A Beloved Game Show Is Being Revived 10 Years After Cancellation

A decade after its cancellation, Don’t Forget The Lyrics is coming back to TV. A casting call is out now for a Don’t Forget The Lyrics revival, though details on the project are still slim. Fans can apply here to be the first back on the show. Don’t Forget The Lyrics aired on Fox from the summer of 2007 to 2009, then transitioned into a syndicated version by 20th television from 2010 to 2011.

The game show challenged contestants to complete random song lyrics for increasing amounts of money throughout each episode, giving them the chance to earn more money or risk everything they’d won so far by taking another song on. Wayne Brady originally hosted the show, and the syndicated version was hosted by Mark McGrath, the lead singer of Sugar Ray.

The show was canceled due to low ratings, but many fans remember it fondly to this day. They are in luck since it appears to be coming back. The casting calls ask for “outgoing and interesting contestants who know the lyrics to the biggest hits of all time.” It also requires applicants to be able to get themselves to southern California for filming. Applicants must be at least 18 years old as well.

There is no word on what the prize structure will look like in the revival, either. The show originally awarded winners as much as $1 million, though the syndicated version dropped that price down to $50,000 since episodes aired daily. The new casting call entices players with the promise of “life-changing money.”

There is no word on where the revival might air either. The original version was on Fox, though it is not clear if Fox held the majority of the rights to the show itself. The syndicated version later had a primetime slot on VH1, which is now under the ViacomCBS umbrella, so the game show could be headed back there or even to its new Paramount+ streaming service. So far, no platforms have announced the project.

Don’t Forget the Lyrics was credited with inspiring The Singing Bee over on NBC, a similar game show that ran around the same time. That show lasted until 2012 but fizzled out for low ratings. A whole slate of game shows dropped off around that time, including Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader.

Today, it looks like game shows are on the rise again, and studios are ready to invest in chance. There is no word yet on where or when Don’t Forget the Lyrics will return.