Fox Opens ‘Masked Singer’ Stage to Advertising for First Time (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor The newest surprise at Fox’s “Masked Singer” isn’t tied to an appearance by a mysterious celebrity.

On Wednesday night, the popular reality-competition program will bring an advertiser into its format for the first time since launching in 2019.

From the opening shot to the end of the contest, “Singer” will utilize characters and other trappings from Universal’s new “Trolls Band Together” movie, slated to open on Friday. “Singer” panelist Ken Jeong will even be spotted wearing a colored wig to make himself look more like one of the creatures in the animated film.

Some TV observers might be astonished to learn that the series is accommodating an advertiser at all. Unlike predecessors such as “The Voice” and “American Idol,” “Singer” has never indulged in on-screen product placements from sponsors such as Coca-Cola, Ford or Starbucks. “There has always been a feeling that this show is a little more crazy and a little more unexpected than a traditional reality show and it lives in its own world,” says James Breen, the series’ showrunner, during an interview. “That’s why we have resisted just doing a very ordinary, very obvious product placement.” Producers in the past have helped to create “Singer”-related advertising for sponsors including a digital series of exit interviews for Hyundai and a commercial for the movie “Scoob,” but have not brought such elements into the program itself. “Trolls” plays right to the key “Singer” crowd, which typically consists of kids and parents watching together, says Suzanne Sullivan, executive vice president of advertising sales for Fox Entertainment.