Although The Masked Singer created quite the stir on April 20 when Rudy Giuliani was unmasked as Jack in the Box, there are several reasons why the show's producers decided to cast Giuliani—and air the awkward moment he was revealed. While contestants on The Masked Singer secretly perform until the judges guess correctly or they are eliminated, Giuliani was leaked as a competitor back in February after it was reported that judges Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke walked off in protest, although the episode clarifies that Thicke was simply checking in on Jeong.
Giuliani has been in the public eye for decades, but an overview of his career shows the steep decline of someone who was once well-respected. As the former U.S. Associate Attorney General and mayor of New York City, Giuliani's response to the 9/11 attacks was globally supported, and Giuliani was named TIME's Person of the Year for 2001. After enjoying years of political success—albeit with some failures here and there—Giuliani's reputation quickly began to fall when he joined former President Donald Trump's legal team in 2018. Between facing federal investigations for corruption and unsuccessful attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, Giuliani's fall from grace led to his license to practice law being suspended in New York and D.C. in June and July 2021, respectively.
With all the controversy Giuliani and Trump have perpetuated, fans of The Masked Singer have struggled to understand why Giuliani would be invited to compete on the show. There's one simple explanation for why FOX chose to ultimately go through with Giuliani's appearance—the producers are looking to boost ratings. It's no secret, after all, that The Masked Singer is experiencing a steep decline in viewership. Masked Singer season 1 had an average of 10 million viewers, for example, while season 7 has had just around 4 million since its March premiere. While FOX was clearly banking on Giuliani's unexpected reveal to increase ratings with its surprise factor, Deadline's report shows that the April 20 episode actually brought in fewer people at 3.59 million.
On The Masked Singer, high ratings and viewership correlate with the public's interest, so there's a strong possibility that the show is casting controversial contestants to increase word-of-mouth exposure once scenes air. Giuliani's awkwardly unveiling isn't the first time FOX's celebrity choices have been criticized, as fans may remember when Alaskan politician Sarah Palin was revealed as Bear on Masked Singer season 3; Caitlyn Jenner was also negatively received as Pheonix on Masked Singer season 5. Although the show has held a lot of influence online since Giuliani's participation was leaked in February, that doesn't necessarily mean that transfers to how many people watch the program during its time slot.
Now that Giuliani has been confirmed as Jack in the Box, how the rest of The Masked Singer season 7 plays out will be a critical factor for the show's future. While FOX may have brought on Palin, Giuliani, Jenner, and other polarizing figures in an effort to increase the competition's popularity, the network's decision to give Giuliani air time after directly interfering with the United States 2020 general election is not something fans can easily overlook. Only six masked competitors remain, but the winning title is still anyone's game—as well as which celebrities are under each mask.
The Masked Singer airs Wednesdays at 8 pm on FOX.
Source: Deadline