Nick Cannon will be temporarily stepping away from “The Masked Singer” after testing positive for COVID-19.
The TV personality will be missing at least the first few episodes of the Fox reality hit’s fifth season, which is scheduled to start production on Feb. 4, multiple outlets report. His rep confirmed to Variety that he’s currently resting in quarantine and is expected to return later in the season.
In his absence, Niecy Nash has been tapped to step in as a guest host. The funnywoman is no stranger to the Fox family; she appeared as a guest panelist on “The Masked Singer’s” most recent season, as well as on two episodes of “I Can See Your Voice.”
Season 5 of “The Masked Singer” is expected to premiere in March, three months after the Season 4 finale. LeAnn Rimes took home that title as The Sun, with Aloe Blacc (The Mushroom) finishing in second and Backstreet Boy Nick Carter (The Crocodile) ending up in third.
In a post-finale interview with Access Hollywood, LeAnn revealed that she was hesitant to do the show at first, because she wasn’t sure she could fool people with her signature singing voice!
“There wasn’t a lot of disguising going into my game. I know people play the game a bit different. To be honest, that was one of the reasons I almost didn’t do the show, because I’m like, ‘There’s no way I can disguise myself. People know who I am. They’ve grown up with me for 25 years,'” she said.
Check out LeAnn’ whole interview below: