‘Punk’d’ Returning With Chance the Rapper Hosting

The revival of Punk’d, the popular MTV prank series originally hosted by Ashton Kutcher, now has a host. MTV and Quibi announced Chance the Rapper has been tapped for the job, after the performer showed off his comedy skills on Saturday Night Live. Chance also served as a judge on Netflix’s Rhythm + Flow with Cardi B and T.I.

“Punk’d is one of MTV’s most iconic franchises,” Chance said in a statement Friday. “I grew up watching this show and it’s surreal to be in the driver’s seat this time around on Quibi.”

The Punk’d revival was originally announced back in June, as part of the first projects MTV Studios is creating for Quibi under a multi-year deal. Punk’d is being produced by STXtelevision in association with MTV Studios, which is also making a revival of Singled Out.

“This deal builds on MTV’s strategy of reinventing our iconic shows to reach new audiences on pioneering new platforms like Quibi,” Chris McCarthy, President of MTV, said this summer. “We are excited to be working with Jeffrey [Katzenberg], Doug [Herzog] and the Quibi team to reinvent Punk’d and Singled Out for a new generation of fans.”

“For the generation who grew up watching Punk’d and Singled Out on MTV, this represents a long overdue reboot of two well-loved shows. It’s also an opportunity to bring these enduring and classic MTV franchises to a brand new audience on our exciting new platform,” Doug Herzog of Quibi added.

The new Punk’d will be 20 episodes, with each running about 10 minutes or so, just like other Quibi content. The platform is launching on April 6.

Jeffrey Katzenberg founded Quibi in 2018, and tapped Meg Whitman as CEO. The mobile video platform plans to deliver quick videos for the 21st Century audience. Although the platform is still more than two months from launching, it has attracted dozens of major creators and shows. Series based on Varsity Blues, The Fugitive and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days are all in development for Quibi.

The original Punk’d was created by Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, and ran from 2003 to 2007. It was revived in 2012 for MTV and in 2015 for BET. The show featured Kutcher and his friends pulling off practical jokes on celebrities.

Chance the Rapper, born Chancelor Bennett in Chicago, is a three-time Grammy award winner. In 2017, he picked up awards for Best Rap Album for his mixtape Coloring Book, Best New Artist and Best Rap Performance for “No Problem.” He released his first full-length studio album, The Big Day, in July 2019.

Photo credit: NBC/Getty Images