A local trivia host is set to make waves on national television as he and his family compete on the new FOX gameshow, “The Quiz with Balls.” Jacob Gresham, the founder of Mindless Minutia Trivia, is well-known in Charlotte for his popular trivia series. Now, he and his family will put their knowledge and skills to the test on a grand stage.
“The Quiz with Balls,” hosted by SNL’s Jay Pharoah, features two families going head-to-head in a series of mental and physical challenges. Each family, consisting of five members, competes for a grand prize of $100,000. The game involves answering quiz questions while standing on a platform above a pool. If a contestant answers incorrectly, a massive ball knocks them into the water. The last remaining dry family member gets the chance to play the final round for the grand prize.
Charlotte has been in the national spotlight recently, with various reality series filming in the city and local chefs appearing on cooking shows. Gresham’s participation in “The Quiz with Balls” adds to the city’s growing list of television appearances. A casting representative for the show reached out to Gresham on Instagram in December 2023. By February, he was in Melbourne, Australia, competing with his mom, brother, aunt, and uncle.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Gresham shared. The trip also served as an early celebration for his mom’s 70th birthday. Gresham’s family, who are avid Kansas City Chiefs fans, competed against a family of Dallas Cowboys supporters.
To celebrate their appearance on the show, Gresham is hosting a watch party at HopFly. The event will feature specialty cocktails, the Mindless Minutia Highnstein hazy IPA on tap, and an MMT dog toy for every pup that attends. The party starts at 7 pm, and at 9 pm, the lights will dim, and the TV volume will be turned up for the show.
Gresham is not just stopping at trivia nights. He is expanding Mindless Minutia into a broader event company. In addition to weekly trivia events at local breweries and bars, the company organizes city-wide and corporate events, including team-building and DEI events for companies like Bank of America and Honeywell. “We want to make it fun. We want the education to be fun,” Gresham said.
One of the upcoming events is a Harry Potter competition, which will include a wizardry tournament and a scavenger hunt bar crawl with elements of trivia and physical challenges. Mindless Minutia is also working on a dating game for local singles and possibly a game show of their own.
“The Quiz with Balls” originally started as a gameshow in the Netherlands, where it quickly became a hit. The show has the same creator as “The Voice” and “Big Brother.” In each episode, two families compete in a “battle of the balls,” answering multiple-choice trivia questions while standing on a platform above a pool. Correct answers stop a rolling ball just before it hits the contestant, while wrong answers result in the contestant being knocked into the pool. The more players a family loses, the harder the questions become. The last dry family member plays the final round for the grand prize.
Jay Pharoah, known for his comedic talent, brings a unique energy to the show. “The show’s got heart, the show’s got knowledge, and it’s funny,” Pharoah said. He shared some memorable moments from the show, including a family of acrobats who performed flips into the pool and a contestant who fell into the water despite answering correctly because she was distracted by her family members.
“The Quiz with Balls” is part of FOX’s robust summer game show lineup, which includes other popular shows like “Beat Shazam,” “Don’t Forget the Lyrics,” and “Name That Tune.” The show promises to be a mix of trivia and physical comedy, offering viewers an exciting and hilarious hour of entertainment.
For those interested in watching, “The Quiz with Balls” airs on FOX every Tuesday at 9 pm. Gresham’s episode will air on July 9, and it’s sure to be a night filled with excitement and local pride.
Source: Axios, FOX Broadcasting Company, What to Watch
