A Hollywood Reporter exclusive has brought us news of the latest project from stand-up comedian turned TV personality, Howie Mandel. His production shingle, Alevy Productions, will be co-producing an adaptation of Denmark's Celebrity Stand-Up for the U.S. market. Celebrity Stand-Up is based on following celebrities to their homes where they will discuss and reveal personal anecdotes; the celebrities will test the water with these stories and over a period of a few days will build a stand-up routine around those stories. The final leg of the show will pit the celebrities against one another, delivering their acts to a live audience who will vote on which celebs they want to move on to the next round.
Mandel stated that "There really isn't anything like Celebrity Stand-Up on air in the U.S. right now". That certainly seems to be true, from what information we have available the show feels like a cross between classic, candid reality television and the ever-popular competition-based reality shows, but with a comedic and celebrity-centric spin. Mandel sees the show as "a unique and clever spin on the immersive celebrity interview." "The result is celebrities exposing themselves in a very honest and raw way, giving viewers a really intimate insight."
While being very dependent upon the chosen celebrities to drive the content of the show is undoubtedly a somewhat precarious situation, it is also a potential winner. It's no secret we love our celebrities in the states and getting personal with them is something a lot of people will be interested to see. On top of that, the competitive reality show, whether it be for singing, dancing, or anything in between, has proved to be one of the most successful models as of late. Shows like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance are some of the most watched on television. Celebrity Stand-Up may be most similar to Dancing With The Stars, but a lot more personal. Dancing has gone for a whopping twelve seasons and a 13th is just on the doorstep. In any case the development of Celebrity Stand-Up is still in the early stages. We should expect big news regarding the celebrity guests and also what network will pick up the show to come.
