The Host of Hot Ones Spills the Secrets of His Success

Moments after dropping off a surprise dessert—two passionfruit-coconut-chocolate truffles—our waiter turns to Sean Evans and whispers, “A little treat, it’s not spicy.” The two men haven’t said more than a couple of words to one another during lunch at Robert, a restaurant perched atop the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City. But with the meal nearing its end, the waiter couldn’t resist a chance to acknowledge his special guest. Evans, a bald, sports-obsessed 38-year-old from Chicago, is the face of hot sauce in the US, if not the world.

Evans hosts Hot Ones, an internet talk show in which he interviews celebrities while they eat chicken wings slathered in progressively fiery sauces. “It’s the show with hot questions and even hotter wings,” he reminds viewers at the start of every episode. The show began in 2015 as a low-cost experiment in online video by the website First We Feast, a food-centered offshoot of Complex Media. Over the past decade, Hot Ones has grown into one of the most popular talk shows in the world and turned Evans into the David Letterman of Generation YouTube. Publicists compete, lie and cajole for a chance to book their clients on the show, which has helped First We Feast generate about $30 million in revenue and $10 million in profit.