Olivia Culpo, Jeannie Mai Jenkins to Host 71st Miss Universe Telecast

The Miss Universe competition’s upcoming shift to the Roku Channel also comes with two new hosts: Former Miss Universe Olivia Culpo and Jeannie Mai Jenkins (“The Real”) will lead the proceedings on this year’s telecast, set to take place Saturday, January 14, from New Orleans.

Culpo and Jenkins replace Steve Harvey, who had hosted for five years (with the exception of 2021, when that pact was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Harvey had been a part of Fox’s deal with Miss Universe. Last month, Variety exclusively reported that the 71st Miss Universe competition is the latest TV event making the move to streaming, as The Roku Channel sealed a one-year deal to be the official English-language U.S. home for Miss Universe. The event also airs here in Spanish on Telemundo.

More from Variety

• Miss Universe Pageant Moves to Streaming via Roku Channel, as Deal With Fox and Steve Harvey Ends (EXCLUSIVE)

• Warner Music Launches First Free FAST Channels, Exclusively on Roku Channel

• The Meteoric Rise of Free Streaming Channels: A Special Report

Culpo was crowned Miss Universe 2012; since then she has starred in the TLC series “The Culpo Sisters,” has invested and served as a creative director for canned cocktail company Vide, and also spent time as a model, actress and social media influencer. Mai Jenkins won a Daytime Emmy for hosting “The Real,” and currently hosts Amazon Freevee’s “America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation.” She has been seen as a commentator in the past for the Miss Universe and Miss USA competitions.

Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray and “Emmy award winning television personality, “American Ninja Warrior” co-host and “Access Hollywood” correspondent Zuri Hall will serve as backstage
commentators.

“This organization had such an impact on my life and I’m so thankful for the
experiences I had with my Miss Universe family,” Culpo says. “I have so much respect for the continuous
evolution of the Miss Universe Organization, including the new female ownership for the first
time in the company’s history.”

Added Mai Jenkins: “I could not be more excited to be back with the Miss Universe Organization alongside all of the incredible women who are traveling to New Orleans from around the globe. I am so honored to be able to celebrate them and all the amazing changes the organization has
been making over the past year to push women’s stories further worldwide.”

The organization was just purchased in October by Thailand-based JKN Global Group PCL (run by CEO Anne Jukapong Jakrajutatip) from previous owner IMG.

“With Culpo as a successful former titleholder and Jeannie’s work in redefining what it means to be a working mother, both women are true examples of the momentum the Miss Universe Organization is building,” said Miss Universe Organization CEO Amy Emmerich in a statement. Added president Paula Shugart: “From our two multihyphenate female hosts to our female producer and new
female ownership, this year’s show will truly be a celebration of women created by women.”

Best of Variety

• What's Coming to Netflix in January 2023

• What's Coming to Disney+ in January 2023

• Oscar Predictions: Live Action Short - Alfonso Cuarón and Disney are Early Favorites Among Multiple Non-English and International Titles

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.