The celebrity formerly known as Hamster on The Masked Singer revealed who he believes would never join the show's cast. In the latest episode, the Hamster was revealed to be actor and comedian Rob Schneider. The show is in its sixth season, with panelists Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg, Ken Jeong and Nicole Scherzinger, and host Nick Cannon. The Hamster was first introduced as a Wildcard in Group A and got to perform three times before being unmasked. Hamster's unmasking was followed by the reveals of Octopus, Mother Nature, Pufferfish, Baby and Cupcake. The stars under those masks, respectively, were Dwight Howard, Vivica A. Fox, Toni Braxton, Larry the Cable Guy and Ruth Pointer.
In several of the Hamster's clue packages, there were references to Saturday Night Live, which Rob has been a part of. Leading up to the Hamster's unmasking, guesses from the panel included Cheech Marin, Will Ferrell and Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias. Jenny was the only panelist to correctly guess the identity. This earned Jenny her first point towards this season's Golden Ear Trophy, in which the show's panelists compete for the highest number of correct guesses. This episode also included Leslie Jordan as a guest panelist, and he was the first-ever guest to wear a costume and be unmasked. Leslie wore a soft serve ice cream costume and performed a song before joining the panel.
While talking to EW, Rob revealed that he didn't think any of his famous friends would compete on The Masked Singer. "I don't think any of my friends could do it. They're claustrophobic. I think Adam Sandler would murder at it. He'd be great at it, but he's claustrophobic. I remember how many hours it took him to get into the fat suit on Click, so I don't see him climbing into a suit like that anytime soon." Rob also said that he wasn't surprised he was asked to be on The Masked Singer, since he is "a comedian who can also sing a little bit." He was hoping to make it through at least one more round, where he planned to sing "Amish Paradise" by Weird Al Yankovic. As for his character, Rob praised the show's costume team but noted the challenges of moving around in the Hamster suit. He would have preferred to wear something that allowed him to move around more.
When Rob was asked which one of his friends would be an ideal performer, he answered Kevin James, adding, "He would be really good. He's such a lovely guy. He would be very good. I don't know about his singing, but I mean, there's nothing he can't do. So out of all my buddies, I would say he'd be great and he would have fun because he's a real gamer." Kevin has been a frequent guess among the Masked Singer panel throughout the show's history.
If there's any show that keeps fans guessing, it's The Masked Singer. Often times, viewers say that they know who the celebrities are, but the panel and clue packages can lead to all kinds of guesses. Usually, it's easiest to guess professional recording artists since their singing voices are so recognizable. As Rob mentioned, the show's producers like mixing professionals in with less predictable singers to keep things interesting. It's also important that the show attracts a broad range of viewers. It's more exciting for young fans when newer celebrities are unmasked, but older fans get a kick out of seeing the famous faces of icons from their generation. Rob is a great addition to the cast because he is well-known across generations. It's especially appealing for older celebrities like Rob to use The Masked Singer as an opportunity to stay even more relevant.
The Masked Singer airs Wednesdays at 8pm on FOX.
Source: EW