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It has been a monumental 20th(!) season for Hot Ones, the wildly successful web series from First We Feast. What began as a modest YouTube show has become a cultural sensation, attracting Oscar winners and Elvis impersonators in equal measure, for an unconventional stop in the usually repetitive promotional cycle for stars.
To close out the big 2-0, Hot Ones welcomed Jake Gyllenhaal, who has been doing the rounds to promote his latest dose of light military propaganda, Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant—which, yes, literally features the director’s name in the damn title. Though the film follows an Afghan interpreter (Dar Salim) who risks his life to transport an injured Army sergeant (Gyllenhaal) to safety, Gyllenhaal’s time on Hot Ones was arguably more intense.
Seated across host Sean Evans, with 10 chicken wings and hot sauces of varying degrees of spiciness before them, Gyllenhaal made no bones (pun intended) about how he got there. “[My preparation for being on the show] just came from being constantly battered by you guys, for years, to come on the show,” Gyllenhaal said, laughing. “Which has been, actually, really flattering.”