After a muted New Year’s Eve last year (with New York’s Times Square devoid of crowds), CNN and Fox News are once again planning dueling blowout New Year’s specials to compete with Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on ABC.
CNN’s effort will once again be led by anchor Anderson Cooper and Bravo’s Andy Cohen live from Times Square. Don Lemon, Alisyn Camerota and comedian Dulce Sloan will take over at 12:30 am ET from New Orleans, where they will ring in New Year’s in the Central time zone.
The hosts will be joined by correspondents in Key West, New York, Puerto Rico, Las Vegas and elsewhere (including Donie O’Sullivan in an Irish pub), with guest appearances by William Shatner, Patti LaBelle, Amanda Gorman and others. Katy Perry will also perform from her Las Vegas residency.
Fox News, meanwhile, is moving its New Year’s show to Nashville, Tennessee, where it will originate from the Wildhorse Saloon. Rachel Campos-Duffy, Will Cain and Pete Hegseth will host the special, with correspondents contributing from Times Square, New Orleans, South Carolina, and elsewhere.
Musical acts will include Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry, and John Elefante, the former lead singer of Kansas. Dan Bongino and Jeanine Pirro will make cameo appearances.
Last year Fox News had a 2020 recap special, but did not air a live New Year’s special, so this year’s show marks a return to that format for the channel. CNN, meanwhile, did have a live special last year, though the lack of crowds in Times Square gave it a very different feel.
Source: Hollywood
