The Substitute (American TV program)

The Substitute is an American reality television program that aired on Nickelodeon from April 1, 2019 to February 25, 2021. The program features pranks and celebrities going undercover as substitute teachers to surprise students, with $25,000 donations being made to each school they visit. The series was renewed for a second season hosted by Juanpa Zurita.

The Substitute
Genre	Reality
Presented by	Juanpa Zurita
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	24
Production
Producers	Eli Holzman Aaron Saidman
Running time	23 minutes
Production company	The Intellectual Property Corporation
Release
Original network	Nickelodeon
Picture format	HDTV 720p
Audio format	5.1 surround sound
Original release	April 1, 2019 (2019-04-01) – February 25, 2021 (2021-02-25)

Production

On February 14, 2019, it was announced that The Substitute would be a part of Nickelodeon's 2019 slate. The program is a production of The Intellectual Property Corporation, Eli Holzman, and Aaron Saidman, with Mike Harney serving as showrunner.^[1][2] On March 20, 2019, it was announced that the program would premiere on April 1, 2019, with Jace Norman guest starring in the premiere.^[3] A sneak peek of the first episode aired immediately following the 2019 Kids' Choice Awards on March 23, 2019.^[4] On May 6, 2019, it was announced that Lilly Singh would guest star in an episode airing on May 18, 2019.^[5] On August 28, 2019, it was announced that Nickelodeon ordered a full series pickup of The Substitute, with a 10-episode order for an October 2019 premiere.^[6] On September 18, 2019, it was announced that John Cena would guest star in an episode airing on October 4, 2019.^[7] On November 15, 2019, it was revealed that Ne-Yo would guest star in a holiday episode airing on November 30, 2019.^[8]

On January 17, 2020, it was revealed that Brie and Nikki Bella would guest star in an episode airing on January 31. It was also revealed that additional guest stars for future episodes would include Rico and Raini Rodriguez, Asher Angel, Shaun White, JoJo Siwa, Johnny Orlando, Kel Mitchell, and Cooper Barnes.^[9]

On October 23, 2020, it was announced that a second season would premiere on October 31 with Ariel Martin, Chloe Kim, and Chris Paul among the guest stars in the season. The season also added a new host, Juanpa Zurita.^[10]

Episodes

Series overview

Season	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	12		April 1, 2019 (2019-04-01)	March 28, 2020 (2020-03-28)
2	12		October 31, 2020 (2020-10-31)	February 25, 2021 (2021-02-25)

Season 1 (2019–20)

No. overall	No. in season	Title ^[11]^[12]	Original air date ^[11]^[12]	Prod. code ^[11]	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	1	"Jace Norman"	April 1, 2019 (2019-04-01)	101	0.87^[13]
2	2	"Lilly Singh"	May 18, 2019 (2019-05-18)	102	0.75^[14]
3	3	"John Cena"	October 4, 2019 (2019-10-04)	103	0.71^[15]
4	4	"Ne-Yo"	November 30, 2019 (2019-11-30)	104	0.47^[16]
5	5	"The Bella Twins"	January 31, 2020 (2020-01-31)	110	0.39^[17]
6	6	"Rico & Raini Rodriguez"	February 7, 2020 (2020-02-07)	106	0.36^[18]
7	7	"Asher Angel"	February 8, 2020 (2020-02-08)	107	0.46^[19]
8	8	"Shaun White"	February 15, 2020 (2020-02-15)	108	0.42^[20]
9	9	"JoJo Siwa"	February 22, 2020 (2020-02-22)	105	0.55^[21]
10	10	"Johnny Orlando"	March 7, 2020 (2020-03-07)	112	0.43^[22]
11	11	"Cooper Barnes"	March 14, 2020 (2020-03-14)	109	0.51^[23]
12	12	"Kel Mitchell"	March 28, 2020 (2020-03-28)	111	0.51^[24]

Season 2 (2020–21)

No. overall	No. in season	Title ^[11]^[25]	Original air date ^[11]^[25]	Prod. code ^[11]	U.S. viewers (millions)
13	1	"Baby Ariel"	October 31, 2020 (2020-10-31)	202	0.27^[26]
14	2	"Chloe Kim"	November 7, 2020 (2020-11-07)	201	0.27^[27]
15	3	"Chris Paul"	November 14, 2020 (2020-11-14)	203	0.20^[28]
16	4	"Gabriel Iglesias"	December 10, 2020 (2020-12-10)	208	0.29^[29]
17	5	"The Miz"	January 7, 2021 (2021-01-07)	205	0.26^[30]
18	6	"DeAndre Jordan"	January 14, 2021 (2021-01-14)	206	0.38^[31]
19	7	"Peyton List"	January 21, 2021 (2021-01-21)	204	0.44^[32]
20	8	"Zedd"	January 28, 2021 (2021-01-28)	207	0.26^[33]
21	9	"Lele Pons"	February 4, 2021 (2021-02-04)	210	0.44^[34]
22	10	"Why Don't We"	February 11, 2021 (2021-02-11)	209	0.24^[35]
23	11	"Ty Dolla $ign"	February 18, 2021 (2021-02-18)	212	0.20^[36]
24	12	"Juanpa Zurita"	February 25, 2021 (2021-02-25)	211	0.23^[37]

Special (2020)

Title ^[11]^[12]	Original air date ^[11]^[12]	Prod. code ^[11]	U.S. viewers (millions)
"Top 10 Wildest Pranks"	May 9, 2020 (2020-05-09)	999	0.40^[38]

Ratings

Viewership and ratings per season of The Substitute

Season	Episodes	First aired		Last aired		Avg. viewers (millions)
		Date	Viewers (millions)	Date	Viewers (millions)
1	12	April 1, 2019 (2019-04-01)	0.87^[13]	March 28, 2020 (2020-03-28)	0.51^[24]	0.54
2	12	October 31, 2020 (2020-10-31)	0.27^[26]	February 25, 2021 (2021-02-25)	0.23^[37]	0.29

References

1. "Nickelodeon Embarks on New Direction with Its Biggest, Most Wide-Ranging Content Slate Ever – New Shows Are All That and Much More" (Press release). Nickelodeon. February 14, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
2. Denise Petski (February 14, 2019). "SpongeBob Spinoffs, All That & Are You Smarter than 5th Grader? Revivals & More on Nickelodeon's 2019 Content Slate". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
3. "Nickelodeon's New Prank Series, The Substitute, Premieres on April Fools' Day, at 2:00 P.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. March 20, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
4. Kimberly Nordyke (March 22, 2019). "Nickelodeon Star Jace Norman Previews Kids' Choice Awards, New Prank Show The Substitute". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 27, 2021.
5. "Nickelodeon's New Hit Series The Substitute Returns, with Lilly Singh Guest Starring Saturday, May 18, at 8:00 P.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
6. "Nickelodeon Greenlights Unscripted Holiday Series Top Elf; Orders Full Series Pickup of The Substitute" (Press release). Nickelodeon. August 28, 2019. Retrieved August 28, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
7. "John Cena to Guest Star in Nickelodeon's The Substitute, Premiering on Friday, Oct. 4, at 7:00 P.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. September 18, 2019. Retrieved October 5, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
8. Thompson, Avery (November 15, 2019). "The Substitute Holiday Episode: NE-YO Goes Undercover & Is Unrecognizable — First Look Photos". Hollywood Life. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
9. Tony Maglio (January 17, 2020). "Bella Twins to Guest on Nickelodeon's The Substitute – See Nikki Go Undercover Here (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
10. "Nickelodeon's The Substitute Returns With All-New Surprises for Season Two of the Hit Prank Series, Premiering Halloween, Oct. 31, at 9 P.M. (ET/PT)" (Press release). Nickelodeon. October 23, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020 – via The Futon Critic.
11. "The Substitute Episode Listings". The Futon Critic.
12. "The Substitute Season 1 Episode Guide". Zap2it.
13. Mitch Metcalf (April 2, 2019). "Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.1.2019". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved May 17, 2019.
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22. Mitch Metcalf (March 10, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.7.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on March 11, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
23. Mitch Metcalf (March 17, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.14.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
24. Mitch Metcalf (March 31, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.28.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on April 4, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
25. "The Substitute Season 2 Episode Guide". Zap2it.
26. Mitch Metcalf (November 3, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.31.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on November 3, 2020. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
27. Mitch Metcalf (November 10, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.7.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on November 10, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
28. Mitch Metcalf (November 17, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.14.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on November 17, 2020. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
29. Mitch Metcalf (December 11, 2020). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 12.10.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
30. Mitch Metcalf (January 11, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.7.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
31. Mitch Metcalf (January 15, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.14.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
32. Mitch Metcalf (January 25, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.21.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
33. Mitch Metcalf (January 29, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.28.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on January 29, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
34. Mitch Metcalf (February 5, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.4.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on February 5, 2021. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
35. Mitch Metcalf (February 12, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.11.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
36. Mitch Metcalf (February 22, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.18.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
37. Mitch Metcalf (February 26, 2021). "Top 150 Thursday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.25.2021". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
38. Mitch Metcalf (May 12, 2020). "Top 150 Saturday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.9.2020". Showbuzz Daily. from the original on May 13, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2020.

External links

• Official website
• The Substitute at IMDb