Talking Dead host Chris Hardwick returns for season 5 of The Wall

Comedian, actor, television and podcast host, producer, writer, and Emmy winner Chris Hardwick is well known in The Walking Dead universe for hosting The Walking Dead after-show Talking Dead. He is also well known for hosting the NBC game show The Wall, which recently began airing its fifth season.

The game show began airing in 2016 with Hardwick as host and executive producer, with LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and Andrew Glassman. Hardwick is no stranger to hosting game shows as he was also part of the group that won an Emmy for outstanding interactive programming for the @midnight game show and, in the ’90s, hosted Trashed and Singled Out. 

The Wall is a 40 ft pegboard, similar to Plinko from The Price is Right. The bottom of the board is divided into 15 slots divided into different US dollar amounts. The low end of the range is $1 – $100 and remains constant throughout the game, while the higher ranges increase during each round. Balls are played from drop zones above.

The show has already given out over $25 million, and season 5 promises to give away even more money than ever. The new Wall to Wall segment gives players a chance to add $1 million to their bank, but there is a risk they could also lose the total of their bank. This season, two lucky players bank and then play for $2.8 million, the most significant amount in the history of the series.

Chris Hardwick – The Wall

The two contestant teams play each game with the goal of banking as much money as possible by answering questions and landing balls in the high-dollar slots. Over $12 million is on the line each night, with up to $3 million in a single drop. If a question is answered correctly, a green ball drops, which is added to the bank; if it is answered incorrectly, the red ball drops, deducting that amount.  Since this game is played in pairs, the contestants must trust one another to answer the questions correctly.

The game show has received mixed reviews sighting while it isn’t necessarily a new concept, it is mixed up enough to be a fresh new take on something familiar.

The Wall season 5 premiered on April 11 and each week after on Tuesdays at 9/8c and will stream the next day on Peacock.

Hardwick hosted a mini-game on the Today Show ahead of the premiere of season 5.

There has been no information released about Talking Dead returning for the final season of Fear the Walking Dead, which premieres on AMC on May 14, 2023 or the upcoming spinoff series.

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