Chip Gaines says Jason Kelce ripping his shirt off inspired new show … about hamsters
It seems like retired NFL player and ESPN analyst Jason Kelce has done it all, but being the inspiration behind a game show involving hamsters was probably not on anyone’s bingo card.
“Fixer Upper” stars Chip and Joanna Gaines stopped by TODAY on Oct. 22 to discuss some new shows debuting on Magnolia Network, the couple’s joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery.
The couple discussed their upcoming game show “Human vs Hamster,” a competition series that puts humans to the test against trained hamsters in various athletic competitions.
“That’s from the mind of Chip Gaines,” he told Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie.
Chip Gaines explained that his inspiration for the show comes from an unlikely place: a shirtless Jason Kelce at a Kansas City Chiefs playoff game.
In January, Kelce went viral for his shirtless theatrics at the Chiefs game against the Buffalo Bills. He also held up a young Taylor Swift fan to meet the pop star in the Kelce-Swift suite.
Chip Gaines said that seeing the former Philadelphia Eagles center’s appearance at the game, specifically when he ripped his shirt off to reveal his burly chest, was the moment inspiration struck for him.
“I feel like I was inspired … Jason Kelce, he rips his shirt off at some stadium and something about that moment inspired me about this idea, ‘Hamsters vs. Humans,'” Chip Gaines recalled. “So I feel like I should throw him a bone in the sense that he was the one who inspired the whole idea.”
He then doubled down on how inspiring a shirtless Jason Kelce was to him.
“When I saw him rip his shirt off, I just felt I wish I was furrier. I wish I was hairier. Have you ever had that thought?” Chip Gaines jokingly asked Savannah and Hoda.
The “Human vs Hamster” competition series will feature teams of human competitors that must go through various athletic challenges before taking on hamsters in a multistage obstacle course called “The Cage,” according to a Warner Bros. Discovery press release shared in August.
Joanna Gaines said the team of hamsters on the show are “so smart” and “have been training” for the competition.
“(They are) terribly athletic, little creatures,” Chip Gaines said in agreement.
The eight-episode series is set to debut on Nov. 21, and will be hosted by NFL commentator Kyle Brandt and “Saturday Night Live” cast member Sarah Sherman. TV personality Brian Balthazar is also expected to be the “resident hamster enthusiast” in the show, per the release.
“Human vs Hamster” is not the only competition show making its debut on the network. Joanna Gaines, a passionate roller skater, talked about “Roller Jam” while on TODAY. The six-episode series features top roller skating teams in the U.S. showing off routines in hopes of being crowned the show’s winner and claiming a cash prize.
“Jo wants to do a skating show which is like ‘Dancing with the Stars’ but on skates,” Chip Gaines explained on TODAY with Hoda & Jenna. “And of course, I come up with this brilliant idea to have hamsters compete against humans side-by-side.”