Hot Ones, the beloved interview series where host Sean Evans questions celebrities while subjecting them to torturous amounts of spice, has new ownership.
Co-created by Evans and Chris Schonberger, the YouTube interview series started in 2015 before picking up steam to become an internet favorite. The format is simple: Evans sits across the table from the celebrity interviewee and asks them a barrage of questions, each one accompanied by a dab of increasingly hot sauces.
Originally owned by Buzzfeed, First We Feast (the company producing the series) was just acquired for a staggering amount of money by a consortium of buyers including Evans and Schonberger. The deal will give Evans and Schonberger new levels of creative control over the popular yet growing interview platform.
More dollars than Scoville units
After a whopping $82.5 million acquisition from the former parent company, First We Feast will become an independent company. Schonberger will serve as CEO, while Evans will remain as host alongside being its chief creative officer, Variety reports.
In addition to Evans and Schonberger, backers include podcast company Crooked Media and Mythical Entertainment (owned by pioneering YouTube creators Rhett and Link), alongside Soros Fund Management (founded by George Soros). Other parties had been interested in acquiring the series over the years, but this is the first to hit Buzzfeed’s benchmark for the sale.
Since the series’ launch almost a decade ago, the YouTube channel has over 14 million subscribers and 4 billion views. It has landed interviews with some of the biggest celebrities in entertainment, including Margot Robbie, Paul Rudd, Jennifer Lawrence, Idris Elba, Tom Holland, Ryan Reynolds, Gordon Ramsay and Post Malone (among a laundry list of others).
Part of the series’ lasting appeal stems from Evans’ meticulously researched questions, alongside guests’ increasing vulnerability as the wings’ heat rises. The combination has lead to viral moments, with celebrity reactions varying from Jennifer “I feel like I’m gonna die!” Lawrence to singer-songwriter Lorde’s nigh-inhuman ability to tolerate any amounts of spice with grace. Here are two of the series’ most legendary appearances.