MASHANTUCKET, Conn. — For nearly 20 years, FOX’s longest-running reality show "Hell’s Kitchen" has had scorching success.
“There’s a magic to 'Hell’s Kitchen,'” the show’s producer, Arthur Smith, said.
This fall, the legacy continues. Seasons 23 and 24 were filmed in Connecticut at Foxwoods Resort Casino, where one of Chef Gordon Ramsay’s "Hell’s Kitchen" restaurants is located.
“Listen, Season 3 I’d be happy with, but we’re on Season 23 and 24, so that only happens when magic happens and we have an amazing team,” Ramsay said.
Ramsay and his team offered a behind-the-scenes look at where all the drama goes down, while talking about how they work to make the show new and exciting each season.
“I felt that in many ways I needed to prove a vigorous challenge yet again,” Ramsay said.
“Everything we do is with a purpose,” Smith said. “And that purpose being it tests the chefs in some important criteria of being a great chef.”
For Season 23, that meant pinning head chefs against one another.
“Honestly, 18 head chefs in one kitchen was a disaster, because no one would listen,” Ramsay said. “They all had strong voices, determined, which I love by the way, but it’s getting their egos in check to focus on the job in hand and to get them to take position three, four, five, six. You all can’t be number one.”
Season 24 will feature one chef from each state competing for the top spot.
“I can’t tell you who’s on the show, that comes out later. But the East Coast is definitely represented,” Smith said.
Sous-chefs Michelle Tribble and James Avery have experienced the heat first-hand, with Michelle being a past "Hell’s Kitchen" winner herself.
“Being a contestant is nerve-racking and really it’s adrenaline every single day and being a sous-chef is pretty similar except I don’t have the stress of like trying to win the show,” Tribble said.
Both chefs agreed working with Ramsay is a treat, and they've managed to dodge some of his infamous and hilarious insults.
As for Ramsay, the show has surpassed his expectations.
“I begged FOX to let me run a restaurant,” Ramsay said. “You run a show, do all the fancy bits with the lighting, the cues, etcetera, I need a reservation book, I need customers and I need talented, hungry contestants that want a life-changing prize. I didn’t think it would go this far if I’m honest.”
"Hell’s Kitchen" airs on FOX every Thursday at 8 p.m. EST. The premiere of Season 24 will be announced at a later date.
Kaelee Collins is a multimedia journalist for FOX61 News. She can be reached at kcollins@fox61.com. Follow her on X, and Instagram.
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