What You Need to Know About Sara Haines, Host of ABC’s ‘The Chase’
Published Jan. 7 2021, 1:43 p.m. ET
Fans of trivia game shows, rejoice! There’s a new television quiz show that you’re sure to be obsessed with called The Chase. Well, actually, it’s kind of an old television quiz show, but a new version of it (more on that in a bit). Either way, it’s guaranteed to either make you feel very, very intelligent, or very much the opposite.
We’re going to explain a bit more about how the show works as well as its history, but first, let’s meet the host, Sara Haines!
Sara Haines is the host of ABC’s ‘The Chase.’
You may recognize Sara from her time as guest co-host — and then permanent co-host — of The View. She joined the cast in 2016 and was one of the permanent co-hosts for Seasons 20 and 21. In July of 2018, ABC announced that Sara would not be returning to The View, and she made the jump over to GMA Day with Michael Strahan.
GMA Day was eventually renamed GMA3: What You Need to Know, and Keke Palmer joined Sara and Michael as the third co-host of the show. Unfortunately, it seems as though GMA3 may be no more, having been indefinitely postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sara has still been keeping busy, though!
In August 2020, ABC announced that Sara would be rejoining The View as one of its permanent co-hosts. Just a couple of months later, she was revealed as the host of The Chase, too. “I’m so excited!” she wrote in the caption of an Instagram post promoting the show. “I had the BEST time working with these guys & hosting the show.” If you’re wondering who “these guys” are, it’s none other than Jeopardy! champions Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer, and Brad Rutter!
In ‘The Chase,’ contestants compete for money against quiz show geniuses known as Chasers.
ABC’s The Chase is actually an adaptation of the British game show of the same name. The U.K. show started in 2009 and brought us the Chaser Mark Labbett...whom you may recognize as “The Beast” from the other U.S. adaptation of the show. That’s right — ABC’s The Chase actually marks the second time the game show has made its way across the pond. The initial adaptation aired on the Game Show Network and went on hiatus after four seasons. ABC’s version is basically a revival of that first adaptation.
Anyway, in The Chase, contestants work together as a group to win money for their team by answering as many questions correctly as possible during a 1-minute “Cash Builder” round. Then, one contestant competes in a one-on-one match with one of the show’s Chasers. The contestant and the Chaser stand on opposite ends of a board and the contestant chooses a starting position (up to three steps ahead of the Chaser, depending on how confident they’re feeling).
The contestant then tries to reach the end of the board by correctly answering multiple-choice questions. The catch is that the Chaser is answering those same questions, “chasing” them down the board. If the Chaser overtakes the contestant, the money is lost. The unique design of the game makes for some exciting drama, and we’re guessing that the pressure of playing against a Jeopardy! GOAT will only add to the excitement!
Catch new episodes of The Chase Thursdays on ABC at 9 p.m.