Nicole Scherzinger Left 'The Masked Singer' to Focus on Another Project — Will She Return?
In all likelihood, Nicole will probably be back to her old seat on 'The Masked Singer' in Season 12. But here's why she left.
Mar. 7 2024, Updated 11:20 a.m. ET
Since its debut in 2019, The Masked Singer has kept people on their toes with wacky costumes and jaw-dropping performances. The popular reality singing competition has celebrities dress up in bizarre outfits and sing some hit songs all while folks try to figure out who lies under the mask.
The show has featured the same panel of celebrities, which includes Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg, Robin Thicke, and Nicole Scherzinger (and the occasional guest panelist), who have all been at the forefront of each round of guesses.
However, after Season 11 premiered on March 6, 2024, fans immediately noticed that Nicole's seat was occupied by British singer Rita Ora. Here's why Nicole is not on The Masked Singer and when we can expect her to return.
Why did Nicole Scherzinger leave 'The Masked Singer'?
Nicole Scherzinger has worn plenty of hats throughout her long-standing career as an entertainer. She's best known as the former lead singer of The Pussycat Dolls and has previously appeared as a judge on other reality competitions like The X Factor.
Starting in 2019, the Grammy-nominated singer became beholden to some wild mascot-like performers as a regular panelist on The Masked Singer.
However, Nicole stepped away from the show for Season 11 due to a scheduling conflict. In May 2023, Nicole revealed that she'd been cast in a West End stage revival of Sunset Boulevard. The show began running in London on Sept. 20 and ran through Jan. 4, 2024, the same time filming was scheduled for Season 11 of The Masked Singer.
As such, Nicole opted to step away from filming for The Masked Singer so that she could attend rehearsals and, of course, be in the show during its run.
Rita Ora is expected to fill in for Nicole Scherzinger for the entirety of Season 11 of 'The Masked Singer.'
Shortly before Nicole began her performances in Sunset Boulevard, The Masked Singer already announced her replacement for Season 11.
On Sept. 13, 2023, it was revealed that Rita Ora would sub in for Nicole during her absence. She's no stranger to Masked Singer shenanigans either, having previously acted as a panelist for the U.K. version of the show for five seasons and counting.
Will Nicole Scherzinger be returning to 'The Masked Singer'?
In all likelihood, Nicole will probably be back to her old seat on The Masked Singer in Season 12. The singer and actress has been a regular on the show since its inception and has shown no signs that her leave will be a permanent one.
Until then, the show won't skip a beat with another panelist set to fill her shoes for the time being.