the masked dancer reveal

The Masked Dancer: All the season one reveals

Find out who took home the Diamond Mask trophy here

TV & Film Writer
Updated: February 18, 2021

The Masked Dancer has certainly got fans hooked. The wacky The Masked Singer spin-off show, which features Ken Jeong, Paula Abdul, Brian Austin Green, and Ashley Tisdale on its judging panel, sees a number of disguised celebrities take to the stage to show off their impressive dancing skills.

MORE: The Masked Dancer's Paula Abdul: her career journey, relationships and family revealed

Collectively, the contestants has 20 Emmys, 20 Grammy nominations, five New York Times best-selling titles, four Olympic gold medals, and three Broadway show appearances - meaning this is a seriously impressive group!

Ahead, get up to speed on who has been unmasked in season one so far...

Disco Ball

The first dancer to be unmasked was Disco Ball, who turned out to be legendary hip hop artist and actor Ice-T, real name Tracy Lauren Marrow. 

Disco Ball was unmasked as Ice-T

Following his unmasking, the Law & Order: SVU actor admitted he took part in the show as his five-year-old daughter is a big fan of the original The Masked Singer series. "She likes the costumes, but when the heads come off, she doesn't know any of the people," he told Entertainment Weekly. "So I said to myself, how about if I do this, and she watches The Masked Dancer, and when the head comes off it's me? That'll blow her mind."

MORE: Rita Ora 'to be replaced' on The Masked Dancer UK

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MORE: The Masked Dancer US: fans convinced they know who Tulip is ahead of finale

Ice Cube

The second mask to be eliminated from the show was Ice Cube, who Ken Jeong correctly guessed as science communicator and TV presenter Bill Nye. 

Bill Nye was behind the Ice Cube mask

The clues for his mystery identity focused on climate change and the environment, leading other panellists Brian, Paula and Ashley to suggest that he could be Bill Maher, Tim Gunn or even Al Gore. He performed a swing dance to a cover of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance by Postmodern Jukebox before leaving the show.

Miss Moth

Miss Moth became the third mask to be eliminated on the show. The clues for the identity of the celebrity under the costume included references to the White House and being a survivor, leading many viewers watching at home to think she could be Monica Lewinsky.

Miss Moth was unveiled as Elizabeth Smart

In the end, it turned out to be best-selling author and ABC commentator, Elizabeth Smart. Elizabeth gained national attention at the age of 14 when she was abducted and now campaigns for child safety.

Cricket

Cricket's time on the competition came to an end in episode five, when Paula Abdul' suspicions were confirmed as he was revealed to be legendary soul singer Brian McKnight. 

Cricket was revealed as Brian McKnight

Speaking about why didn't choose to go on The Masked Singer instead, the 16-time Grammy-nominated artist admitted: "I'm not sure it would be too difficult to hear me sing and figure out it's me."

I thought in my head that it would be easier for people not to know who I was on a dance show."

Hammerhead

Brian Austin Green's guess for who was under the Hammerhead mask was close! He suspected Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino, was the mystery dancer after clues for his identity included a sports jersey and suntan oil. However, when the mask came off, it was revealed that Hammerhead was fellow Jersey Shore star, Vinny Guadagnino.

Vinny Guadagnino was behind the Hammerhead mask

Exotic Bird

Ahead of the semi-finals, Exotic Bird had her wings clipped and became the seventh celebrity to be unmasked. She was revealed to be American Idol winner Jordin Sparks.

Exotic Bird was Jordin Sparks

Paula - who was actually on the judging panel the year Jordin won the singing competition - guessed the Grammy-nominated singer was the mystery dancer a few weeks back, having connected the clue about barely breathing to her hit song No Air and the football hint to her father's NFL career.

Zebra

Zebra missed out on a place in the final when he was eliminated in the latest episode. His clues suggested he was someone athletic, possibly an Olympic winner. When the mask came off, he was revealed to be boxing legend and Olympic gold medalist Oscar De La Hoya.

Zebra was Oscar De La Hoya

While the judges' guesses were close - both boxer Floyd Mayweather and MMA fighter Tito Ortiz were namechecked - none of them managed to guess his identity correctly. Discussing his time on the show after his unmasking, the boxer said: "It was probably the best experience I've ever had. I think being the Zebra is a lot tougher [than being in the ring]."

Tulip

Tulip came in third place and was revealed to be 16-year-old Dance Moms star, Mackenzie Ziegler, confirming the suspicions of many viewers at home. However, only one panellist correctly guessed the dancer and singer. While Ashley Tisdale figured out it was Mackenzie, Paula guessed Liza Koshy, Ken said Lucy Hale and Brian went with Sabrina Carpenter.

Did you guess Tulip as Mackenzie Ziegler?

Following her unveiling, Mackenzie gushed about her time on the show. She said: "I love Tulip. Behind the mask, I could be whoever I wanted to be, and I gained more confidence, for sure."

Sloth

Sloth was next up to be unmasked. He was revealed to be Dancing With the Stars pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy, who both Paula and Brian correctly guessed. While Ken believed the mystery dancer was Channing Tatum, Ashley guessed Hugh Jackman.

Sloth turned out to be Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Speaking about his time on the show, the ballroom champion and Broadway dancer said: "It was absolutely the best experience," adding: "Sloth is my alter ego now."

Cotton Candy

Finally, it was time to confirm the winner's identity as Cotton Candy removed her mask after shaking and shimmying her way to first place. When the masks came off, the judges were pleasantly surprised to find that it was Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas hiding behind the mask. The 25-year-old gold medalist is best known for being a member of the Fierce Five gymnastics squad at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.

Gabby Douglas was behind the mask - and won!

"This experience has been so amazing!" Gabby said, following her win. "I've never done anything like this before. I've never trained with a mask on. This was my first time performing and not being judged. I had so much fun and I'm so grateful and so honoured."

Paula Abdul, who was the only panellist to correctly guess Gabby, said of the performer: "You're the epitome of what this show is about, and that's heart. And your heart led you to where you are right now."

When will The Masked Dancer return?

While it hasn't been confirmed that the show will return for a second season, showrunner James Breen told Deadline in December that he's optimistic the series will be back. "We all hope it does [run for multiple seasons] ... obviously we want to keep going forever and I think there's potential. It's a really fun show so I hope it goes for as long as it can," he said.

However, fans of the show will be delighted to know that The Masked Singer is back next month! The show will return for its fifth season on March 10 2021 with ten new masked celebrities taking to the stage to show off their singing skills. 

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