‘The Masked Singer’ Creator Has Defended Rudy Giuliani’s Controversial Appearance On The Show

In February, Deadline reported that Rudy Giuliani would appear in an episode of The Masked Singer this season, prompting a walk-out from judges Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke. Don’t give the disgraced “Blurred Lines” singer too much credit, though: Thicke only left because “he and Ken are very close friends and he wanted to check on him. Robin didn’t storm out because of Giuliani,” a source told People. That cursed episode still hasn’t aired yet, but with the season finale coming up on May 17, we’re mere days or weeks away from seeing whatever monstrosity Giuliani is “masked” as.

In an interview with Deadline, The Masked Singer creator Wonwoo Park was asked about Giuliani’s appearance on the American adaptation of the South Korean singing competition program. “It would be taboo [in Korea] to have someone controversial or political on the show,” he explained. “But it can’t always be pleasant when the mask comes off and the more Masked Singer seasons [globally] we do, the more we realize you can’t always have contestants that everybody loves.”

So far this season, McTerrier (chef Duff Goldman), Ram (announcer Joe Buck), Cyclops (Lost star Jorge Garcia), Thingamabob (Philadelphia Eagles tackle Jordan Mailata), and Lemur (model Christie Brinkley) have been unmasked, leaving Armadillo, Baby Mammoth, Firefly, Hydra, Jack in the Box, Miss Teddy, The Prince, Ram, Ringmaster, Space Bunny, and Queen Cobra. My money’s on Rudy being Jack in the Box: he’s a clown who pops up when you least expect him to, and it’s never a good time.