Lowe, Timberlake, Cannon involved in new TV game shows

This combination photo shows, from left, actor-singer Justin Timberlake, actor Rob Lowe and comedian-TV host Nick Cannon who are involved in three game shows debuting on Fox. Timberlake co-created and will executive produce “Spin the Wheel”. Lowe will host “Mental Samurai”, where contestants compete while being transported at high speeds in a capsule. Cannon will preside over “The Masked Singer”, where masked celebrities perform and a celebrity panel attempts to identify them. Image: AP

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — And your host, Rob Lowe.

The actor will preside over “Mental Samurai”, a new game show on Fox to air during the upcoming season, the network announced Thursday.

Contestants will be tested in such categories as knowledge, memory, numbers and sequencing while being transported around the set at high speeds in a specially designed capsule that rotates 360 degrees.

Lowe says he’s loved mental competition shows ever since he won on an all-star junior version of “The $10,000 Pyramid” in 1979.

“For me, ‘Mental Samurai’ is addicting,” said Lowe, who will also produce the show. “Every time you play, you think: THIS time I’m gonna win! But this very simple game is almost impossible to crack.”

Also getting into the game-show arena is Justin Timberlake, who helped create the format and will be an executive producer for “Spin the Wheel”.

Contestants will have a chance to win over $20 million in each episode of the show hosted by comedian Dax Shepard. It will air on Fox during the upcoming season.

“I can’t think of a better job than giving out millions of dollars to nice people,” Shepard said in a news release. “It’s my chance to finally be Willy Wonka.”

Players will answer trivia questions, with each correct answer adding more money to the 40-foot wheel’s wedges and wrong answers adding wedges that could reduce their total to zero.

Celebrities will also get a chance to compete on “The Masked Singer” hosted by Nick Cannon. It debuts in January on Fox.

They will face off against each other while singing shrouded from head to toe in an elaborate costume that includes a mask to conceal their identity.

Actor-comedian Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Scherzinger and Robin Thicke will serve on the panel and try to guess who is behind the mask, along with Cannon.

One singer will be eliminated each week after revealing their identity. The celeb competitors include Grammy and Emmy nominees, Super Bowl winners, Broadway performers and singers with multi-platinum albums to their credit.

The show is based on a South Korean format that was the top-trending video of last year on YouTube. CC

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