Chuck E. Cheese could be making his way to your television screen soon.
The restaurant chain with a rodent mascot has announced a development partnership with Magical Elves, the producer of shows including “Top Chef,” to create a game show based on the arcade games that crowd each location.
No word on whether Munch’s Make-Believe Band will be part of the show.
While the restaurants might boast they’re a place “where a kid can be a kid,” the show will focus on grown-ups. The premise has pairs of adults competing against each other and taking part in “comedic physical challenges” with supersized arcade games, including pinball, air hockey and the human claw.
Whichever duo has the most tickets at the end of the show will get to exchange them for prizes off a recreation (and we can only guess, enhancement) of the Chuck E. Cheese prize wall.
“We are thrilled to be working with Magical Elves, whose deep expertise in unscripted content make them the perfect partner to capture the wholesome competitive spirit tied to childhood memories and transform the Chuck E. Cheese experience for television,” said Melissa McLeanas, VP of Global Licensing, Media, and Branded Entertainment Development of Chuck E. Cheese in a statement.
This is the first time Chuck E. Cheese (and its parent company CEC Entertainment) have dipped their toes into the world of unscripted content. The company has been looking to expand beyond just food service in recent months, though.
Chuck E. Cheese is fast approaching its 50th anniversary in 2027. The company says it has more nostalgic plans in store during the walkup, meant to lure back old fans as well as new ones.
The company was founded by Atari creator Nolan Bushnell, who has long since ended his involvement with the chain. It barely made it to 10 years, but was saved by merging with its arch rival Showtime Pizza.
Chuck E. Cheese, though, wasn’t always meant to be a mouse. When Bushnell first came up with the concept of the restaurant, there were no plans to use a rodent as the mascot.
“The project started as Coyote Pizza,” says Bushnell. “We thought that a Coyote would be a great mascot. I purchased what I thought was a Coyote costume from an amusement park walk around costume vendor and had it shipped to the company. When it got here it was obvious to everyone but me that it was a rat costume.
“Rather than get another costume we decided that we would use a big rat as the mascot. Marketing didn’t like Rick Rats Pizza and came up with Chuck E. Cheese — as they called it a three-smile name”