Rob Gronkowski never thought he'd host a Nickelodeon show, yet here he is
The Super Bowl champion is now a kids' show host. He spoke with SB Nation about how he got here and what it's like to suddenly be a TV personality.
GLENDALE, Calif. -- Last Friday, Rob Gronkowski taped three episodes of his upcoming Nickelodeon show, Crashletes. The show, which is executive produced by Rob Dyrdek of Ridiculousness fame, follows the same model of riffing on viral videos, most of which are sports-related.
The taping of the show (which was picked up for a 20-episode first season) is expectedly loose. Gronkowski and his two co-hosts, Stevie Nelson and Brandon Broady, watch about six segments' worth of videos and ad lib some gentle mockery. Some of the lines and basic talking points are scripted, but for the most part, the three see something funny and try to say something funny.
The taping was pretty loosey-goosey and definitely funny. The crew spent a lot of time between episodes adopting Gronk's already-famous bro-speak and Gronk was often the subject of some of the funniest bits -- like when he didn't know the word for "fuselage" or when he was suddenly confronted with seeing (and having to say) the word "namaste" for the first time.
The cast tapes about 90 minutes' worth of raw material for each episode, which will be edited down to a tight 22 minutes. Each episode also features a Gronk solo segment called "The Gronkdown" and ends with a bit, which might involve the hosts wrestling in slow motion, or Gronk leading his co-hosts in some yoga poses.
Before heading in to tape his third episode of the day, Gronk sat down to talk to us about his new career.
SB Nation: Can you tell me how you came aboard and how Nickelodeon approached you to host your own television show?
Rob Gronkowski: They just hit up my people after the season and just brought it to my attention. They kind of sold it to me as, it would be like Ridiculousness, but more on a PG scale [since] it was for Nickelodeon. I thought it sounded like a great idea. I looked over and everything and definitely thought definitely hosting something, too -- doing it for Nickelodeon, for like a kid's atmosphere -- was the way to go.
Did you ever think you'd be a TV host?
No, not really. [laughs] I never thought, growing up, I'd be a TV host. I always wanted to be an athlete growing up. Never really thought about being a TV host. It's definitely something new and something surprising, something cool.
Do you think this is something you can keep doing? When your football career is over, do you think you could be our generation's Tosh.0?
Uh, I don't know if I could be as funny as Tosh.0. He's legit. But it's definitely something that, in the future, when football's done, definitely something [I] can look into, keep on rolling with in this type of career, [in] the TV industry. It's definitely tough work. You've got to give everyone credit that's in this industry.
Is it harder than you thought it would be?
Yes. [laughs] It is. For sure. Definitely harder than I thought it would be. It's definitely mind-draining to sit in [the studio], talking the whole time, for five hours straight at some points before lunch break. But having two co-hosts that are good, too, definitely helps out.
Among sports fans, you're known as a party guy. Since this is a Nickelodeon show, what do you think is your connection to kids?
I don't know. Wherever I go -- like, I go to elementary schools, I go to middle schools -- wherever it is, if it's in Florida, if it's up in New England, I just feel like wherever I am, the kids always go crazy whenever they see me. I just feel like they're just chilling and all of a sudden, they're just screaming and yelling [when they see me].
I just feel like I have a connection to bring the joy, to bring the energy of the kids. So I just feel like [Crashletes] fits perfectly.
Did you watch a lot of Nickelodeon growing up?
Oh, yes I did.
What were your shows?
Uh, that slime show -- Double Dare. SpongeBob, Hey Arnold!, Rocket Power. I watched all those shows, man. I would still watch them [if they were on right now].
Have you had the pleasure of getting slimed yet?
Nope. It could happen in the future, though. We'll see. That would be super cool. Or Double Dare. Do they still have Double Dare? Yeah, I didn't think so. But I definitely wouldn't mind getting slimed. Or the slime slides. I remember those. It would be cool to do one of those obstacle courses.
So what do you think would be tougher: climbing the GUTS Aggro Crag, or doing a Legends of the Hidden Temple temple run?
Uh, I kinda ... I don't know the GUTS one. I'll go with Legends of the Hidden Temple, because I know what that one is.
What's your favorite Nickelodeon theme song?
I never thought about that. Does Rocket Power have a theme song? Oh, SpongeBob. A hundred percent. For sure. Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? [singing] SpongeBob SquarePants.
Why do you think Tom Brady is so good at Facebook?
I don't know! That's a great question! He is off the charts on Facebook. Every week, you see a new post from him. [I'm good, but] Brady destroys Facebook. He's the best Facebooker in the NFL, I think.
Is he the most elite Facebook quarterback?
Yeah. Somehow he just always has a crazy post and makes the news, every time.
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