The Masked Dancer (US) is an American reality dancing competition television series. The series premiered on FOX on December 27, 2020.[1][2][3] Much like The Masked Singer, the show features costumed celebrities competing against each other. They dance each week, trying to make it to the finale and win. After the performances in each episode, the dancer with the lowest amount of votes is eliminated and their identity is revealed.
The show is hosted by Craig Robinson, with panelists Paula Abdul, Brian Austin Green, Ken Jeong, and Ashley Tisdale.
Production[]
The Masked Dancer first started as a segment on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in January 2019.[4] Mystery celebrities that appeared in the Ellen segment include Sean Hayes,[5] The Masked Singer panelist Ken Jeong,[6] Howie Mandel,[7] Colton Underwood,[8] and Derek Hough.[9] Howie Mandel and Colton Underwood later appeared on The Masked Singer as Rock Lobster and Lovebird.
On January 7, 2020, it was announced that FOX had ordered a full series of the segment, with Ellen DeGeneres serving as an executive producer for the series.[10][11]
Production on the series began the weekend of October 16 amid the coronavirus pandemic. It was filmed at Red Studios Hollywood, where season four of The Masked Singer had filmed, with the same safety protocols in place.[12]
On October 28, 2020, it was announced that Craig Robinson would serve as host of the series, with panelists Paula Abdul, Brian Austin Green, Ken Jeong (who serves as a panelist on The Masked Singer and served as both a mystery celebrity and panelist for the Ellen segment of Dancer), and Ashley Tisdale.[13][14][15]
On November 10, 2020, it was announced that the series would premiere on December 27, 2020.[1][2][3]
Contestant Progress[]
| Rank | Photo | Contestant/Celebrity[16][17][18][19] | Ep. 1 | Ep. 2 | Ep. 3 | Ep. 4 | Ep. 5 | Ep. 6 | Ep. 7 | Ep. 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | B | A | ||||||||
| 1st |  |
Cotton Candy - Gabby Douglas | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | 1st | ||
| 2nd |  |
Sloth - Maksim Chmerkovskiy | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | 2nd | ||
| 3rd |  |
Tulip - Mackenzie Ziegler | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | 3rd | ||
| 4th |  |
Zebra - Oscar De La Hoya | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||
| 5th |  |
Exotic Bird - Jordin Sparks | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | ||||
| 6th |  |
Hammerhead - Vinny Guadagino | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | |||||
| 7th |  |
Cricket - Brian McKnight | SAFE | ELIM | ||||||
| 8th |  |
Moth - Elizabeth Smart | SAFE | ELIM | ||||||
| 9th |  |
Ice Cube - Bill Nye | ELIM | |||||||
| 10th |  |
Disco Ball - Ice-T | ELIM | |||||||
- █ The contestant won The Masked Dancer US.
- █ The contestant was a runner-up.
- █ The contestant placed third.
- █ The contestant was safe from elimination.
- █ The contestant was eliminated.
- █ The contestant did not participate in the episode.
Episodes[]
| # | Image | Title | Prod. code | Airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 
|
"Premiere - Everybody Mask Now!" | MDA-101 | December 27, 2020 |
| The first group of five celebrities dance; the host and panelists try to guess their identities. | ||||
| 2 | 
|
"Group B Premiere - New Year, New Mask! (Who Dis?)" | MDA-102 | January 6, 2021 |
| It's a New Year and the final group of five characters is introduced, group "B!" | ||||
| 3 | 
|
"Group B Playoffs - These Masks Don't Lie!" | MDA-103 | January 13, 2021 |
| The second group of dancers returns for the group B finals; three move on to the super six. | ||||
| 4 | 
|
"Group A Playoffs - So You Think You Can Mask?" | MDA-104 | January 20, 2021 |
| The first group returns to the group A finals; one is unmasked and the remaining move on to the super six. | ||||
| 5 | 
|
"Super Six" | MDA-105 | January 27, 2021 |
| The three finalists from group A and group B come together for the super six; guest panellist Whitney Cummings. | ||||
| 6 | 
|
"Top Five - Mask the Night Away!" | MDA-106 | February 3, 2021 |
| The final five dancers compete for their shot at the semifinals. | ||||
| 7 | "Semifinals - It's All About The Dance!" | MDA-107 | February 10, 2021 | |
| TBA | ||||
| 8 | "Road to the Finals - Final Clues to the Mask!" | MDA-108 | February 17, 2021 | |
| TBA | ||||
| 9 | "The Finale - One Last Mask!" | MDA-109 | February 17, 2021 | |
Trivia[]
- The Ellen DeGeneres Show later had a new segment in February 2020 titled 'The Masked DJ' with Chris Harrison as the mystery celebrity.[20]
Videos[]
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Fox Sets Winter Premiere Dates; The Masked Dancer, Call Me Kat & Last Man Standing Get Post-NFL Launches
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 FOX Announces Winter Premiere Dates for New and Returning Series
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Fox Sets Premiere Dates for 9-1-1, Lone Star, Masked Dancer and Last Man Standing Final Season
- ↑ How The Masked Dancer Went From Being a Joke on Ellen to a Real Show at Fox
- ↑ Guess Along with Ellen and tWitch: Who Is ‘The Masked Dancer’?
- ↑ A Secret Celebrity Shows Off Their Moves in 'The Masked Dancer'
- ↑ Ken Jeong Helps Ellen & tWitch Guess 'The Masked Dancer'
- ↑ Ellen & tWitch Try to Guess Another ‘Masked Dancer’
- ↑ Nicole Scherzinger & Nick Cannon Guess 'The Masked Dancer'
- ↑ FOX Reveals New Series The Masked Dancer
- ↑ The Masked Dancer: Fox Partners With Ellen DeGeneres On The Masked Singer Spinoff – TCA
- ↑ Fox’s The Masked Dancer To Shoot This Weekend With Health & Safety Protocols & Virtual Audience
- ↑ Craig Robinson to Host The Masked Dancer, FOX's Brand-New Celebrity Competition Show, Featuring Panelists Ken Jeong, Paula Abdul, Brian Austin Green, and Ashley Tisdale
- ↑ The Masked Dancer: Craig Robinson Set To Host The Masked Singer Spinoff
- ↑ The Masked Dancer on Twitter: "Are you ready for this much masked madness? 🤪🎭 #TheMaskedDancer premieres December 2020 with host @MrCraigRobinson and panelists..."
- ↑ The Masked Dancer reveals costumes in first teaser
- ↑ Meet The Masked Dancer's Moth, Discoball and Hammerhead in New Promo
- ↑ The Masked Dancer Reveals Ice Cube Costume (EXCLUSIVE)
- ↑ All The Masked Dancer costumes, including Miss Moth, Hammerhead, and more
- ↑ ‘The Masked DJ’ Brings Drama to Ellen