Bradley Walsh was dealt a major blow when he filmed a dramatic pilot episode for The Chase USA – only to be replaced.
The ITV hit quiz show is for sure a UK TV favourite – and it appears the show has gone down a treat with those on the other side of the pond too.
Back in April 2012, American Broadcasting company Fox ordered two pilot episodes of the show with Bradley lined up as the host.
READ MORE: The Chase host Bradley Walsh’s earnings revealed as star rakes in millions from ITV
At the time, there were hopes the 62-year-old would become a big name stateside, like fellow celebs including Jeremy Kyle and Anne Robinson.
“This is the big time for Bradley now. It could be huge,” a source told The Sun at the time.
(Image: ITV)
The two pilots were filmed in the UK in September 2012 – with the first one including The Beast.
For the second pilot, Jeopardy! champion Brad Rutter played as the Chaser.
The format was pretty much the same too and featured the iconic Cash Builder, the nerve-wracking Chase and then the group Final chase.
Much like the UK version, the contestants had the chance to bag some serious cash – half a million dollars.
(Image: ABC)
However, Fox didn’t pick The Chase for a series – apparently this was down to a staff reshuffle that took place a few weeks later.
The new senior staff were not that keen on producing the show, so it was scrapped – but it was later picked up by the Game Show Network.
Unfortunately for Bradders though, he wasn’t called back to front the new series.
(Image: ABC)
Instead, Baywatch star and TV presenter Brooke Burns got the host role.
The American version of The Chase originally ran for four seasons and 51 episodes.
It then went on hiatus in 2015, but six years later it was picked up by a rival network.
ABC went on to revive The Chase in 2020 with a brand new host, Sara Haines from ABC’s daytime talk show The View.
For more of the latest showbiz and TV news from the Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
