‘The Masked Singer’ Group A Wildcard Round: New Photos Show Sneak Peek at Tonight’s New Episode

The Masked Singer‘s highly-anticipated twist kicks off in Wednesday’s episode as the first-ever Wildcard character enters the competition to possibly unseat one of the masked celebrity singers of Group A. The Wildcard characters will only be revealed during this week’s episode, airing Wednesday, March 24 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox, facing off against the Russian Dolls, Seashell, Robopine and Raccoons.

One celebrity will be unmasked at the end of Wednesday’s episode, with panelists Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Scherzinger and Robin Thicke all serving up their guesses as to who is performing for them before the audience vote determines which character will go home. The Season 5 contestants boast a combined 26 Grammy Award nominations, nine multi-Platinum singles, four Academy Award nominations, three Super Bowl appearances, six gold medals and two world records, so there’s plenty of star power to go around! Keep scrolling to learn all about Wednesday’s upcoming episode, including the special guest panelist making their season debut.

Russian Dolls

When fans of The Masked Singer first met the Russian Doll, they were shocked to see a second doll emerge on stage, opening up the judges’ guesses to famous duos in pop culture. Performing Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror,” during their debut, the panelists zeroed in on the clue tying the stars to the Garden State Parkway. Fans are pretty convinced the Hanson brothers are hiding inside the dolls costume, pointing to their voices as the biggest clue, but we’ll have to wait and see at the unmasking!

Seashell

Also performing during Wednesday’s episode is Seashell, who brought the house down during her first episode singing “Listen to Your Heart” by Roxette. Seashell’s hints about previously using her singing voice “way back in the day” before stopping to “pursue other careers” had the panelists guessing celebs such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Anne Hathaway and Kristen Chenoweth, but fans are convinced Tamera Mowry is hiding under the oceanic costume due to the bratwurst clue maybe hinting at her early days living in Germany and a possible reference to twin Tia Mowry with the clue that “no two shells are the same.”

Robopine

Porcupine — or rather, Robopine — will also perform during Wednesday’s episode after his shockingly smooth performance the first time around to “Never Too Much” by Luther Vandross. While the judges initially guessed stars like Jamie Foxx, Idris Elba, Lionel Richie and Ginuwine, they were thrown for a loop learning the star behind Robopine is 60 years old. Fans have zeroed in on M.C. Hammer as the possible celebrity performer, citing his dance moves as well as the porcupine’s pointy quills being a potential reference to his 1990 hit song “U Can’t Touch This.”

Raccoon

Raccoon certainly brought the house down with his distinctive performance of “Wild Thing” by The Troggs during his premiere. Pairing his voice with a clue package focusing on a past incarceration and trip through “hell” to get their second chance at life, the judges guessed stars like Gary Busey, Mike Tyson, Joe Pesci and Danny DeVito. Fans, however, think Danny Trejo is the celebrity performer, pointing to his troubled early days and second shot in the acting world. 

Wildcard Contestants

The Wildcard contestants are a twist that are new to Season 5, so Masked Singer fans aren’t exactly sure what to expect during Wednesday’s premiere. Producers teased ahead of the season that these special contestants, who are also masked celebrities, will compete in Wildcard rounds to attempt to grab a spot from an existing contestant through some kind of competition. If they are able to earn a spot, they would be in the regular competition for the finale win, but if not, they will presumably be unmasked on the spot. 

Special Guest Judge

Joining the regular panel during Wednesday’s episode is special judge Joel McHale, who has become a fan-favorite guest panelist throughout the show’s five seasons. We already know he has a strong opinion on Raccoon, based on a preview of this week’s show, in which he gets in a dig on the rodent after his performance of “Ring of Fire” by Johnny Cash.

“Well, I’m speechless. Much like the Raccoon was during his song,” McHale said, to which responded, “Don’t make fun of my boyfriend!” McHale quipped back, “So, I’m in trouble. And I can’t believe Mickey Rourke is back.”

Previous Reveals

This season has already been a star-studded one, even so early on! During the premiere week, the audience voted out the Snail, who was unmasked in a truly shocking moment to reveal Kermit the Frog after his performance of Hall and Oates “You Make My Dreams (Come True).”

Week two introduced the Pheonix, whose performance of “Tik Tok” by Kesha wasn’t quite enough to win over the audience. During the unmasking, the flaming mythical bird was revealed to be none other than Olympian and Keeping Up With the Kardashians star Caitlyn Jenner, who admitted to taking on The Masked Singer after getting bored in quarantine. Which star will be unmasked during this week’s show? Tune into The Masked Singer on Wednesday, March 24 at 8 p.m. ET on Fox to find out.