‘The Masked Singer’: How One of TV’s Goofiest Shows Became Unexpectedly Cathartic for Competitors

On its massive-eyed face, “The Masked Singer” may seem like just a goofy reality competition series, meant for little more than an hour of escapism. And really, it is that. Fox’s singing contest is predicated on sticking various calibers of famous people in insane, occasionally nightmare-fueling costumes, having them perform for a live audience, and letting the audience guess who the voice belongs to.

It’s simple and merry, if occasionally a little obvious (just about everyone clocked Vanessa Hudgens and Amber Riley immediately). But, as it wraps up its 13th season this week, “The Masked Singer” has also become something else entirely, according to those who have competed on it — a surprisingly therapeutic experience.

The show originated in South Korea in 2015, titled “King of Mask Singer.” In 2017, executive producer Craig Plestis, a veteran in reality TV and now the President and CEO of Smart Dog Media, watched an episode and knew immediately that “it was bonkers weird.” It was so weird that, when he secured the rights to produce an American version, Plestis couldn’t convince a network to pick it up — except for Fox executive Rob Wade.

“He was the only person in the whole town who got it,” Plestis recalled to TheWrap. “Everybody I pitched it to, they didn’t get it at all.”

That included most of the celebrities that Fox asked to participate in the show’s inaugural season. According to Plestis, “it was a battle” to cast it, with the most typical response being: “call us up in Season 2 when it works.” That was assuming it did work, which Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider was confident wouldn’t be the case.

“They asked me to be on the first season. I said, ‘No, this show will never work,’” Snider told TheWrap with a laugh in 2023.

Of course, he was proven wrong. And nine seasons later, Snider competed on the show as Doll and happily ate crow.

These days, some celebs are often eager to come on, though Plestis admitted that there are also still some who don’t know much about it, and a few who require a few years of nudging (he recalled pestering the late Bob Saget for years before the comedian finally agreed to compete in Season 4).

The caliber of contestants is still of a certain level in Hollywood — Florence Pugh or Zendaya aren’t angling to be on “The Masked Singer” — with more household names like Demi Lovato, Dick Van Dyke, Kevin Hart and Taika Waititi only appearing for single episodes (or, in Waititi’s case this season, multiple, but not in a competitive capacity).

But those who do take the plunge largely seem happy they did.

Sometimes it’s just for the fun of it, like in the case of Jerry Springer and Debbie Gibson. “Teen Wolf” star Tyler Posey even told TheWrap that “they could have dressed me up as like a giant pile of poop, and I would have been so down.”

But more and more, competitors are finding that “The Masked Singer” allows them to work through their issues. For some musical artists, the show lets them prove they’re more than just the songs fans know. Snider noted he was “really anxious” to show off his singing abilities beyond Twisted Sister. Rapper Flavor Flav was ecstatic to sing songs outside his usual repertoire (namely Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood”).

“That’s a big selling point here, because for a lot of different artists who want to try different kind of styles out, they can never do it with their fan base,” Plestis explained. “So this is a way for them to sample something different, or try something different.”

But not everyone who competes on “The Masked Singer” is actually a singer. For some, the idea of singing in front of people comes with a lot of fear, and the show was an opportunity to confront that. Such was the case for “Sabrina the Teenage Witch” star Melissa Joan Hart, Extra TV host Billy Bush and WWE star Alexa Bliss.

This season, the competition allowed “Boy Meets World” and “Mrs. Doubtfire” alum Matthew Lawrence to work through the trauma of an old Broadway audition gone horribly wrong.

“It was a lot of soul searching,” he told TheWrap with a laugh. “It sounds so crazy for ‘The Masked Singer,’ but it’s true! It was a lot of soul searching, and a lot of getting over this fear.”

Lawrence’s surprise isn’t uncommon. Reflecting on their time on the show, many competitors TheWrap spoke with were stunned at how cathartic the experience got during filming. And after six years producing the show, Plestis has a guess as to how and why “The Masked Singer” has evolved past its silly side for competitors.

“They’re isolated. They wear their ‘Don’t talk to me’ shirts, no one’s allowed to talk to them, except a few people on on staff,” he explained. “And they go back to their trailer, and sometimes they have an entourage, or a friend or loved one with them. Lots of times they come by themselves.”

“For the first time, they’re really inside their head without having 20,000 fans screaming at them or whatnot,” he continued. “That alone time, I think, helps them understand and go through stuff.”

That said, the show’s producers also very much encourage doing that self-examination. Contestants sit down for behind-the-scenes Q&As to provide material for clue packages that help fans and the panelists guess their identities. Plestis conceded that those interviews tend to prompt contestants to get a bit more personal.

“We’re looking for stories that are not on Wikipedia. And so, when we have these Q&As with them to find out a little bit what makes them tick, it’s a little bit of a therapy session as well, because they’re talking about stuff from their father, from their childhood, or from their loved ones,” he explained. “So we’re getting [a] glimpse of who they are, that we can put in packages — because I really want to be honest about that — but it also makes them think a little bit.”

It’s even led to coping with much more personal matters. David Archuleta, who found fame on “American Idol,” told TheWrap that performing as Macaw shortly after he came out as part of the LGBTQ community “was also symbolic of me learning how to be comfortable stepping into accepting this part of my identity.”

Actress Jenifer Lewis decided to go on the show last year at the encouragement of her friends, who promised it would “lift your spirit” as she continued a hard recovery after falling 10 feet off a balcony while on vacation in Africa in 2022. John Schneider told People that the show “helped me get through the worst year of my life” after losing his wife to cancer.

“Community” star Yvette Nicole Brown competed in 2024 as well, after “a tough year” as caregiver to her dad.

“It took my mind off of what was going on with my father,” she admitted to TheWrap. “It gave me a chance to touch back into a dream that I — my greatest love, which is singing.”

Granted, not every contestant loves the experience. Mickey Rourke famously self-eliminated in Season 4, simply because he was too hot in his costume. Combining the mental elements of “The Masked Singer” with the physical elements — pro football player Le’Veon Bell admitted that performing in his costume was “hands down” harder to move in than football pads — is a lot to ask of these people.

But, Plestis assured that there is support on hand and noted that, at the end of each season, the emotional resonance is evident for many.

“The Masked Singer” airs on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Fox and streams the next day on Hulu. It has not yet been renewed for Season 14.

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