2015 Emmy Preview: Why Jeff Probst, Nick Cannon, Gordon Ramsay, Cat Deeley deserve Reality Host nods
We’re getting near the end of our 2015 Emmy Preview series, and with that we’re bringing to you today a category that we have long found personally to be one of our favorites: Reality Host. To us, hosting a show is one of the most underrated gigs out there, since there is so much you have to do right. You need to keep the show moving, remain impartial, and yet at the same time at least appear somewhat sympathetic to the contestants. It’s a difficult emotional tightrope, and then you have to also remember that there is an audience watching who wants to be entertained.
Below, you can see our personal picks for who is worthy of the love this year. You can vote for your favorite in the poll below, or even in the comments if you don’t see the person you are rooting for among our nominees.
Our nominees
Cat Deeley, “So You Think You Can Dance” (Fox) – It is so hard to make live television compelling as a host. You’re forced so many times to just read off of a script! Yet, Deeley is really great at keeping the show moving, while at the same time being comfortable and at times funny. She could probably host any show effective because of these skills, though we do like her right where she is on Fox.
Gordon Ramsay, “MasterChef Junior” (Fox) – Here’s something amazing to us: Despite having a culinary empire on television, Ramsay has never been nominated as a host of anything. He’s almost iconic at this point for being opinionated, but what we like specifically about the job he does on this show is that he is tough, but at the same time encouraging and inspiring. He makes these kids want to be better, and pushes them to have more of a future in food.
Jane Lynch, “Hollywood Game Night” (NBC) – We don’t always love seeing game-show hosts featured in this category, mostly since they don’t develop the same sort of investment into contestants that you see with people who are around contestants for a long period of time. The difference with Jane is just that she is so good at being naturally funny, and also going with the flow of what happens with the celebrities.
Jeff Probst, “Survivor” (Fox) – We are still not entirely sure how Probst suddenly stopped getting nominations in this category after dominating it at first. He is so good at reading players in the game, and asking the right questions at the right time. This award is especially applicable for Jeff this year, given some of the tough situations he had to deal with throughout “Survivor: Worlds Apart.” We still wish the reunion was two hours to fit everything in.
Nick Cannon, “America’s Got Talent” (NBC) – The perfect host for this show. Where Nick probably shines the most here is the auditions, mostly because he has the freedom here to go a little more off-script and goof off with some of the contestants with need be. Cannon’s a very good physical comic, and he goes to places that some other hosts would probably shy away from for the sake of a laugh or a smile.
Tom Bergeron, “Dancing with the Stars” (ABC) – Tom is so remarkably self-aware about the fact that he hosts a celebrity ballroom dancing competition. He knows precisely what it is, and while there can be emotional routines, he also realized that it is mostly about silly fun. He seems to have almost the right joke at the ready for any occasion, and he also somehow handles dealing with stars, pro dancers, judges, and a co-host week in and week out.