Presented by Michele Merkin Original language(s) English | Country of origin United States No. of episodes 8 | |
Created by Peter Engel Productions Judges Jeffrey Ross
Elon Gold
Lisa Ann Walter | ||
The Next Best Thing: Who Is the Greatest Celebrity Impersonator? is an American reality TV series competition of celebrity impersonators with a grand prize of $100,000. It was hosted by Michele Merkin. The judges were Jeffrey Ross, Elon Gold and Lisa Ann Walter; ultimately, the winner was chosen by viewer voting. The eight-episode series debuted May 30, 2007 on the ABC television network and ended the same year.
Contents
Episodes
The premiere featured contestants impersonating (among others) Howard Stern, Jack Nicholson, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Gleason, Art Carney, Superman, Jennifer Aniston, Janet Jackson, Bill Cosby, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Marilyn Monroe, Neil Diamond, Tony Soprano, David Letterman, Johnny Depp (as well as Captain Jack Sparrow), Jerry Lewis, Sean Connery, Gwen Stefani, Phil McGraw, Michael Jackson, Hank Williams Jr., Arthur (Fonzie) Fonzarelli, Marilyn Manson, Sonny Bono, Cher, Ozzy Osbourne, and Avril Lavigne.
Semi-finals
The judges narrowed down the contestants to 30 semi-finalists, 28 of whom were featured in fully shown performances over two episodes. The semi-finalists were:
Finalists
Of the 30 semi-finalists, the judges chose the following 10 to be finalists:
Order of finish
American viewers voted, and ranked the finalists in the following order:
- Trent Carlini
- Sebastian Anzaldo
- Donny Edwards
- John Morgan
- Suzanne LaRusch
As the winner, Trent Carlini received $100,000.