“The themes have really elevated this show. It’s made it much more fun for me,” Jane Lynch told TV Insider at a taping for the first season of Celebrity Weakest Link, a revamped version of the well-known game show she’s hosted since 2020. The new twist is that instead of featuring regular folks in the hot seat (or more accurately, at the hot podium), each of the 11 new episodes will bring together eight celebs connected by a theme like Reality Couples or Football Legends.
We stopped by Television City in Los Angeles to check out how well the “TV Doctors” – a mix of reality show MDs and actors who’ve played physicians – operated under pressure.
During a practice round, Lynch, statuesque in a black suit, encouraged the contestants as the director zipped around explaining to Torrey Devitto (Chicago Med) when she should look at the camera or Dr. Dubrow (a cosmetic surgeon on Botched) when he should hit the big red button used to “bank” cash winnings. The favorite seemed to be brainy Hill Harper (CSI: NY and The Good Doctor). But you couldn’t count out the funny and serious Kal Penn (House), kind and patient Ryan Eggold (New Amsterdam), hilarious Jason George (Grey’s Anatomy), or reserved Dr. Will Kirby (Big Brother 2). And it was clear from how fast she picked up the game play that Dr. Sandra Lee (Dr. Pimple Popper) was a force to be reckoned with.
She also has a fan in Lynch, who told us, “Dr. Pimple Popper, I watch on YouTube. She pops pimples and not just the small ones. She’s very kind and makes [patients] feel good about the fact that they have huge cystic acne the size of the “bank” button. I love it. My wife walks out of the room, but my niece and my sister, the three of us, send each other videos. I told Dr. Sandra, ‘You are a celebrity in our home.’”
No favoritism was displayed by Lynch once game play started. She also didn’t give away that she’d picked up on an unusual player strategy. The host told us after the game wrapped, “We uncovered an alliance between a certain faction of that cast, and it was quite interesting to watch it develop. I suspected it after about two or three rounds.”
Even though Lynch is firm with contestants, she never intentionally rattles them. “I like to make people feel comfortable and also have kind of the demeanor of a strict school marm. I think that kind of works,” says Lynch. “I think these folks know that my tongue is firmly wedged into my cheek and there hopefully is a twinkle in my eye, unlike Anne Robinson [the host of The Weakest Link‘s first iteration, which ran from 2000 to 2012]. She was as serious as a heart attack, and that’s why that show was so good. But I didn’t for a minute think I should go that route myself.”
Lynch’s likability has made her plenty of friends in the entertainment industry. One of the themed episodes is “8 Degrees of Jane.” “It’s a small community, this acting community. Even if I haven’t worked with them, I know of them, and there’s an instant familiarity,” says Lynch, who’s won five Emmys and appeared in plenty of scripted fare, most recently Only Murders in the Building. “The last season where I was the murder victim was probably a peak moment of my life,” she says.
Her breakthrough role was in Glee, and one themed episode will feature castmates from the musical drama. Lynch told us, “My niece worked on the show. She knows all these kids — they’re not kids anymore! They’re in their thirties. So, I see them a lot. They come over to the house, we have parties. We’re still very much in touch. They all said yes to do this. I’m really grateful to them. That episode is going to be… wow. The people that you think would be the dumbest were the smartest. I don’t mean to — because I’m a blonde — but there’s a couple of blondes that when I heard they were doing the show, I was like, ‘They’re not going to do well at all,’” Lynch laughs.
After the interview, we played a one-on-one round of TV trivia with Lynch. We killed it … until Lynch asked the final question. “On The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, who won an Emmy for playing…” We didn’t hear the rest. The studio suddenly seemed vaster and darker, the pinpricks of spotlights brighter. What was the name of the show’s lead? Um. How could we blank on this? So embarrassing! Finally, we blurted, “Rachel Brosnahan!” Lynch gave us a hard stare. “No, it was Jane Lynch.” The rest of the question had been “…Sophie Lennon.” Yep, Lynch won an Emmy for that role in 2019.
So when you watch a game show and marvel at how a doctor could forget something that anyone who watched The Pitt would know (and you will!), have some sympathy. Even the strongest authority can be the weakest link.
Celebrity Weakest Link, Season Premiere, Monday, September 15, 9/8c, Fox
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