Mark Consuelos got candid about how he has been dealing with a sea of grief following the death of his beloved father, Saul Consuelos, in March. 

The Live with Kelly and Mark host revealed that the 87-year-old’s health battle was a “brutal five-month saga leading up to him passing,” and that his family “knew” Saul wouldn’t recover. 

Mark shared on the I’ve Never Said This Before With Tommy DiDario podcast that he prayed for a “merciful exit” for his father, and that his death came “quickly and painlessly”. 

© ABC

He added that Saul was his rock, who informed his own character and values throughout his life. “My father’s a mythical character to me,” Mark explained. “He’s the best man I’ve ever met. Everything good that I’ve kind of glommed onto of how I carry myself comes from him.”

“We just had a memorial for him this past Monday, where the family all got together,” he continued. “And the reality of him being gone hit – of him actually being gone.” Mark admitted that he desperately missed his dad and that saying it on the podcast was the first time he had admitted to such a feeling. 

“I guess what I haven’t said is, I miss my dad,” he shared. “I’ve never said that. I’ve never said, ‘I miss my dad’ because he’s always been in my life, he’s always been available to me.”

© Getty Images

“I’m going to miss just giving him a hug and holding his hand and just laughing with him. That’s something I’ve never said in my life. I’m going to miss my dad.”

Learn more about Mark’s late father below…

Mark was busy in tech rehearsals for his Broadway play, Fallen Angels, when he received the news that his dad was on his deathbed. After saying goodbye to Saul, the play served as a “welcome distraction” for the actor, as well as a reminder. 

“I do look up in the house every now and again,” he told the host. “You can’t really see, because of the lights. And I kind of picture [him]. I think about him before I go on stage.”

© Instagram

Mark shared the sad news of his father’s passing in an emotional episode of Live with Kelly and Mark. His wife and co-host, Kelly Ripa, revealed that their three kids, Michael, Lola and Joaquin, were taking the loss particularly hard, before sharing her own memories of Saul. 

© Instagram

“You have been blessed more because you knew him your whole life,” she told Mark on the show. “I only got to know my father-in-law for 31 years, but they were the best 31 years of my life. I can honestly say I will miss him every day for the rest of my life, as I know you will, as our children will.”

Kelly added that she was “so grateful” for “everything he did”, including taking care of their three kids while she and Mark were busy on the road with work.