The Wall (American game show)
The Wall is an American television game show broadcast by NBC, which premiered on December 19, 2016. The show is hosted by Chris Hardwick, who also serves as executive producer on the show along with LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and Andrew Glassman. On January 18, 2017, NBC ordered 20 additional episodes bringing the episode count to 30. On March 12, 2018, The Wall was renewed for a third season with 20 episodes.
Two special episodes aired on November 22, 2017 and December 27, 2017. A special Christmas themed episode aired on December 4, 2017. The second half of the second season premiered on January 1, 2018.
In 2018, Telemundo announced plans for a Spanish-language version of The Wall. It premiered in January 2020. Telemundo's version of the game show is hosted by Marco Antonio Regil.
Season 3 of the program premiered on March 15, 2020.
Gameplay
The Wall is a four-story tall pegboard, similar to a pachinko game or bean machine; it also is similar to the board used for the Plinko pricing game on The Price Is Right. The bottom of the board is divided into 15 slots marked with various U.S. dollar amounts; eight of these range from $1 to $100 and remain constant throughout the game, while the others have higher values and increase from round to round. Balls can be put into play from seven numbered "drop zones" on the top edge of the board, directly above the seven centermost money slots.A team of two contestants plays each game, attempting to bank as much money as possible by answering questions correctly and landing balls in high-value slots. Green balls dropped on the board will add to the team's bank, while red balls dropped on the board will subtract from it. Throughout the game, the bank has a floor of $0.
Round 1: Free Fall
In Free Fall, the team is asked a series of five questions, each with two answer choices. As each question is asked, three balls are simultaneously released from drop zones 1, 4, and 7. The team must select one answer and lock it in before the first ball crosses the threshold of a money slot. If the team's answer is correct, the balls turn green and their values are added to the team's bank. If the team answers incorrectly or fails to lock in an answer, the balls turn red and their values are subtracted from the team's bank.If the team's bank balance is zero at the end of this round, the game ends immediately and they leave without any winnings. If not, their earnings become part of a guaranteed payout to be offered to them at the end of the game. The highest amount that a team can bank in this round is $375,000.
The values on the board range from $1 to $25,000, and are arranged as follows:
Round 2
At the start of the second round, the contestants are separated from each other for the rest of the game. One enters an isolation chamber behind The Wall, while the other remains onstage. A set number of green balls are played simultaneously at the beginning of the round. Three multiple-choice questions are then played, each with three answer choices. The onstage player is shown only the answers to each question and must decide which zone to use, based on how confident he/she is that the isolated player can answer correctly. The question and answers are then presented to the isolated player. After he/she responds, the ball is dropped from the chosen zone. A correct answer turns the ball green and adds the value of the slot it lands in to the team bank, while a wrong answer turns the ball red and deducts the value. The isolated player is not told which of his/her answers are correct or given any information on the team bank until they are brought out of isolation near the end of the game.The onstage player is offered an opportunity to "Double Up" on the second question and "Triple Up" on the third. These options allow the onstage player to play two or three balls from the selected drop zone instead of one, respectively. After the third question, if the banked total is at least $1 more than the number of green balls played at the start of the round, an equal number of red balls are played simultaneously from the same zones.
In the first two seasons, two initial green balls were played from different zones chosen by the onstage player, and a team could bank up to $1,999,998. Beginning with the third season, seven initial green balls are played in a "SuperDrop," one from every zone, and a team can bank up to $3,249,993.
The values on the board range from $1 to $250,000, and are arranged as follows:
Round 3
Gameplay proceeds as in Round 2, but each of the three questions now has four answer choices. In addition, four green and four red balls are played at the start and end of the round respectively, and are dropped one at a time, rather than simultaneously. The "Double Up" and "Triple Up" options are available as before. The maximum amount that a team can bank in this round is $9,999,996.The values on the board range from $1 to $1,000,000, and are arranged as follows:
Final Decision
After the third question in Round 3, the isolated player is sent a contract by the host, and he/she must sign it or tear it up. Signing the contract gives up the team bank in favor of a guaranteed payout, equal to the Free Fall winnings plus an additional $20,000 for every question answered correctly in Rounds 2 and 3. If the isolated player tears up the contract, the team receives their final bank total instead. After the four red balls have dropped in Round 3 and the final bank is calculated, the isolated player returns to the stage to reveal his/her decision. Only at this point does he/she learn the number of correct answers given, the payout total, and the team's final bank.The maximum possible guaranteed payout is $495,000, obtained by scoring $375,000 in Free Fall and answering all questions correctly in Rounds 2 and 3. The maximum possible bank total in the first two seasons is $12,374,994, obtained by answering every question correctly, using every Double Up and Triple Up option, having every green ball drop into the highest-valued slot, and having the six mandatory red balls each drop into a $1 slot. In the third season, the maximum possible total is $13,624,989 due to the number of mandatory green/red balls increasing to 11 each.
Episodes
Color keySeason 1
Season 2
Season 3
Season 4
Critical reception
The Wall has received mixed reviews by critics. Jan Chaney of Vulture dubbed The Wall as being "the most stereotypically American game show on television right now" and "absurd yet undeniably diverting." Chaney criticized the show for making "attempts to sell us something new, even though its concept is really based on old ideas mixed up just enough seem fresh".Bethonie Butler of the Chicago Tribune agreed that "The Wall looks a lot like the famed Plinko game from CBS", but qualified that "originality is relative when it comes to game shows", remarking on the similarity between popular trivia game shows such as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?
European production
In Europe the production is made in a studio in Poland where the 4 storeys high wall is located. The crew of the show are mostly a local Polish crew and the producers, the host and participants flown in time to the filming of the show.International versions
Legend:Currently airing
No longer airing
Upcoming version
| Country | Title | Presenter | Channel | Airdates | Top slot value |
| ' | ' | Mohammad Sal | MBC 1 | February 14, 2018 – May 2, 2018 | SR300,000 |
| ' | The Wall: Construye tu vida | Marley | Telefe | October 1, 2017 – December 31, 2017 | AR$200,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Axle Whitehead | Seven Network | October 30, 2017 – November 19, 2017 | A$1,000,000 |
| ' | The Wall: De muur die geeft en neemt | Niels Destadsbader | VTM | September 4, 2017 – November 7, 2017 | €100,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Luciano Huck | Rede Globo | March 10, 2018 – present | R$150,000 |
| ' | Face au Mur | Maripier Morin | TVA | January 18, 2018 – March 2, 2018 | C$200,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Rafael Araneda | Chilevisión | June 20, 2018 – August 29, 2018 | CL$20,000,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Andrea Serna | Caracol Televisión | January 30, 2018 – February 26, 2018 | COP$200,000,000 |
| ' | The Wall - Danmark | Felix Smith | Kanal 5 | September 5, 2019 – present | Kr 100,000 |
| ' | :fi:The Wall Suomi|The Wall Suomi | Heikki Paasonen | Nelonen | September 22, 2018 – present | €50,000 |
| ' | :fr:The Wall : Face au mur|The Wall : Face au mur | Christophe Dechavanne | TF1 | February 27, 2017 – August 18, 2018 | €150,000 |
| ' | :de:The Wall |The Wall | Frank Buschmann | RTL | July 1, 2017 – August 11, 2017 August 3, 2018 – August 24, 2018 | €250,000 |
' | The Wall | Grigoris Arnaoutoglou | ANT1 | May 10, 2018 – July 27, 2018 | €50,000 |
| ' | A Fal | Balázs Sebestyén | RTL Klub | November 19, 2017 – June 8, 2018 | Ft.8,000,000 |
| ' | :ta:தி வோல்|The Wall | Priyanka Deshpande and Ma Ka Pa Anand | Star Vijay | October 12, 2019 – March 7, 2020 | ₹2,000,000 |
| ' | :he:The Wall |The Wall | Zvika Hadar | Reshet 13 | February 5, 2018 – present | 500,000₪ |
| ' | :it:The Wall |The Wall | Gerry Scotti | Canale 5 | November 20, 2017 – January 6, 2019 | €100,000 |
| ' | The Wall 壁から生きる | TBS | ¥10,000,000 | ||
| ' | BankGiro Loterij The Wall | Winston Gerschtanowitz | SBS 6 | April 22, 2018 – May 27, 2018 January 13, 2019 – present | €500,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Kapamilya Channel | P1,000,000 | ||
| ' | :pl:The Wall. Wygraj marzenia|The Wall. Wygraj marzenia | Paweł Orleański | TVP1 TVP2 | September 22, 2017 – December 29, 2017 January 5, 2018 – June 9, 2018 September 14, 2018 – January 4, 2019 | 100,000 zł |
| ' | :pl:The Wall. Wygraj marzenia|The Wall. Wygraj marzenia | Maciej Kurzajewski | TVP1 TVP2 | March 8, 2019 – October 6, 2019 | 100,000 zł |
| ' | The Wall – Marele Zid | Valentin Butnaru | Antena 1 | September 13, 2017 – present | 150,000 Leu |
| ' | Стена | Andrey Malakhov | Russia 1 | October 22, 2017 – December 9, 2017 | 5,000,000 Ruble |
| ' | :es:The Wall: Cambia tu vida|The Wall: Cambia tu vida | Carlos Sobera | Telecinco | June 23, 2017 – September 8, 2017 | €100,000 |
| ' | Stena | POP TV | €150,000 | ||
| ' | :th:The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต|The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต | Vuthithorn "Woody" Milintachinda | ONE HD | January 6, 2018 – July 21, 2018 | ฿500,000 |
| ' | :th:The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต|The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต | Pakachon Wo-Onsri | ONE HD | October 20, 2018 – April 3, 2019 | ฿500,000 |
| ' | :th:The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต|The Wall กำแพงพลิกชีวิต | Pakachon Wo-Onsri | ONE HD | November 23, 2019 – December 21, 2019 | ฿500,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Danny Dyer | BBC One | October 12, 2019 – present | £50,000 |
| ' | The Wall | Marco Antonio Regil | Telemundo | January 1, 2020 – January 17, 2020 | $200,000 |
| ' | The Wall: Cumplí tu Sueño | Rafael Cotelo | Canal 10 | March 13, 2018 – present | U$300,000 |
| ' | :vi:Tường lửa |Tường lửa'' | Trường Giang | VTV3 | July 18, 2019 – October 3, 2019 10 September 2020? - now | VND500,000,000 |