FOX Execs Have “No Regrets” About the Rudy Giuliani Controversy on ‘The Masked Singer’

FOX Execs Have “No Regrets” About the Rudy Giuliani Controversy on ‘The Masked Singer’
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FOX execs revealed just where they stand re: the controversy surrounding Rudy Giuliani being cast on The Masked Singer and…let’s just say we’re kind of speechless? Confused? Befuddled, even? According to Rob Wade, president of alternative entertainment and specials at FOX Entertainment, the company has (and we quote!!) “no regrets.”

Earlier today during a conference call announcing the network’s new fall lineup, Wade affirmed: “Yeah, absolutely no regrets.”

“The marketing is all about delivering jaw-dropping moments, which is exactly what the casting accomplished. And whether it was on-set or with the viewers at home, I suppose my only regret or surprise was obviously the reveal was spoiled [by the press], but kudos to you guys. Just please don’t do it again. Thanks a lot.” Again…speechless, confused, and befuddled is the general vibe here, LOL.

A refresher: On the April 20 episode of The Masked Singer, Rudy Giuliani was revealed as the Jack in the Box character, and no one was amused.


Original story: March 7, 2022

In a “celebrity” cameo truly no one asked for, Rudy Giuliani is apparently on The Masked Singer’s upcoming seventh season (which starts March 9), and his participation on the show has caused a lot of controversy due to him being an extremely divisive and problematic figure who is best known for spewing misinformation about the last presidential election.

It remains to be seen how FOX will edit Rudy’s unmasking, but we already have a pretty good idea of what happened: Several judges walked offstage, the internet at large was pissed, and late-night TV hosts went off about it. Here’s a breakdown of what to expect as we head into another wild, wacky—and in this case, extremely WTF—season of this show.

First Up: Details on Rudy’s Masked Singer Costume

We don’t have confirmation, but fans *think* Rudy is the Cyclops, who describes himself as a “creeper” who has “only got one peeper” (help/no/make it stop). He’s also described as “the biggest, baddest monster” the show has ever featured, which, I mean, does kinda sound like Rudy?

The BTS on the Judges’ Reactions

Thanks to sources who were on-set the day Rudy was unmasked, we know some behind-the-scenes info about what went down. According to Deadline and TMZ, veteran Masked Singer judges Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke both walked offstage after the reveal, while fellow judges Jenny McCarthy and Nicole Scherzinger remained onstage.

“Ken was super upset and indeed stormed out,” a source told People. “Robin actually followed him because he and Ken are very close friends and he wanted to check on him. Robin didn’t storm out because of Giuliani.…Ken felt disrespected and was livid to see Rudy was under the mask, which is why he walked off. There’s no way he could hide his feelings.”

If you’re wondering why Ken in particular felt disrespected by the show’s decision to cast Rudy, reminder that Ken is a medical doctor and “has been incredibly vocal about how the previous administration handled many things but especially COVID-19 and has found a lot of what they’ve said not only wrong but dangerous. To get someone who helped to spread misinformation and call into question the accuracy of our election and democracy to appear on his show was going to set him off.”

The Backlash to Rudy’s Reveal (So Far)

Aside from Twitter being generally unimpressed by news he’d been cast, late-night TV hosts absolutely went off about Rudy’s appearance on The Masked Singer. Ahem, a general sampling:

Stephen Colbert: “That’s right, the criminal goon that we know for a fact is being investigated for trying to overthrow our democracy for his idiot emperor was yukking it up on a reality show. There hasn’t been anything this shocking since Lee Harvey Oswald made a guest appearance on Gilligan’s Island.”

Jimmy Kimmel: “How does this even happen? I mean, a lot of people at FOX had to sign off on this. Not one of them was like, ‘Hey, maybe we shouldn’t have the guy who is under investigation for helping to plot an insurrection singing on our show’?”

Trevor Noah: “America is truly, truly, truly, truly, the greatest country on Earth. Because this is the only place in the world where entertainment trumps everything. Because a year ago—I mean just a year ago—this guy tried to overthrow America’s democracy and now he’s a contestant on a reality show? Is there anyone they won’t have on? Like, one of these days, a masked singer is going to take off their head and it’s going to be literally the coronavirus.”

Welp. Let’s hope a little more thought goes into next season’s casting decisions. In the meantime, we’ll be updating this as more info on Rudy’s Masked Singer reveal drops.

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