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There was a time when HQ Trivia was on everyone’s lips and millions of people were playing it in hopes of winning some money out of the prize pot. After that, the trivia show app was plagued by one problem after another, falling off the radar, losing viewers, and shutting down. CNN announced last year that it had commissioned a documentary to tell the story of the game show, promising to begin in 2023. CNN Films, now the film arm of the news channel, has released a trailer for the documentary. Glitch: The Rise & Fall of HQ Trivia, It will premiere on CNN on March 5th at 9pm ET/PT.
At the height of its popularity, HQ Trivia ran two games a day, allowing users to win a portion of the prize money by getting a few questions right in a row. It was hosted by Scott Rogowski, though occasional guest hosts included celebrities such as The Rock and Kelly Clarkson. But in 2018, controversial co-founder Colin Kroll passed away, Rogowski left After reportedly having a disagreement with management about another hosting job he took.
according to TechCrunch, more than half of HQ Trivia’s staff also signed a petition to fire CEO Rus Yusupov, accusing him of mismanaging the startup. Yusupov then reportedly fired some of the people who led the petition before the company was shut down following a failed takeover in 2020. The trivia app was quickly revived thanks to a new investor, but he only ran the game once a week and the prize was $1,500 for him. The app is currently suspended and no games have been played since November 2022.
The CNN documentary is told through Rogowski’s perspective, along with other company insiders. We’re on an interesting ride, based on what documentary director Salima Koroma said: “HQ Trivia was supposed to ‘revolutionize television’. It’s making Vines and WeWorks and Twitter.” CEOs are hailed as modern-day rock stars, but many of them are mere emperors without clothes. And I wanted that absurdity to be felt throughout the film.
Pay-TV subscribers can stream the documentary as it premieres through CNN’s website, mobile app and CNNgo. On-demand delivery will start on March 6th.
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