He also credits the evolution of Evans’ interview style, which has become a more thorough examination of his guests’ past setbacks and triumphs. “The phone’s ringing more, there’s more inbound interest than there ever was before,” Schonberger said. The series hit an industry peak when Focus Features booked Cate Blanchett on the show last year, an unexpected stop on her Oscar campaign for “Tar” which proved a stroke of publicity genius. Maya Rudolph has done two spoofs on the series, one on her Apple show “Loot” and another on “Saturday Night Live” where she appeared in character as Beyonce. “Hot Ones” has also been the subject of parody (perhaps the biggest marker of success) in recent years.

Gordon Ramsay, Ricky Gervais, John Mayer, Billie Eilish and many more followed. “From that point on so many names, like a Chelsea Handler, would come in and say, ‘Charlize told me to do this,’” Schonberger said. Another watershed moment came when Charlize Theron agreed to appear in 2018. They fought for years against a perception that the show was “unserious,” he said, and was only suitable to promote fare like summer comedies. It took time and behind-the-scenes vouching to land the caliber of stars that “Hot Ones” currently draws. When they do ‘Hot Ones,’ not only does it deliver for them in terms of getting eyeballs, but it’s also a crazy experience that you would talk about at a dinner party,” Schonberger said. “It maybe the cliche, but the assumption is that celebrities hate doing press and every junket is a slog. The results can be horrifying and glorious, especially when top talent starts to crack under the heat with a camera pointed at them (Jennifer Lawrence was the most recent, meme-generating victim).

As the host and guests move through the wings, the heat ratchets up, all measured on an index called the Scoville Spice Scale. Black drapes frame a table for two, equipped with a pitcher of ice water, a glass of milk, and ten chicken wings. The show’s production and format are dead simple, and have barely evolved since inception. “He took to our idea immediately,” Schonberger said. Evans was a face Schonberger saw often in the office, a Complex on-air host that golfed with Steph Curry and played guinea pig for fitness trends (like following Dwayne Johnson’s diet for a week) in the name of views. Their first guest was Tony Yayo, the G-Unit rapper. The “Hot Ones” team took advantage of the talent roaming its corporate halls. Complex was and remains deeply rooted in music and street culture – from sneakers and skaters to hip hop royalty.

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