The Masked Singer returned for the third week of season 5 competition on Wednesday, and after five fun performances from Group A — and the all-new Wild Card contestant — fans had to bid farewell to another hopeful.
The Seashell, The Russian Dolls, The Raccoon, The Robopine and, newly introduced contestant The Orca, all took to the stage to give it their best shot. However, it was The Raccoon who ended up coming up just a bit short with his gravelly cover of the Johnny Cash classic “Ring of Fire.”
After all the show’s panel of celebrity “detectives” — including Robin Thicke, Nicole Scherzinger, Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy and guest panelist Joel McHale — made their final guesses, it turned out that none of them even came close.
With guesses ranging from Danny DeVito to Tony Danza, the entire panel was shocked when The Raccoon revealed himself to be none other than beloved character actor Danny Trejo!
Speaking with ET on Wednesday morning, Trejo opened up about his time on the show, and the special connection he felt with his character and costume.
“The reason I picked The Raccoon is [the costume] looks exactly like my dog!” Trejo shared. “It was the same coloring, everything! I showed [the designers] a picture and they couldn’t believe it!”
As The Raccoon, Trejo performed two songs before getting unmasked. In the season premiere, he belted out a gritty rendition of The Troggs’ “Wild Thing,” and then the Cash classic in his second appearance. However, given his distinctive voice, many fans guessed it was Trejo after the first week, and he said the fans didn’t shy away from making it known.
“I was in Vons market and some lady started screaming, ‘You’re the Raccoon!'” Trejo recalled, adding that he denied it, and cited some of his other roles, but “the lady wouldn’t have it. She was like, ‘No! You’re the Raccoon! I know it!'”
Before the unmasking and elimination, all five contestants revealed hint-filled clue packages and performed their hearts out for the panel and audience.
The Russian Dolls were up first, and they introduced a third doll into play, making them a Trio of contestants competing as one. They wowed with some slick harmonies as they performed a cover of Shawn Mendes’ “Wonder.”
The Robopine serenaded Scherzinger with a touching performance of John Legend’s “All of Me” that brought her to tears, and The Seashell showed off her ability to hit the high notes with a lively cover of Demi Lovato’s “Confident.”
The Wild Card contestant, The Orca, was the last to hit the stage, and closed the show out with a powerhouse rock performance of Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It” that Thicke said was one of his favorite performances in the history of the show.
Next week, we’ll see Group B return to stage, where they will be met with a new Wild Card contestant that could really shake things up.
If you’re trying to crack the mystery of the costumed contestants like the rest of America, check out our running list of spoilers, hints and best guesses, where we break down all the clue packages and make wild (surprisingly accurate) predictions about the singers’ secret identities.
