Hot Host Sean Evans gave up his usual spot at the interview table to take the hot seat for one night only at a special FYC event at Avalon in Hollywood on Tuesday.
Matt Bellone, partner at Puck and host of the popular podcast The Ringer Citytook a position to question Evans about his life and career as they ate an extensive menu of five chicken wings (instead of the typical ten). But in the end, it was Belloni who was sweating, hiccuping, and gasping for air. “Oh my God,” Belloni exclaimed after eating a wing covered in Da Bombe’s hot sauce. “This is not fun.”
The crowd full of Television Academy voters seemed to like it as they were treated to a more personal side of Evans. For about an hour, Bellone quizzed Evans about his viral success, interviews with his favorite and least favorite celebrities, how he really feels about talented publicists and what he puts in his own box at Whole Foods. Oh, and whether or not he’ll agree to host President Donald Trump Hot. “I want to have a debate,” Evans said. “I want the formal presidential debate to be heated.”
When Evans was asked to name his favorite episode over 28 seasons and over 10 years, he said he could easily pick 25 to 30 episodes. “I always say if you’re new to the show, check out a Conan O’Brien episode or a Gordon Ramsay episode. Jennifer Lawrence is another one or Maya Rudolph. Classic Paul Rudd. Charlize Theron.” “I always say to start with those episodes. If you like those episodes, you’ll probably like the show. If you don’t like those episodes, stop there. There’s nothing for you.”
Fans flocked to the show for the chance to see their favorite stars sweat it out, so Bellone asked Evans if any of them had ever faked it for the cameras. That’s not the case, Evans said, adding that it’s usually the other way around. “Sometimes you can tell someone is really keeping it. One funny memory that sticks out in my mind was Pharrell [Williams]who was very stoic in the interview and then when we cut to the interview, he was almost like, “Are the cameras down?” He left everything and became someone else.
Speaking of behind-the-scenes figures, Bellone asked Evans about his relationships with Hollywood publicists, some of which can be as fraught in high-profile celebrity interviews as his own. “Honestly, it has now gotten to the point where the publicists are being very nice to us,” he said. “When we first started the show, publicists were always like public enemy number one on set. I’m where they’re at now, but as a young, ambitious person who believes in this thing before anyone else, early on, like publicists will crowd the table. The offer.
Evans said that even when an episode doesn’t go well, he still finds it interesting to watch. “Early on, we filmed an episode of DJ Khaled and he came out after the third win. We have a 10-wing challenge, that’s my format,” the host explained. “It’s like someone refuses to coordinate right out of the gate. I’m zigzagging, he’s zigzagging. We were kind of deliberately talking past each other and missing each other, but it’s like a unique, antagonistic energy. I was younger and more naive, and I didn’t have a complete awareness of myself, so it’s this quasi-combat episode that I actually think is very compelling to watch.”
In addition to seeing Bellone sweat, the poignant moments at Tuesday’s event came when Evans revealed some personal trivia. The Chicago native is obsessed with architecture, baseball cards, and the city skyline and once lived in a house owned by Chicago Bulls great Scottie Pippen. He kind of believes in Bigfoot — “There’s a logical part of my brain that says, ‘Well, if there was a Bigfoot, someone would have seen a Bigfoot,’ but I like the idea of getting lost in the quest to try to find a Bigfoot,” — and he has an order at a Whole Foods hot bar.
His latest celebrity direct message came from superstar Tom Segura. “I wish you had a kiss like Kiki,” he said. As in Keke Palmer, whom Evans mentioned as someone he had great chemistry with on the show — which comes as no shock to anyone who’s been paying attention to their flirtatious encounters over the years. “Working with Keke Palmer is always like a one plus one equals three situation,” Evans said after name-checking Conan O’Brien. “You know the one I loved doing interviews was Viola Davis. I really loved interviewing Viola Davis. Paul Rudd is another guy who immediately understood what we were doing and got me.”
Bellone asked if he had asked former President Barack Obama to be a guest on the show. “At one point I remember a strange conversation about the Secret Service and wings,” he revealed. “There were some logistics we were trying to work out, but I don’t know how deep into the game it was. I don’t know how close the booking was at all, but I remember some discussions I had about how the suite setup would be different if that happened.”
This would be a bucket list moment for sure, but Evans said he’s not lacking in that department because he lives for those moments on an almost weekly basis. “I’ve done a lot of great things by being in animation. Two weeks ago I went back to my alma mater, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, to give the commencement address, which was very exciting,” he said before revealing that he would love to one day host the Oscars or pitch during the World Series. “I’m a huge college football fan, so doing the pregame show on ESPN to be like a celebrity guest pick is something I’ve always wanted to do.”
Speaking of which, Evans said he grew up loving late night show hosts like David Letterman and O’Brien, but he doesn’t want to follow in their footsteps now because he loves his YouTube.
“Sometimes people ask me, ‘Oh, what’s next for you? What’s the show next?” or “How will you repeat the magic?” Hot“I always tell people, ‘My next show is just going to be an interview show with Sean.’ We’ll do it the old-fashioned way, sit down and talk like we used to do. There’s this [thinking] That we need celebrities as well as high concept for anyone to pay attention but I don’t think that’s true. The interview is the oldest in media history. If you can do this well, you will have a job in this city. ”
Plus, he loves his team too much to chase blue skies anywhere else. “There’s no one in entertainment, there’s no one in Hollywood that I would trade places with. When I look around, there’s nothing I’d rather have. I would love to be the king of this castle. The chair I’m sitting in has become the most comfortable La-Z-Boy ever. The people I started doing this show with are the same people who are doing the show with me now,” he said. “When I think about the show and how much I believe in it, and how much I believe in the people who helped me build this digital media empire, and then when I think that we now hold the keys to it.” We’re driving and I’m thinking of all the places we could take her, there’s no one to trade places with now. There is no one I am jealous of.”
