Kiki Palmer may be a game show host, but she's not playing the game when it comes to how seriously she takes it.
The host of NBC's “Passwords” made history at this year's Emmy Awards by becoming the first Black woman to win the award for Outstanding Game Show Host, but she isn't dabbling in games of any kind. yeah. This is a board game that I especially loved when I was a kid. ”People will say that Monopoly is worse than spades. ”
“We still play Monopoly on our phones,” Palmer said. “My family stopped playing together because I was always taking their money and bankrupting them. But I still love the game.”
Returning with Season 2 Tuesday (10 p.m. ET/PT, streaming the next day on Peacock), “Password” and Palmer are coming up with new games, new fashionable looks and new gags.
Executive producer and star Jimmy Fallon will pair the contestants to compete against another celebrity-civilian duo for a $25,000 prize, and viewers will be asked, “This year, these “I'm going to fall in love with the contestants.”
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This season's celebrity guests include A-list talent including Wiz Khalifa, Jimmy Kimmel, Johnny Knoxville, Chance the Rapper, Meghan Trainor and Lindsey Vonn.
Who is the best? Comedian and former Daily Show correspondent Roy Wood Jr. “was great in the game,” Palmer said. “Until the end, he had it all.”
Joe Manganiello, who appears in the season premiere (Falron says, “is a stud, but everybody's into it. The audience loves him”) was also a favorite. “I think by the end of the game he thought he might be psychic,” Fallon says.
According to Fallon, Kimmel “came on the show just to prove to everyone that there are two Jimmys, white male talk show hosts, who are different. In fact, we're two different people. But he's very funny.''
This season also includes a special theme for all passwords in the second round, as well as a chance for contestants to choose to “Shoot the Moon” and earn extra points by trusting their partner to guess the password correctly on one try. New elements will be added, such as options that can be acquired.
“I got really good at the game,” Fallon says. “So much so that people say, 'Are you cheating? Is this cheating?' And I'm like, 'Hey, not only is this not cheating, they're saying I'm They're just normal people playing together.'' Legally, I'm not even allowed to see the script, so I don't know what's written. ”
For tiebreakers, fans will see Palmer “run through” the hints in his own voice until a contestant tells them the answer.
Fallon was confused throughout the taping of the show because Palmer animated her catchphrase, “And the gag was…”. “I had to stop filming because I was giggling so much. I was like, 'Stop, that's so unprofessional,' so I had to calm down,” he says.
Fallon also praised Palmer's fashion sense and commitment to staying true to herself. “In the last two episodes, she went out wearing heels, and then she switched to platforms like UGG boots,” Fallon says. “She's real.”
“I really enjoyed my charm,” Palmer says. “I hope you really enjoy fashion.”
Season 2 was a juggling act for Palmer as she built the KeyTV network around Black creators and continued her work as a businesswoman, host, and actress (yes, she was hoping fans would see a reboot of The Real Jackson VP). admits that it is possible). She is a new mom to her son Leo, who recently turned 1 year old.
“I'm a very resilient person, and up until I turned 30, had my son, and got to this point in my life, I realized how much I hated feeling empowered. I don’t think it was,” Palmer said. It's been 20 years since she first played a role. “There's nothing to be ashamed of because I know what I want in life. That makes me happy.”
Fallon was also happy to have her son on the show's set.
“Her baby is really cute. Oh, he's so adorable. And I laughed so hard at him too. He likes me,” Fallon says.
Palmer's love of Monopoly may be influenced by her son when he's old enough to play, but it's also possible that he'll fall into her family's tradition of playing the perfectly crafted game. .
“My family makes games,” Palmer says. “What I mean by this is[once]we were driving to California…we played a movie game where we all got a chance to shout out movie quotes,” says Angela Bassett. she says, listing. A characteristic impression of a movie star. “And whoever gets it right gets to make the next line of movies. We've always played games that give us a chance to show our love for movies and television. ”
How to watch “Password”
“Password” airs Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT on NBC. It will also be streamed on Peacock the following day.