Is ABC’s ‘Claim to Fame’ funny or gross?
It’s actually surprisingly fun.
When the “Claim to Fame” trailer surfaced during the premiere of “The Bachelorette,” it was tempting to wonder if it would feel awkward to see the non-famous relatives of famous celebrities screaming for fame.
But somehow it just works and makes you want more.
The show’s premise, according to ABC’s info page, is that it “challenges 12 celebrity relatives to step out of their famous family member’s shadow and live together under one roof, hiding their identities and lineage in pursuit of their own fame and fortune.”
The winner gets $100,000.
The show is compared to a mix of “Clue” with its mysterious elements and “Big Brother” because the contestants live in the same house and form alliances and enemies under the same roof.
Famed pop star Kevin Jonas co-hosts the show with his lesser-known brother, Frankie Jonas. The pair make compelling hosts and offer a glimpse of what it must be like to be related to a very famous person.
“My role on this show was really to relate to (the contestants) in a way that maybe even Kevin couldn’t,” Frankie Jonas told USA Today.
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How does Claim to Fame work?
In each episode, contestants complete challenges that include clues to each person’s celebrity relative. The winner of the challenge is safe from elimination, and the bottom two contestants are put in the hot seat.
Contestants vote for one of the bottom two players who either correctly guesses a contestant’s celebrity relative or is sent home in dramatic fashion.
While you discover the identities of some of the contestants early on, many of the remaining seven players are yet to be revealed.
This makes it fun to figure out who they are from the clues around the house and from the challenges.
“The whole house was artistic,” Kevin Jonas told USA Today. “Every statue, every little object could be a clue that relates to someone else.”
Would you recognize the celebrity relatives in ‘Claim to Fame’?
No spoilers but the identities revealed so far are very famous, recognizable celebrities to most people.
Knowing this makes the game more fun to decipher clues because unlike Masked Singer, which sometimes features Type B and C celebrities, these are big names you’ve probably heard before.
The cast also features dynamic and interesting characters that fuel the drama ABC loves, but also endear certain players to viewers.
What are the ‘Claim to Fame’ contestants saying about the show?
One of the contestants, Dominique (last name withheld to avoid spoilers), told USA Today:
“My dad always taught me that you can’t be big and small at the same time, and I always chose the path to be big. When he first heard about this competition, he was like, ‘If you go in there, you have to be big. You have to vote big and you have to be Dominique. Stay true to yourself.'”
Another contestant, LC (last name not included), told Newsweek, “I came into this game with terrible social anxiety, so it’s me stepping out of the shadows and stepping into the spotlight.”
New episodes of “Claim to Fame” air Mondays at 8 p.m. MT on ABC and stream on Hulu the following day.