Ken Jeong is taking his talents to daytime TV.
The actor and comedian, 54, is developing a syndicated talk show with Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury which is slated to premiere in 2024, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Jeong also will executive produce the show together with Jim Biederman, who has worked on a variety of talk and sketch Comedy shows including Kids in the Hall and The Andy Dick Show.
Debmar-Mercury co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein said Jeong — who has appeared as a judge on The Masked Singer since the singing competition series launched in 2019 — has “what it takes to succeed” in the crowded and competitive talk show space.
“Audiences connect with Ken on many levels — not only because is he so talented, entertaining and unapologetically hilarious but their sense that he is sincere, compassionate, fearless, friendly, just genuinely nice — all essential ingredients that make for long-term success as a talk show host,” they said in a statement.
“He is also a talent capable of conquering any time period with his mix of comedy, Hollywood celebrity friends and ability to bring viewers,” they added.
In addition to being a fixture on The Masked Singer, Jeong is well-known for his TV and movie roles including Crazy Rich Asians, Community, Dr. Ken and The Hangover trilogy. He recently starred in season 2 of Apple TV+’s The Afterparty and will next appear in the Amazon comedy film My Spy: The Eternal City.
Before launching his entertainment career, Jeong worked as a practicing physician. He opened up about his surprising career change in a June interview with Los Angeles Magazine after being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“I just quit being a physician back in 2006–2007 in the hopes of being a character actor and I thought it was behind me to be a known entity,” he told the outlet. “I just love acting, I love comedy. I just wanted to do that full-time. I wanted to see if I could just do that as a living.”
“I just wanted to be, ‘Oh, that guy that you recognize in that thing,’ and that’s great,” he continued. “I just wanted steady work, so as I’m speaking to you, saying it out loud, as I’m talking right now, this is nothing I’ve ever anticipated in my life and I’m still alive. I’m just so grateful.”
