Travis Kelce Hosts Prime Video: Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?

April 16, 2024 at 10:30 am

Travis Kelce goes from football and Taylor Swift photo ops to television. The Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro tight end will host the show “Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” A new series appears on Amazon Prime Video. The upcoming show is a spinoff of Fox's “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” which premiered in 2007.

“I grew up loving game shows and am excited to follow in the footsteps of so many TV icons by hosting my very first show, Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” “The original show is a huge success, so it will definitely be entertaining to bring a new format to the screen with everyone’s favorite celebrities,” said Travis Kelce in a press release. “I’m just happy to be here on the host side and I’m excited to see how these famous faces can keep up.”

The series focuses on adult participants who draw on a classroom full of celebrities from “stage, screen and sport” to help them answer 11 questions, all drawn from an elementary school curriculum. The winner of this competition will receive a prize of $100,000.

Despite the title of the series, participants will not compete against celebrities but will instead enlist their help. Sometimes participants are even allowed to “cheat” on their famous colleagues. For the final question, the contestant selects a celebrity to discuss the question with before deciding on their final answer. The final question is always asked at the 6th grade level, so leave Jeff Foxworthy aside.

Prime Video has not yet announced the premiere date for the 20-part series. “Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” will debut on the platform in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.

“After producing more than 3,000 episodes of 'Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?' Globally, we wanted to give the format a new, loud touch. “Replacing the kids with celebrities brings more laughs and surprises, like a roast as contestants cheat on their famous classmates,” said Barry Poznick, general manager of MGM Alternative and co-creator of the series, in a press release. “And now, with the ultimate class clown, Travis Kelce, as host, viewers should expect the unexpected!”

“Travis has proven to be an incredible talent on and off the field, and we appreciate the trust he has shown in us in his first foray into television. “His natural comedic dynamic with our panelists and guests, coupled with some exciting new twists, will keep our global customers coming back week after week,” said Lauren Anderson, head of AVOD unscripted originals and targeted programming at Amazon MGM Studios, released in a press release.

Although the Kansas City Chiefs player is best known for his three Super Bowl victories, this move isn't entirely unexpected. In February, TheWrap reported that Kelce was eyeing a move to Hollywood and was open to developing unscripted projects as well as film and comedy opportunities. Additionally, the professional athlete and podcaster is already financing and producing two films: “My Dead Friend Zoe,” premiering at SXSW, and the documentary “King Pleasure.”

Wes Kauble will serve as showrunner of “Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” and Mark Burnett will executive produce alongside Sean Kelly and Steve Hughes. The series is produced by Amazon MGM Studios Distribution.