Beloved Channel Seven show 'facing the axe' amid ratings bloodbath
The popular game show, The Chase Australia, is reported to be on the chopping block.
According to News Corp, a search is 'said to be underway' to find a replacement for the program, which has been running on Seven since 2015.
The reason for the shifting attitudes towards the Larry Emdur-hosted game show is apparently lacklustre ratings that have failed to win its 5pm time slot.
The long-running series has been consistently bested by Channel Nine game show rival Tipping Point, hosted by Todd Woodbridge which airs at the same time.
A look at this week's TV ratings shows The Chase behind Tipping Point each day, albeit by a relatively small margin.
Thursday's episode of The Chase attracted 1,315,000 viewers, while Tipping Point gained 188,000 more fans at 1,503,000.
It was a similar story for the rest of the week, with The Chase experiencing its best ratings day on Monday at 1,476,000 - still 58,000 viewers behind Tipping Point.
The publication claimed that the ratings results are causing 'panic' in the upper echelons at Seven, with the decision to axe or not to axe falling to Angus Ross - Seven's recently appointed Group Managing Director of Television.
However, the claims come after Seven recently rubbished a claim by News Corp that the network were looking to replace Larry as host of The Chase in a bid to 'revive' the show.
'The Chase doesn't need reviving. It remains very competitive in its timeslot, delivering a big audience night in, night out,' a Seven spokesperson told the publication in April.
'We are about to launch a new push for the show, offering the biggest cash prize in its history.
'Larry will absolutely continue to host The Chase. To suggest otherwise is nonsense and deliberately misleading.'
Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Channel Seven for comment.
The rumours come as affable host Larry Emdur took to social media this week, sharing a cheeky post in which claimed an elderly woman had offered to pay him $10 to drop his pants.
The alleged incident took place in a public park while the 59-year-old Channel Seven star was taking a morning walk.
Larry said that the stranger had offered to pay him the money so she could see his 'a***' which is tattooed with the initials of last year's Gold Logie nominees.
The fan favourite, who is notorious for sending up his fame on social media, had his bottom inked live on The Morning Show the day after taking home the coveted TV prize.
In the clip, Larry can be seen telling his followers that he scared off the woman - only to reveal that he is holding a $10 note in his hand.
'Good morning. The creepiest thing just happened to me [while] I was having my morning walk,' he said in the Instagram post.
He continued: 'A lady was walking towards me and she about 75-80 years old and she saw me - this is the weird life of someone on TV.
'And she turned around and said to me, ''I'll give you $10 to show me the tattoo of the Gold Logie on your a***." And I said what?
Larry then explained that the woman repeated her request.
'And I said, ''You're crazy'' - you want me to drop my pants in a public park for $10?
'Anyway, I must have scared her off because she ran off in that direction,' Larry said waving a $10 note.
Larry's followers quickly showed their enthusiastic approval for his joke post.
'Thank goodness you took the money!!' one fan messaged.
'This is GOLD,' added another, while a third follower simply gushed, 'Totally hilarious as always.'
Larry made headlines last August after securing his first ever Logie Awards on when he took home a Silver and secured the Gold at the 2024 ceremony at the Star in Sydney.
And the next day he was forced to make good on a bizarre promise he made the week before, stripping off his pants on live breakfast TV and getting a tattoo on his backside.
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