Wild 'n Out explained

Alt Name:Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'n Out
Creator:Nick Cannon
Starring:Nick Cannon
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:21
Num Episodes:313
Runtime:30 minutes
Last Aired:present

Wild 'n Out is an American sketch comedy and battle rap improv game show television series created and hosted by musician and comedian Nick Cannon currently airing on VH1.[1] It debuted on July 28, 2005, on MTV.

Premise

Similar in premise to shows such as Whose Line Is It Anyway?, the series puts two teams of comedians against each other in a series of Wild 'n Out games which are all basically "improvisational" comedy games. The Teams are the "Red Squad", which was the team name until Season 5 where they became the "Platinum Squad" and were permanently captained by Cannon; and the "Black Squad", led by a celebrity guest until Season 7 where the situation was reversed with Cannon becoming the Black Squad team captain and the celebrity guest leading the Platinum Squad.

For Season 8, the colors were revamped once again with the Gold Squad replacing the Black Squad. The Gold Squad was led by Cannon while the celebrity guest remained captain of the Platinum Squad. For Seasons 9–14, Cannon led his original Red Squad team color while the Black Squad team color returned also.

For Season 15, the teams were revamped as Nick Cannon leads the Old School team, comprising older cast members and a legendary special guest, and cast member DC Young Fly and another celebrity guest lead the New School Team, comprising some newer cast members.

For Season 16, the teams changed once again. In a format similar to Old School vs New School, Nick Cannon leads Team Revolution and the celebrity guest, appearing as a hologram, leads Team Evolution.

For Season 17, it's reverted back to the "Old School" vs. "New School" format. Nick Cannon and a legendary special guest leads the "Old School" team, and the celebrity guest lead the "New School" team.

For Season 20, was reverted back to the "Red Team vs Black Team" format, Nick Cannon leads the Red Team and the celebrity guest lead the Black Team.

After three such games, the two teams square off against each other in the final round of the game called 'WildStyle', in which they must deliver a punchline directed at their opponent's team member(s) within a freestyle rap. The comedians "beef" with each other; however, some are impersonal jokes. Although similar to Whose Line, the "points don't matter", the teams score one point per round victory during the normal rounds, plus one point per favorably judged punchline during 'Wild Style', which makes it similar in format to the improv show ComedySportz.[2]

Each episode also includes a musical performance, occasionally by the guest captain for the Black/Platinum Squad (Nick Cannon performed with Migos in Season 6 in the episode featuring Chanel Iman). At times, the musical guest comes out just before 'Wild Style' as the judge for the beefs. Starting with season 2, the teams now compete for a "Wild 'N Out" Championship belt (Million Dollar Chain in Season 16 and 17) which if the Black Squad wins, the team captain gets to take home the belt but if Cannon's team win he gets to keep the belt (chain).

Production

In November 2012, it was announced that the series would be returning in 2013 after a six-year hiatus. The revival features celebrities, along with the show's current cast.[3] [4] The fifth season premiered on MTV2 to 1.1 million total viewers, making it the highest-rated telecast in the network's history. The show would continue on MTV2 for three seasons.[5]

On June 9, 2016, Wild 'N Out was renewed for an eighth season, which would mark the series' return to MTV. The season premiered on August 4, 2016.[6]

In April 2019, the series was renewed through Season 16.[7] On June 19, 2019, it was announced that Wild 'N Out would expand to VH1, with a special Summer season premiering on July 7, 2019.[8] [9]

Cast

Cast memberSeasons
1234567891011121314151617181920
Nick CannonStarring
DJ D-WrekStarring
DeRay DavisStarringGuestStarring
Spanky HayesStarringStarring
Mikey DayStarringGuest
Rasika MathurStarringGuestStarring
Rob HoffmanStarringStarring
Affion CrockettStarringGuestStarring
Leonard RobinsonStarring
Nyima FunkStarringStarring
Katt WilliamsStarring
Joshua FunkStarringStarring
Alanna UbachStarring
Darrel HeathStarring
Gene HongStarring
Corey HolcombStarring
Cameron GoodmanStarring
ScrunchoStarringStarring
Starring
DominiqueStarring
Nic NacStarring
Shenika WilliamsStarring
Shawty ShawtyStarringStarringStarringStarringGuest
Marques RayStarring
Randall ParkStarring
Taran KillamStarring
Benji BrownStarring
Biz MarkieStarring
Brandon T. JacksonStarring
Cipha SoundsStarring
Deon ColeStarring
Guy TorryStarring
Jackie LongStarring
Jeff RossStarring
John BrownStarring
Kevin HartStarring
Lil GStarring
Loni LoveStarring
LuenellStarring
Porscha ColemanStarring
RodmanStarring
ShamrockStarring
TK KirklandStarring
ConceitedStarring
Chico BeanStarring
Emmanuel HudsonStarring
Karlous MillerStarring
Jacob WilliamsStarringStarringStarring
Timothy DeLaGhettoStarringStarringStarring
Jack ThrillerStarringStarringStarring
DoBoyStarringStarring
Lauren FlansStarringStarring
James DavisStarringGuestStarringGuestStarring
Pete DavidsonStarring
Chaunté WayansStarring
Hitman HollaStarringGuestStarring
Rip MichealsStarring
Jon GabrusStarringStarring
Blair ChristianStarring
KojoStarring
King BachStarring
Shakir StandleyStarring
Akaash SinghStarring
Esther KuStarring
Natasha RothwellStarring
DC Young FlyStarring
Darren BrandStarringStarringStarring
Matt RifeStarringStarringStarring
B-DahtStarringStarring
Aarona LopezStarring
Hunter SteibelStarring
Rosa AcostaStarring
Charlie ClipsStarringStarring
Justina ValentineStarring
Michael BlacksonStarringStarringStarringStarring
Tonio SkitsStarring
Billy SorrellsStarringStarring
BurpieStarringStarring
Becky "Pickles" RobinsonStarring
Cynthia LuCietteStarring
Elgin "Davisito" DavidStarring
Nate JacksonStarring
Ross BryantStarring
Teddy RayStarring
Corey CharronStarringStarringStarring
Jess HilariousStarringStarring
B. SimoneStarringStarringStarring
Bonnie GodivaStarring
Cristian OliverasStarring
Dewayne PerkinsStarring
Leonard OuztsStarring
Lil FrecklesStarring
Reggie COUZStarring
SummerellaStarring
Julia YoungStarring
Royce BellStarringStarringStarring
E-MoneyStarring
Bobb'e J. ThompsonStarring
Yvng SwagStarringStarring
Vena "Pretty Vee" E.StarringStarring
Jason LeeStarring
Dan RueStarring
Funny MikeStarring
RennyStarring
ZoieStarring
ARNSTARStarring
NickNack PattiWhackStarring
PioStarring
Lil JJStarringStarring
Radio Big MackStarring
Cortez MacklinStarring
Tyler ChroniclesStarringStarring
Mope WilliamsStarring
Teresa TopnotchStarring
Watts Homie QuanStarring
Clayton EnglishStarring
Jay Will as KandieStarringStarring
Hi My Name's TeeStarring
Venk PotulaStarring
Retro SpectroStarring
ItsLovelyMimiStarring
King CannonStarring
Christian PerfasStarring
MyVerseStarring
RiceGumStarring
Maddy SmithStarring
Santwon McCrayStarring
Amber DiamondStarring
Jay ColeStarring
Shuler KingStarring
Carter DeemsStarring
MC JinStarring
King LosStarring
Infared FredStarring
Aida GoitomStarring
David ShineStarring
Teddy MoraStarring
Jessie WooStarring
Brent PellaStarringStarring
GodfreyStarring
Courtney BeeStarring
FatsDaBarberStarring
Kosha DillzStarring
Or MashStarring
Phillip HudsonStarring
ThatboyfunnyStarring
C. KingStarring
J. SnowStarring
Mike RugaStarring
Morgan JayStarring
Mr. Clank ClankStarring
Sydney CastilloStarring

Episodes

Season 2 (2006)

The second season contains ten episodes which were broadcast from February 2 to April 6, 2006, on MTV.

Season 3 (2006)

The third season contains eight episodes which were broadcast from August 10 to October 5, 2006, on MTV.

Season 4 (2007)

The fourth season contains 20 episodes which were broadcast from May 12 to September 6, 2007, on MTV.

Season 5 (2013)

The fifth season contains 12 episodes which were broadcast from July 9 to September 24, 2013, on MTV2. This is the first season of the show to air since the fourth season in 2007.

Season 6 (2014–15)

The sixth season contains 16 episodes which were broadcast from July 2, 2014, to February 4, 2015, on MTV2.

Season 7 (2015–16)

The seventh season contains 16 episodes which were broadcast from June 10, 2015, to January 6, 2016, on MTV2. There are also stand up specials after the episodes in this season are finished.

Season 8 (2016–17)

The eighth season contains 21 episodes which were broadcast from August 4, 2016, to April 20, 2017, on MTV, marking the first time in almost a decade that the show aired new episodes on its original network.

Season 9 (2017)

The ninth season contains 16 episodes which were broadcast from June 29 to October 5, 2017, on MTV.

Season 10 (2017–18)

The tenth season contains 16 episodes which were broadcast from November 30, 2017, to March 1, 2018, on MTV.

Season 11 (2018–19)

The 11th season consists of 21 episodes and premiered on March 15, 2018, on MTV, two weeks after the end of Season 10, and concluded September 29, 2019, on VH1.

Season 12 (2018–19)

The twelfth season consists of 26 episodes and premiered on August 17, 2018, on MTV.

Season 13 (2019)

The thirteenth season was filmed in Atlanta from October 29 to November 11, 2018. It premiered on February 1, 2019, on MTV, and continued on VH1 from July 7 to September 15, 2019.

Season 14 (2019–20)

The fourteenth season was filmed in Atlanta from May 14 to 25, 2019. The season premiered on August 17, 2019, with two episodes and a special that aired on MTV. The rest of the season began airing on VH1 starting on January 7, 2020, and ended on April 14, 2020.

Season 15 (2020–21)

The fifteenth season was filmed in Atlanta from December 9 to 18, 2019, and premiered on April 21, 2020, on VH1, just a week after the end of Season 14. The season continued airing on April 6, 2021, and concluded on May 4, 2021, on VH1.

Season 16 (2021)

The sixteenth season was filmed in San Bernardino, California from June 8 to 17, 2021. It premiered on August 10, 2021, and concluded on December 7, 2021, on VH1.[10]

Season 17 (2022)

The seventeenth season was filmed in Jersey City, New Jersey from October 14 to 25, 2021. The season premiered on February 22, 2022, and concluded on May 3, 2022, on VH1.

Season 18 (2022)

The eighteenth season was filmed in Covington, Georgia from March 29 to April 9, 2022. It premiered on June 21, 2022, and concluded on August 2, 2022, on VH1.

Season 19 (2023)

The nineteenth season was filmed concurrently with the twentieth season in Fayetteville, Georgia from August 30 to September 23, 2022. It premiered on April 6, 2023, and concluded on June 29, 2023, on VH1.

Season 20 (2023)

The twentieth season was filmed concurrently with the nineteenth season in Fayetteville, Georgia from August 30 to September 23, 2022. This season premiered on July 6, 2023 and concluded on September 28, 2023, on VH1.

Season 21 (2024)

The twenty-first season was filmed in Fayetteville, Georgia from May 23 to June 4, 2023. It premiered on July 29, 2024 on VH1.

Controversy

On July 14, 2020, Nick Cannon was fired by ViacomCBS after making racist and anti-Semitic remarks during an episode of his podcast Cannon's Class with Professor Griff.[11] Cannon endorsed conspiracies about Jewish control of finance, claimed that Jews had stolen the identity of "black people as the 'true Hebrews'" and cited Louis Farrakhan, who is labeled as an anti-semite by the Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League.[12] [13]

Cannon called white people "savages" who were "closer to animals", claiming the "only way that they can act is evil",[14] [15] citing the pseudoscientific melanin theory. A statement from ViacomCBS noted that the company's relationship with Cannon was terminated due to his promotion of "hateful speech and ... anti-Semitic conspiracy theories".[16] Two days later, Cannon released an apology for his remarks regarding anti-Semitism: "I want to assure my Jewish friends, new and old, that this is only the beginning of my education."[17] He demanded complete ownership of Wild 'n Out and an apology from ViacomCBS for his termination.[18]

Upon being made aware of his comments on the podcast, Fox consulted Cannon and accepted his public apology, allowing him to remain host of The Masked Singer.[19] He donated his first paycheck to the Simon Wiesenthal Center.[20] [21] On February 5, 2021, ViacomCBS announced that Wild 'N Out would resume production with Cannon as host, stating that Cannon had "taken responsibility for his comments" and "worked to educate himself" through conversations with Jewish leaders.[17] New episodes began airing on April 6 that same year.[22]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: July 14, 2005 . MTV Announces Premiere of 'Nick Cannon Presents Wild'N Out' . The Futon Critic.
  2. Book: Fotis, Matt . Long form improvisation and American comedy : the Harold . 2014 . Palgrave Macmillan . 978-1-137-37658-9 . Basingstoke.
  3. Web site: November 12, 2012 . MTV2 Greenlights Re-Imagination of 'Nick Cannon Presents Wild 'n Out' to Premiere in 2013 . The Futon Critic.
  4. Web site: Bibel . Sara . November 12, 2012 . MTV2 Greenlights Re-Imagination of 'Nick Cannon Presents Wild 'n Out' to Premiere in 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121211022144/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/11/12/mtv2-greenlights-re-imagination-of-nick-cannon-presents-wild-n-out-to-premiere-in-2013/157195/ . December 11, 2012 . TV by the Numbers.
  5. Web site: Bibel . Sara . July 11, 2013 . 'Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'n Out' & 'Ain't That America with Lil Duval' Deliver Highest Ratings in MTV2 History . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130714083139/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/07/11/nick-cannon-presents-wild-n-out-aint-that-america-with-lil-duval-deliver-highest-ratings-in-mtv2-history/191395/ . July 14, 2013 . TV by the Numbers.
  6. Season Eight of Nick Cannon Presents Wild-N-Out Returns to MTV . June 9, 2016 . Viacom . McCrary . Michelle . June 10, 2016.
  7. Web site: April 2019 . MTV's "Wild 'N Out" Renewed Through Season 16 . April 4, 2019 . RenewCancelTV.
  8. MTV's "Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out" Expands to VH1 for Summer Stunt . The Futon Critic . August 21, 2019.
  9. Web site: Out . Wild 'N . June 19, 2019 . This is NOT a test ALL NEW #WildNOut x @VH1 starting SUNDAY, July 7th at 7/6c pic.twitter.com/VyI1C310Wh . June 20, 2019 . @wildnout . en.
  10. Web site: Petski . Denise . July 5, 2021 . 'Wild 'N Out' Hosted By Nick Cannon Sets Season 16 Premiere Date On VH1 . July 5, 2021 . Deadline . en-US.
  11. News: Vigdor . Neil . July 15, 2020 . ViacomCBS Fires Nick Cannon, Citing Anti-Semitic Podcast Remarks . en-US . The New York Times . July 15, 2020 . 0362-4331.
  12. Web site: July 16, 2020 . "I feel ashamed": Nick Cannon apologizes for "anti-Semitic" comments . July 16, 2020 . www.cbsnews.com . en-US.
  13. Web site: Moreau . Jordan . July 15, 2020 . Nick Cannon Dropped by ViacomCBS After Making Anti-Semitic Comments . July 16, 2020 . Variety . en.
  14. Web site: July 15, 2020 . Nick Cannon slams ViacomCBS for firing him over anti-Semitic comments . July 16, 2020 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
  15. Web site: Henderson . Cydney . Nick Cannon apologizes for his 'hurtful and divisive words' toward the Jewish community . July 16, 2020 . USA Today . en-US.
  16. Web site: Moreau . Jordan . July 14, 2020 . Nick Cannon Dropped by ViacomCBS After Making Anti-Semitic Comments . July 14, 2020 . Variety.
  17. Web site: February 5, 2021 . Nick Cannon rejoins 'Wild 'N Out' as host after getting fired for anti-Semitism . usatoday.com.
  18. Web site: Carras . Christi . July 16, 2020 . Nick Cannon apologizes to Jewish community, keeps 'Masked Singer' hosting gig . August 5, 2020 . Los Angeles Times.
  19. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . Hipes . Patrick . July 15, 2020 . Nick Cannon To Remain As Host Of Fox's The Masked Singer After Apology Over Anti-Semitic Comments . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200716031741/https://deadline.com/2020/07/nick-cannon-stay-host-the-masked-singer-apology-anti-semitic-comments-1202986022/ . July 16, 2020 . Deadline Hollywood.
  20. Web site: Merrett . Robyn . July 23, 2020 . Nick Cannon Visits Jewish Human Rights Group, Learns About Holocaust After-Semitic Comments . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200724081202/https://people.com/tv/nick-cannon-visits-jewish-human-rights-group-learns-about-holocaust-after-semitic-comments/ . July 24, 2020 . People.
  21. Web site: July 21, 2020 . Nick Cannon Continues Dialogue with SWC Officials, Views Hitler Letter, Tours MOT & Discusses Working Together on Joint Media Projects Promoting Tolerance & Understanding Between Blacks and Jews . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200726042136/http://www.wiesenthal.com/about/news/nick-cannon.html . July 26, 2020 . Simon Wiesenthal Center.
  22. Web site: March 23, 2021 . New episodes of Nick Cannon's "Wild 'N Out" set to air in April . Revolt TV.