‘The Price Is Right’ Production Restarts With Major Changes to Set and No Audience

Like many shows, The Price Is Right will be making a return, but of course, with several new changes amid the coronavirus. The return of the CBS show will be COVID-friendly with a redesigned set and no space for an audience. Out of the nearly 50 years on-air, this will be the first time the popular gameshow won’t have a live, in-studio audience.

“We quickly realize we were not going to be able to have 300 people on the show sitting close together,” showrunner Evelyn Warfel revealed according to Deadline. “We decided that we were going to come back without an audience to maintain the safety as best we could for our talent, for the contestants, for our staff and crew.”

Warfel noted that a production rework started as early as March with the CBS team creating new guidelines that fit local, state and guild rules. Despite the fact that there will not be a crowd, games will not disappear. All 77 games will continue to play some sort of role in the new socially distanced concept.

“That was the hardest part of all of this; the audience is such a core part of that show, and so, for the first time in 48 years we’ve had to look at it and go, ‘Okay, we’re bringing the show back and it’s going to be different and we have to hope and know that everyone understands what’s going on and how serious it is and that we want to bring back this show for everyone, but it has to look different,’” Warfel said.

In order to make up for lost time, instead of shooting two episodes per day like normal, the cast and crew will bump that up to three episodes per day. They’ll also use Sundays as a day to film in order to reduce exposure since there won’t be as many people on the lot that day of the week. Viewers can except to see a decked over audience and a Bidder’s Row that now sets players six feet apart from each other.

Participants will be allowed to spin the wheel, however sanitizing will take place between each spin. “We’ve made some changes to some games […] but they will be all spinning the wheel. They’re able to all touch the wheel. They just have to sanitize their hands first, and then after that, the first wheel spin, the wheel will be sanitized for the next wheel spin,” Warfel detailed.