Sixteen celebs will take part in a pickleball tournament on the special Pickled, which airs on CBS November 17. Stephen Colbert's Spartina produces with Funny or Die and CBS Studios. Colbert will sing the national anthem with Kenny Loggins, and the tournament winners get the Colbert Cup.
The celebs are Jimmie Allen, Murray Bartlett, Dierks Bentley, Jaime Camil, Will Ferrell, Max Greenfield, Luis Guzman, Phil Keoghan, Daniel Dae Kim, Sugar Ray Leonard, Tig Notaro, June Diane Raphael, Kelly Rowland, Paul Scheer, Aisha Tyler and Emma Watson.
The special will raise funds for Comic Relief US.
"If you love pickleball and you love celebrities and you love helping people, you’re going to love watching these celebrities help people by playing pickleball," said Colbert, host of The Late Show on CBS.
"Funny or Die is so proud to produce Pickled. Along with Stephen Colbert, CBS and our celebrity players, we all came together for two great causes: to support Comic Relief US and to add more articles about Pickleball to everyone's newsfeed," said Mike Farah, CEO of Funny Or Die.
Announcers Cari Champion, John Michael Higgins and Bill Raftery will add color and commentary.
Calls to action during the broadcast will raise funds to support Comic Relief's safety programs, which address the life-altering impact of homelessness, rootlessness and lack of safety often experienced by children and families living in poverty.
Claussen Pickles and Oofos Active Recovery are sponsors of the event.
Executive producers are Funny or Die's Mike Farah, Joe Farrell and Henry R. Muñoz III, and Spartina’s Stephen Colbert, Carrie Byalick, Evelyn McGee Colbert and Tom Purcell.
Tennis Channel holds its own celebrity pickleball event October 13. ■
