Robin Thicke and Jenny McCarthy are weighing in on Rita Ora replacing Nicole Scherzinger on the panel for season 11 of The Masked Singer, and they’re coming in hot with nothing but love!
ET’s Cassie DiLaura spoke with the “Lost Without U” singer and the actress-model on Thursday at the Los Angeles Center Studios and the duo heaped a ton of praise on the “Your Song” singer. As fans probably know by now, Scherzinger is headed to London’s West End for a production of Sunset Boulevard, in which the former Pussycat Dolls singer is set to star as Norma Desmond.
Her departure for season 11 made way for the British pop star to come in and join Thicke, McCarthy and Ken Jeong on the panel, and she’s truly the perfect fit — not only is Ora an immense talent but she’s also experienced, as she was a panelist on the U.K. version of The Masked Singer for the show’s four seasons on ITV.
“Who doesn’t love Rita Ora?! She is the sweetest thing and she is the prefect person to step in for Nicole,” McCarthy exclaims.
Both McCarthy and Thicke described Scherzinger’s season 11 departure as bittersweet.
“It would be devastating if Nicole wasn’t gonna come back,” McCarthy says. “I would be going through a grieving period. It still is weird because we are such a tight family. We’ve grown into this brother and sisterhood.”
“But Rita is the perfect person because she’s done Masked Singer U.K.,” McCarthy continues. “She’s a lovely human being, so I love it.”
The idea’s been floated — what if Scherzinger contracts a serious case of FOMO and returns as a masked singer herself?
“I thought the same thing,” McCarthy admits. “Maybe they’re doing this so Nicole can be underneath the costume. Who knows? It could be! I would love nothing more than her to pop up and surprise us.”
Thicke pretended to cry when reminded of Scherzinger’s season 11 departure, but he’s taking the move in stride.
“You miss Nicole but Rita’s such a talent,” he says. “We’re very blessed that she could come in and fill enormous shoes as Nicole’s.”
And if Scherzinger returns as a contestant?
“That would be a pretty amazing TV moment,” Thicke notes.
While McCarthy said she’ll remain pretty competitive when it comes to being the best guesser on the panel, Thicke sees his competition with Ora a little differently.
“I don’t mind if she beats me in guesses but If she has better dad jokes than me, it is on, Rita!” he says. “You and I are going toe-to-toe on the panel. She’s got some pretty good dad jokes, so I’m a little worried about that part, but I can hold my own.”
For fans who can’t get enough of The Masked Singer on TV, they can now visit one of 10 select businesses on Saturday for a “Masked Mania” Los Angeles-wide takeover.
Season 10 of The Masked Singer premieres Wednesday, Sept. 27 on Fox.
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