In its tenth season, The Masked Singer is still managing to find plenty of celebrities who want to commit to the wild competition, and the pulls are as impressive as ever. Some of the famed faces make the effort to travel extreme distances in a short amount of time to compete, so the pay must be pretty good, right? Well, it’s been a long-standing rumor that the celebrities taking part in the performances are doing so for free, but CinemaBlend recently learned the truth behind those claims from the showrunner himself, James Breen.
Without any masks involved, Breen revealed further insight into the celeb payment conversation when we spoke ahead of The Masked Singer‘s Season 10 premiere. During our talk, I brought up the speculation that participants aren’t paid to participate, and Breen clarified exactly what the situation is as of Season 10:
Listen, obviously, there’s compensation. We have a lot of SAG-AFTRA members for a start. So no one’s doing it technically for free. But I will say they’re not compensated to the level where anyone’s doing it for the money. That’s what I would say. And, it’s the kind of show. you can’t do it halfheartedly. You have to throw yourself in it. You have to have a sense of fun. You have to be able to celebrate the craziness of the show and enjoy it. I wouldn’t say anyone’s doing it completely for free, but I don’t think anyone’s ever done this show just for the money.
So, while there is ostensibly a payday involved when competing on The Masked Singer, showrunner James Breen admitted it’s not something many celebrities would seek out as the core reason to appear on the Fox hit. If someone has reached the point where Masked Singer is a possibility, they’re probably bringing in enough money that guild fees aren’t a make-or-break issue. It is good to know, however, that there’s a minor amount of money exchanged and that celebrities like the late Jerry Springer didn’t foot the hotel bill during his considerably short stint.
Even beyond lodging issues, The Masked Singer contestants have gone through a lot over the years. Contestants have had last-minute scheduling changes altering their performances, as well as issues with movement in unique costumes, while one celeb was even shocked on stage due to wiring malfunctions. And yet, when it’s all said and done, just about everyone who’s taken part has been positive about it while encouraging others to do it.
The fact that celebrities compete practically for free makes it all the more of an impressive effort that The Masked Singer has kept the train rolling on this series for ten seasons. This year is serving up an even bigger array of surprises, as Breen confirmed that former competitors will continue to appear throughout the season to help celebrate the landmark season alongside the new batch of competitors.
I know I’d personally love to see someone like past competitor Joey Fatone return and compete in secret, though I’m not sure the Fox series will ever let a celebrity return and try to fool viewers. I don’t think there’s a rule against it, though, so maybe keep an ear out to see if any former competitors might be under some fuzzy exoskeletons as The Masked Singer Season 10 continues.
This season has been advertised to be bigger than any its done before, and viewers should expect callbacks to previous seasons as well as unique themed nights for the NFL and Harry Potter. It’s all winding down to another crowning of the Golden Mask trophy and maybe even a new era in The Masked Singer.
The Masked Singer airs on Fox on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Stream Season 10 with a Hulu subscription, and keep scouring the web for details on this season’s competitors and who they might be.