The Blue’s Clues reboot is a sure thing now, and Joshua Dela Cruz has been named the new host. The process of finding a new host took longer than many thought would be necessary, but given the stringent vetting process that finalists went through, it wasn’t that big of a surprise that it took a little extra time. The original host, Steve Burns, was included in the process, helping interview, screen test, and offering up his opinions on the finalists.
Dela Cruz has the kind of background that the show’s producers were looking for in a new a host, specifically because he has worked in shows primarily aimed at a young audience, reports Variety . Recently, Dela Cruz worked on Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway, as both the understudy for Aladdin and as a member of the ensemble. He’s also appeared in Time After Time , Bull , and Here Lies Love . Shelly Sumpter Gillyard, executive vice president of talent, music, and events for Nickelodeon Group, told Variety that what they were most impressed by was how genuine Dela Cruz was, and that he had excellent comedic timing, which was one of the qualities they wanted in a new Blue’s Clues host.
Broadway @aladdin alum Joshua Dela Cruz will lead @Nickelodeon ‘s Blue’s Clues reboot https://t.co/w1cOG11ibX pic.twitter.com/d9BO5yhxQ3
— Playbill (@playbill) September 13, 2018
Steve Burns was very impressed with Dela Cruz, and said that he was the right man to pick up the baton and fill his shoes and rugby shirt. Burns said that many of the classic features that were a part of the original run of the show will be back in the reboot. The thinking chair will still be there to learn about patterns and sorting to help find clues. It’s even rumored that the phrase, “We’ll find clues! Blue’s Clues!”, will still be a regular part of the show, much to the amusement of a generation of parents that heard that phrase over and over again as their children watched the original show.
“Blue’s Clues” has found its new host, and he’s here to clue us in. https://t.co/sMfWLLsD7W
— HuffPost (@HuffPost) September 13, 2018
Nickelodeon representatives told Variety that the show is still going to focus on education first. It will be as entertaining as it ever was but will center on providing entertainment with the purpose of helping teach basic literacy and problem-solving skills. The reboot will also maintain the structure of the original show, with each episode presenting a narrative with a definitive beginning and end. Similarly, the show will focus on interactivity, exploring subjects such as sign language, geography, physics, emotions, and anatomy, on a level that easy for young viewers to grasp.
