The New York Times’ hit game Wordle is set to become a television show, the American newspaper announced on Monday (May 11).
Wordle gives players six chances to guess a random five-letter word, using green, yellow and gray tiles to help them solve the puzzle.
The game show version, which will air on NBC next year, will see teams of players go head-to-head to win cash prizes.
It will be hosted by NBC news anchor Savannah Guthrie, who has recently been through a very public family tragedy, following the abduction of her elderly mother at the end of January.
Wordle was launched by software engineer Josh Wardle in 2021 and quickly grew in popularity.
It was acquired by the Times in January 2022 and is now played daily by millions of people worldwide.
“Wordle is so beloved by so many that we thought it was an interesting, creative opportunity to think about how it might work in in a game show,” said Caitlin Roper, executive editorial director of film and TV at the Times.
The Times’ CEO Meredith Kopit Levien added that the move “reflects our broader approach of creating experiences people return to and share every day.”
The game show will be co-produced by the Times, NBC host Jimmy Fallon’s company Electric Hot Dog, and Universal Television Alternative Studio.
The newspaper has previously co-produced television shows including The Weekly and Modern Love.
Games with similar rules have previously featured on television shows, including Lingo, which first aired in the United States in 1987.