Mask Singer makes his comeback at the beginning of May on TF1. Even before the first broadcast, a key personality of the program must justify himself on the casting of the 2024 season…
Mask Singer is back in 2024, with a first prime-time broadcast on May 3, on TF1. Like every year, a jury made up of personalities will try to unmask other people, coming to sing on stage in colorful costumes. The program, presented by Camille Combal, a priori changes relatively little compared to the previous five seasons. We already know that we will be able to admire a hippopotamus, a hamster, a leopard and a pickle in this 6th season of the first channel show.
But a few faces were still added to the cast this year. On the jury, the indestructible Kev Adams will be assisted by Chantal Ladesou, Inès Reg and a fourth guest who was not expected in this type of show: Laurent Ruquier, who is coming out of a complicated experience on BFMTV. The latter spoke this week about his choice to join the cast of Mask Singer 2024, a show light years away from the talk shows and news channels on which he has recently distinguished himself.
The man who began his career as a comedian, known for his lively wit and humor, left BFMTV after only a few months of activity. He explains that his time on this news channel did not or no longer corresponded to his desires. “I’m in a state of mind where I only want to do what amuses me. That’s also why I didn’t stay on BFMTV. I understood that it wasn’t for me and that there was no point in insisting,” he confided in an interview with Télé Magazine.
His arrival in Mask Singer marks this return to pure entertainment. “I did it because it amuses me. That’s also why I agreed last season to be a guest investigator to replace Michèle Bernier for the duration of a show,” also assures Laurent Ruquier, who had in fact made a brief appearance last year in Mask Singer. “I had the secret hope that I would be called back, and I did not hesitate for a single moment,” even assures the one who presented We are not lying from 2006 to 2020 on the public service, praising a “real musical comedy every week.
Since Laurent Ruquier was announced in Mask Singer, rumors have circulated claiming that his arrival was planned well before his short stint on BFMTV, that he found the program a “plan B” after his failure on the news channel, or even that this choice was a regression in his career. Ruquier wanted to dismiss these theories one by one and clarify the situation: “Contrary to what has been said, my participation was not pre-negotiated before I arrived on BFMTV. Otherwise, I would not have gone there “.
“It’s a real job!”, also defends the host in Télé Magazine. In addition to his role as investigator, Laurent Ruquier inherited the presentation of the second part of the evening, in place of Camille Combal. A role which allows him to reconnect with the exercise of the interview, although it is completely improvised. “I quickly understood the difficulty of this exercise because I don’t know in advance who the personalities are who are going to be unmasked. If it’s someone I know well, it’s much easier. When he’s an international star, it’s a little more complicated, but it’s fun to do,” he explains. And to conclude: “In Mask Singer, I’m there temporarily, but I’m having a blast.” To the wise…