For something to be recognized as an important part of culture, it’s not always about being featured in a museum or educational text. The true sign is when something becomes a question on a TV quiz show. This week, Bluey passed that rite of passage, and was an integral part of this Australian game show that even included a special appearance from a certain star of the popular animated series.
Have You Been Paying Attention?
Melanie Zanetti, the voice of Chilli Heeler on Bluey, appeared on “Have you been paying attention?” in a very fun moment that cast the spotlight on the Australian-made cartoon. Earlier this month, Zanetti appeared on the red carpet at The Logies Award to address a naughty fan theory about the series, but things were a little less adult this time around.
The episode, which aired as part of their 11th season on August 14, featured Ed Kavalee, Urzila Carlson, Marty Sheargold, Melanie Bracewell, and Alan Davies as part of the special panel. Zanetti appeared as a guest on the show, tossing questions to the panelists about Bluey and other current events, with the goal of determining whether or not they were paying attention. Everyone had a raucous good time, and for this American who had never seen this show before, I loved every minute of it!
Watch a clip from the episode below:
The Million Dollar Question
Before Zanetti began interrogating the panel, she was asked a few questions by host Tom Gleisner, who inquired if she knew Bluey would become such a popular hit. Zanetti said she never expected it but was happy for its success.
“Honestly, doing the pilot, no one could know it was going to blow it up like this. But, it was definitely something special. Even just then, it was like this is something I want to be a part of.”
On how Zanetti landed the role of Chilli Heeler:
“It was actually quite serendipitous. I was doing a voiceover in a studio with Dan Brumm, who plays Stripe. He’s like my brother is making a cartoon, it’s kind of already cast but if you want to chuck some vocals down, and then at the last minute, they wanted to change the voices up, and they used mine and then they did their due diligence, I auditioned for three months, and then they came back and said ‘You’re it.”
Zanetti also talked about her recent appearance on The Jimmy Fallon show, the character’s appearance as part of last year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in the U.S. (turns out Melanie was in the BBC building in New York and watched the float fly right past her window), and gave her opinion on the Chilli plushies from Moose Toys.
When it came time for the panelists to chime in and prove whether they were paying attention, some did better than others, but it was still hilarious to watch. Most of the stories related to Australian pop-culture and events, so American fans might have a difficult time following along, but it’s still pretty darn funny. It’s also still surreal hearing Chilli’s voice come out of a real human, so it’s worth checking out just to see and hear that.
While Bluey has yet to become a question on Jeopardy or Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Zanetti’s guest appearance on this show cements the series as a piece of worthy pop-culture around the world. Considering how Bluey was used for a gag in Futurama last month, I think 2024 and beyond could be a very busy time for the Heelers and their growing popularity.