has truly shaken us. John and I are heartbroken,” Ray, 56, wrote on Instagram Wednesday. “I can’t quite believe it — such a strong, vibrant, fearless woman, so full of life and love, could be gone so soon.”

“Anne was a rockstar!” she added. “I came to know her well through multiple seasons of Worst Cooks on Food Network, and she became so much more than a colleague.”

Burrell lived her life to the fullest until the very end, and her final Instagram post was of her and notable New Yorker, the Green Lady of Brooklyn.

She also performed an improv comedy show at The Second City New York in Brooklyn on Monday night.

A source who was in attendance at the show said that Burrell “was in great spirits” and “having a blast” just hours before her death.

Although it never came to fruition, the “Secrets of a Restaurant Chef” host also had considered making a guest appearance on the second season of Meghan Markle’s “With Love, Meghan” Netflix cooking show.

“Sure, of course. I’d go to the opening of an envelope,” she said in a newly resurfaced interview from April. “Why not cook with Meghan?”