Nickelodeon is preparing the ultimate Halloween surprise for kids with the season two premiere of its hit hidden-camera prank series, The Substitute. Joining the series as host is Mexican social media sensation Juanpa Zurita, who will help undercover celebrities pull off a day of ridiculous mayhem as the substitutes for unsuspecting kids. Season two premieres Saturday, October 31, at 9PM (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon.
In the season two premiere of The Substitute, actress, recording artist and author Ariel Martin, a.k.a. “Baby Ariel,” (Zombies 2) goes undercover at a haunted house to pull off ghoulishly wacky pranks on kids visiting with the Q Youth Foundation. Using a full costume and prosthetics to hide her identity, Martin is transformed into three completely unrecognizable characters, pranking students as an apothecary shop owner who is often suspected of being a witch, a field trip volunteer, and full-time ghost hunter who is desperate to finally prove their existence and a haunted house employee whose biggest adversary is a scarecrow.
The series features celebrities who are transformed by a team of Hollywood special effects artists to go undercover as a substitute, surprising unsuspecting kids in schools, camps and other locations. During the reveal at the end of the day, each organization receives a $25,000 donation. Additional celebrities taking to the classroom to pull off their own ridiculous surprises in season two of The Substitute include Chloe Kim, Chris Paul, and others to be announced at a later date.
Zurita is a digital content creator, comedian, actor and social activist originally from Mexico. Since uploading his first video in 2013, he quickly made a name for himself and has accumulated a global following of over 72 million across his social media channels to-date. He uses his platform to connect with his audience and welcome them into his life, with an overall goal of providing a place for his followers to always feel like they belong and promote the idea that they should always believe in themselves, take risks and to work hard to achieve their dreams. Zurita’s work has led him to win and be nominated for many awards around the world, including being a finalist for “YouTuber of the Year” at the 10th Annual Shorty Awards.
The Substitute is produced by Industrial Media’s The Intellectual Property Corporation (IPC). IPC’s Eli Holzman and Aaron Saidman, and Todd Hurvitz (Punk’d) serve as executive producers, with Hurvitz also serving as the showrunner. Nickelodeon’s Vice Presidents of Unscripted Content Jessica Brown and Mandel Ilagan also serve as executive producers. Production of The Substitute for Nickelodeon is overseen by Rob Bagshaw, Executive Vice President, Unscripted Content.
