Cedric Doesn't Want to Be a Millionaire Host

[chad1m]

Deadline has reported that Cedric "The Entertainer" won't be coming for a second season of hosting Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. The show is moving production to Connecticut and he didn't find it feasible to come along for the ride.

I gave him a few months as host and tried to enjoy him, but I really couldn't. Granted, they can always find someone "worse" but I'm curious to see who will fill the role.

[MarleysGh0st]

Goodbye, Cedric!

As I always say on the show in parting, ‘Watch Your Wallet’!

Yeah, sounds like TPTB are watching their wallets. First they move from mid-town Manhattan to Harlem, now out to Connecticut?

The move to Standford, CT is being made for budget reasons, as it will bring savings and tax breaks.

Do they mean Stamford? I wonder what this will mean for auditions, etc. Will the center of Where Else be shifting east, too?

I wonder if Regis wants a steady gig, again?

[chad1m]

A possible successor is apparently Terry Crews. Alright, then.

[TheConfessor]

What are the actual numbers in terms of episodes per season, episodes per tape day and total tape dates? I assume it's in the neighborhood of 180 shows, 5 per day, 36 days. So is Cedric really too busy to work 36 days? And how much was he paid per season? Was his contract for just one year? Seems unlikely. I assume the producers wanted to go in a different direction and anything said in the official press release is pure spin, with little credibility.

[rayxtwo]

The first cost cutting move was to stop putting as many smart people on the show and they had in the past. I guess they had to cut costs closer to the bone. I'm guessing this will be the audition process for next season.



Ray

[lilclyde54]

I won't miss him.

[Buffacuse]

So first I was thinking, how could they possibly film in Stamford...what studios are there?

Then it dawned on me...

...the WWE.

[goongas]

Cedric didn't increase the ratings, and probably he was expensive, so maybe the show let him go? Or, maybe Cedric didn't think it was good for his career to be viewed as a game show host? Or maybe he really is busy? It isn't 36 straight days, they are staggered, so if he had a long shoot to do, he wouldn't necessarily be able to do it.

There are some shows that tape in Stamford because of the tax breaks. Jerry Spring and The People's Court tapes there. Here is the page where you can be paid to be an audience member for The People's Court. http://onsetproductions.com/calendar/de ... showID=268 I assume they would still do some auditions in NYC, as ABC still is located in NYC. It is about a 50 minute train from Grand Central to Stamford, CT, so the crew could still live in NYC.

[littlebeast13]

I remember it being mentioned five years ago that CT was looking to become a new mecca for the taping of television shows, and that seems to be coming to pass....

lb13

[geoffil]

Both Meredith and Regis are so good at making the host job seem easy, it is very hard to replace them. They made the show about the contestant. Cedric made the show about Cedric's type of comedy. I won't miss him as host.

[Jeemie]

Amazing how little I care about this show anymore.

[MarleysGh0st]

Amazing how little I care about this show anymore.

Yeah.

I'm wondering if it's possible to conceive of TPTB doing something--anything--that might revive the dream.

So far, we've had one rumor of an actor being considered as a replacement for Cedric. If TPTB want to revive the show (and save some host salary, too), they ought to review the tapes of the various hosts at WWTBAM Play it! Sure, they have no national name recognition, but every one of them knew more about making a trivia game show fun than Cedric does.

[MarleysGh0st]

This new Geico commercial might be a cautionary tale for both Cedric and whoever will replace him.



This extended cut also has something of interest for ES.

[Bob Juch]

A possible successor is apparently Terry Crews. Alright, then.

This was made official today.

[goongas]

They also have a new executive producer, so Rich has left I assume.

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/arti ... 2rQda1dXEY

[Bob78164]

They also have a new executive producer, so Rich has left I assume.

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/arti ... 2rQda1dXEY

I didn't realize he was the guy in the Old Spice commercials. This could be good. That suggests to me he may have the right sensibility for the show. --Bob

[MarleysGh0st]

I didn't realize he was the guy in the Old Spice commercials. This could be good. That suggests to me he may have the right sensibility for the show. --Bob

How so?

Will contestants have to pause in the middle of answering a question so that he can do his "I'm on a horse" scene?

[silverscreenselect]

I didn't realize he was the guy in the Old Spice commercials. This could be good. That suggests to me he may have the right sensibility for the show. --Bob

How so?

Will contestants have to pause in the middle of answering a question so that he can do his "I'm on a horse" scene?

I hope he brings his Expendables costars in for celebrity week. That would be worth watching

[Bob78164]

I didn't realize he was the guy in the Old Spice commercials. This could be good. That suggests to me he may have the right sensibility for the show. --Bob

How so?

Will contestants have to pause in the middle of answering a question so that he can do his "I'm on a horse" scene?

It means he's willing to have some fun at his own expense. --Bob

[TheConfessor]

I didn't realize he was the guy in the Old Spice commercials. This could be good. That suggests to me he may have the right sensibility for the show. --Bob

How so?

Will contestants have to pause in the middle of answering a question so that he can do his "I'm on a horse" scene?

It means he's willing to have some fun at his own expense. --Bob

Terry Crews is not the "I'm on a horse" guy. That's Isaiah Mustafa.

[silverscreenselect]

Here's Crews' Old Spice commercials:

[geoffil]

Terry is from Flint Michigan, and I know some Midwesterners that will like this.

Lisa Hackner, the boss at ABC that hired him, is from South Africa and worked on the Ellen show and the Bethany show. I bet there will be a little more pop culture questions this season.

Still in my opinion, they need a seasoned host that will make the focus the contestant, not the comedy from the host. Regis and Meredith did this so effortlessly.

(Hello, American Idol)

[MarleysGh0st]

Oh, there are two Old Spice spokesmen. Thanks for correcting me.

[Estonut]

Oh, there are two Old Spice spokesmen. Thanks for correcting me.

They have only one at a time, perv!

Isaiah Mustafa, then Fabio, now Terry Crews.

[jarnon]

Terry Crews says he has Regis Philbin's blessing for 'Millionaire' job

Actor Terry Crews says original Who Wants to Be a Millionaire host Regis Philbin gave him his blessing when he heard he would be taking over the U.S. game show.

Crews was recently announced as the show's next emcee after Cedric the Entertainer said he was leaving the daily, syndicated program after one season.

"I got the blessing from Regis!" Crews told UPI in a phone interview last Wednesday. "I talked to Regis yesterday, which was awesome and he was like, 'Terry, you're going to be great; just give them that 1,000-watt smile and you're going to be awesome.' I was like, 'This is Regis Philbin!' I actually got blessings from Cedric, too, which was awesome. Cedric was like: 'You're going to kill it. I love you, man.' Those words just mean so much to me. I'm a fan of both Regis and Cedric and to fall in the line with these guys? I love [former host] Meredith Vieira, too, but I haven't spoken to her yet. It's just a good class of people to be around."

So, how will the always-in-demand celebrity juggle his new job with his role on the celebrated sitcom, Brooklyn Nine-Nine?

"I will never miss an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine ever," he vowed. "What I'm going to do is a bunch of episodes [of Millionaire] at one time and when I'm on hiatus [from Brooklyn,] but I love talking to people. That energy? That is going to be the coolest thing. That's something I need that I don't get being on a movie or TV set. Being able to talk to people in front of a studio audience and get that energy is something that is going to empower me. I'm going to live off that energy and bring it back to Brooklyn and it'll just keep going back and forth like that. I love that stuff."