NFL reporter Erin Andrews has seen a lot of takedowns. But in her latest U.K.-based game show 99 to Beat, which throws 100 ordinary folks into a coliseum where they play seemingly simple games, the host (who watches from a box with cohost Ken Jeong) marvels at the competitive nature that comes out onscreen. “Our very first challenge is something you would think of [seeing] at a five-year-old’s birthday party, but at the end of it, we had grown women tackling each other,” says Andrews with a laugh.
That’s because of the $1 million prize. The games mostly involve household objects — like one hilarious challenge that sees who can melt the ice around a whistle and be the first to blow it. And there’s only one major rule: Don’t be last.
The series aired a special sneak peek on Sunday, September 21, on Fox after football, but the real fun begins on Wednesday, September 24 with the season premiere.
Below, Andrews breaks down her newest gig.
You are obviously no stranger to competition on television. How fierce, would you say, is the competition on 99 to Beat?
Erin Andrews: Obviously, the NFL is a whole other level and type of athlete, but when you have a million dollars on the line, there was so much at stake. I think that’s what makes our show so exciting. I’ve been trying to explain it to my family and my friends — our line in the show is, it’s seemingly simple games for serious cash. But it was very, very competitive, which made the show so much fun, with games that you were just like, “Wait, what? I have this at my house. I could do this.”
Is there a particular type of contestant that succeeds here?
You don’t have to be like young. You don’t have to be a fit athlete. You have to be calm, smart, and able to make an adjustment when things don’t go right. It’s not like, “Oh, well, this guy is a strapping 30-year-old with big muscles and he looks like he’ll win it.” You’d be really surprised.
You’re following the same competitors week-to-week as it goes from 100 down to one. What’s that look like onscreen?
There’s alliances, there’s fighting, there’s emotion, there’s a ton of crying, there’s anxiety, there’s certain people that don’t like each other. We pair people and have big groups sometimes of eight or nine. So, you have favorites that may go down with another team. It’s pretty much a shocker every single time.
99 to Beat Fox
Jay Maidment/Fox
It’s really cool the characters that come front and center. It was hard not to root for them. We have a nerdy professor — he was our thinker. He would go after challenges and really think [them through]. We had one guy that really came out of his shell. This show gave him confidence, and it was so hard not to cheer for him.
How is it working alongside Ken Jeong?
He’s so much fun. And luckily for me, he is a sports fan, so, that’s great. And he was just so funny. There were these long, long hours that we had — 15, 16 hours a day — and we would leave exhausted. And then I would go back to my room and text him funny memes from the day, just because we laughed so hard. I’m so grateful [to Ken] because you need someone to keep it light, and he is definitely good at that.
99 to Beat, Premiere, Wednesday, September 24, 9/8c, Fox
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