CNNFN: Schwarzenegger to host NBC’s ‘Celebrity Apprentice’: Monday September 14, 2015

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the next host of NBC’s ‘Celebrity Apprentice’

By Brian Stelter and Frank Pallotta @CNNMoney

arnold schwarzenegger

Get ready for a lot of “hasta la vista” jokes.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is replacing Donald Trump on “The Celebrity
Apprentice,” NBC’s long-running business reality show.

The former California governor and world-famous movie star will take
over in the 2016-2017 television season, NBC announced Monday.

Schwarzenegger’s many credits include the “Terminator” series of films,
which generated his catch-phrases like “Come with me if you want to
live” and “Hasta la vista, baby.” He most recently starred in
“Terminator Genisys” over the summer.

Trump’s famous “Apprentice” line is “you’re fired,” of course, and
Schwarzenegger has a while to come up with his own catch-phrase.

NBC put the franchise on hold after Trump, the show’s host since it
launched in 2004, entered the Republican race for president.

The network began casting for a new host right away but decided not
to produce a new season until 2016.

“Arnold Schwarzenegger is the epitome of a global brand in
entertainment and business, and his accomplishments in the political
arena speak for themselves,” Paul Telegdy, NBC’s president for
alternative and late night programming, said in a statement.

“It was Arnold’s personal passion for the format that Mark Burnett and
Donald Trump built over the last decade, as well as his fresh take on
how to take it to new heights for today’s audiences, that made him the
man to hire,” Telegdy added.

With Schwarzenegger, 68, NBC hopes to successfully restart a franchise
that has seen better days.

“Celebrity Apprentice” pits famous contestants against one another in
business world challenges.

Wow. I’m blown away and honored by all your tweets. I can’t wait to
bring my experience to the board room & raise millions for charity.
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) September 14, 2015

The original version premiered in 2004 to an average audience of 20.7
million, but has dropped considerably over the years. Still, the
franchise has been a workhorse for NBC, delivering millions of viewers
for more than a dozen seasons.

The show’s most recent season, in January and February, averaged 7.6
million viewers.

Trump has said the network “begged me” to stay out of the race so he
could continue hosting.

But once he did launch his campaign, NBC cut ties with Trump, partly
due to the candidate’s offensive remarks about Mexican immigrants.

NBC also cancelled its airing of the Miss USA pageant, an event it
jointly owned with Trump.

Last week NBC sold its stake in the pageant organization to Trump. On
Monday Trump agreed to sell Miss USA and Miss Universe to the
talent agency and marketing firm WME-IMG.

NBC and Trump appear to have buried any ill will. In Monday’s
announcement, network executives spoke warmly of Trump and his desire
to see the show continue with a new host.

On “The Celebrity Apprentice,” contestants donate their winnings to
charities — more than $15 million overall to date, according to the
network.

“Donald made it clear that he wanted ‘The Celebrity Apprentice’ to be
able to continue to raise millions of dollars annually for worthy
causes, and now NBC and I have found an amazing new leader to do just
that,” executive producer Mark Burnett said.

On Twitter Monday, Trump congratulated Schwarzenegger: “He’ll be great
& will raise lots of $ for charity.”

Schwarzenegger is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood history
bringing in roughly $2 billion at the U.S. box office over a nearly 40
year career.

The star’s return in “Genisys” made the Paramount film nearly $450
million worldwide since debuting over the Fourth of July weekend.

CNNMoney (New York) September 14, 2015: 12:57 PM ET

CNNFN Article Source Here.

As of: Mon Sep 14 11:10:05 MDT 2015