Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary Gets Emotional Recalling How Mark Cuban Saved 'My A–' (Exclusive)

Kevin O’Leary’s longtime friendship with Mark Cuban can bring tears to his eyes.

In an exclusive PEOPLE first look at Aquarium for sharks appearance of investors on Who is talking to Chris Wallace?O’Leary becomes emotional as he reflects on how his colleague and friend never failed to show up for him.

Host Chris Wallace begins by asking O’Leary about his involvement in Canadian politics. The businessman ran for leader of the national Conservative Party in 2017, but “dropped out at the last minute” because he could not speak French “well enough”.

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Kevin O’Leary.

MAX

“I was leading in the polls, dramatically, until I hit Quebec,” O’Leary recalls. “I’m dyslexic, I’ll never learn French. And that also leads to the Mark Cuban story, which is very important when people often pit us against each other.”

The television personality explains that candidates who lose political races must “pay back your losses, if you’re the loser in a race with $1,600 per contribution from Canadian citizens only.” He also notes that if the candidates do not repay their debt within 24 months, they face prison terms.

“I was $2 million in the hole, and I wanted to write a check and just clear the books, and the government said, ‘No, you can’t do that. You’re going to be subject to the laws of the land,'” O’Leary recalls. “So I called Mark. I said, ‘Mark, I’m in trouble. I have to do an event where I can sell a lot of tickets to a lot of people who are going to come, and you need to fly up here and be next to me on stage.'”

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Kevin O’Leary (left) and Mark Cuban.

GP Images/Getty

According to O’Leary, Cuban “didn’t blink” and “was on a plane the next day.”

“He never even questioned it. He said, ‘Where do I have to be? I’ll be there,'” he continues, before asking for a moment as he gets emotional.

After taking a breath and taking a sip of water, O’Leary adds, “Anyway, I owe him a lot for that. He saved my ass.”

‘Shark Tank’ cast (from left): Daymond John, Mark Cuban, Barbara Corcoran, Kevin O’Leary, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec.

Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty

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O’Leary and Cuban starred alongside each other on ABC Aquarium for sharks since Season 3, which aired in 2012. The two were joined by mainstays Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, Robert Herjavec and Lori Greiner.

Season 16, which premieres Friday, October 18, will also feature Daniel Lubetzky as one of the sharks. The new season also marks Cuban’s last role as a shark.

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New episodes Who is talking to Chris Wallace? stream on Fridays on Max.

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Source: HIS Education