Checking in with JASON BIGGS
Though his claim to fame comes from being other than a game-show host, Jason Biggs feels ready for that job.
The “American Pie” alum has fond memories of watching “The Price Is Right” with his grandmother, and he’s carrying those into his return to Fox – following last season’s sitcom “Outmatched” and his first television credit, “Drexell’s Class” – as he presides over the trivia-based “Cherries Wild,” premiering Sunday, Feb. 14. Two-contestant teams vie to win a $250,000 jackpot with a huge slot machine ultimately involved, thus the “Cherries” reference.
“There have been a couple of heydays of game-show television,” the friendly Biggs reflects. “There was the ‘50s and ‘60s, when TV was still a relatively novel idea and there weren’t that many channels. Then I feel like in the ‘80s, when I was growing up, there was another incredible wave of game shows. There was a very specific feeling about staying home sick and watching ‘The Price Is Right’ when you knew all your friends were in some boring class at school.
“And now, game shows are really having a moment again,” adds Biggs, “and there are lots of reasons why. Obviously, there are the business reasons, but it’s also just great and fun and easy television that involves everyday people. You can watch at home and imagine yourself in the position of the contestant who potentially wins amazing prizes and money.”
As “Cherries Wild” host, Biggs likes the variety of people who come to play: “The stakes being as high as they are, it’s no joke, and the opportunity to change these people’s lives in a very real way is just so exciting.”
Birthdate: May 12, 1978
Birthplace: Pompton Plains, N.J.
Current residence: Los Angeles
Marital status: Married to actress Jenny Mollen; they have two sons
Other television work includes: “Outmatched,” “The Masked Singer,” “The Good Fight,” “The Good Wife,” “Orange Is the New Black,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (voice only), “Mad Love,” “Will & Grace,” “Sesame Street,” “Frasier,” “Total Security,” “As the World Turns,” “Drexell’s Class”
Movie work includes: “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot,” “Dear Dictator,” “Who We Are Now,” “Amateur Night,” “American Pie,” “American Pie 2,” “American Wedding,” “American Reunion,” “My Best Friend’s Girl,” “Over Her Dead Body,” “Wedding Daze,” “Flight of the Penguins” (voice only), “Jersey Girl,” “Anything Else,” “Prozac Nation,” “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” “Saving Silverman,” “Loser,” “Boys and Girls”
Favorite movie: “I’m going to go with ‘Big.’ I actually auditioned to play the friend, when I was 10 or 11 years old. I love that movie.”
Favorite TV show you’re not on: “‘The Crown,’ or ‘Fleabag.’
(Phoebe Waller-Bridge) is just on a whole other level.”
Favorite singer: “(Frank) Sinatra is one I always come back to. His voice is as smooth as silk; it’s just so great.”