Dropout: Gastronauts sets the table for cackling culinary chaos

Comedians and cooking: what could go wrong? New Dropout show Gastronauts aims to find out.
Gastronauts. Image: Dropout

Move aside, Masterchef, it’s time for some real creatives to get cooking.

Premiering this week, Dropout’s latest unscripted series Gastronauts invites award-winning chefs to test their skills in the kitchen, in hilarious and unconventional ways.

The host, Jordan Myrick, is joined by three comedians each episode, who all have specific, ridiculous culinary challenges for each episode’s group of chefs.

Comedians include recurring Dropout talent Sam Reich, Brennan Lee Mulligan, Vic Michaelis, Jacob Wysocki, Oscar Montoya and newcomer TikTok star Kendahl Landreth.

Watch the trailer for the Dropout show Gastronauts below.

Past contestants and winners of beloved culinary shows will compete to impress the panel of comedians. Those include Angel Ortega Gonzalez (Chopped), Arturo Avallone (Chopped, It’s Compliplated), Cici Celia (Chopped), Dominique Crisp (Save The Leftovers), Harrison Bader (The Next Food Network Star, Supermarket Stakeout), Jessica Tiffany Luevano, Jeromy Wright (Chopped, Supermarket Stakeout), Joshua Mouzakes (Beachside Brawl, Alex vs. America, Chopped),  Kat Turner (Chopped), Kenneth Anderson (Supermarket Stakeout), Kyndra McCrary (Chopped), Lauren Lawless (Supermarket Stakeout, Hell’s Kitchen, Masterchef, Chopped), Mark Esposito (The Great Food Truck Race), Patrick Costa (Chopped), Pratik Bhakta, Samantha Quintero (Chopped) and Trevor Ross (Supermarket Stakeout). Whew!

Launching on 11 October in the US, Gastronauts ‘takes you to the final frontier of culinary chaos’, as host Jordan Myrick brings aboard three comedians every episode to task real, professional chefs with increasingly absurd challenges. It’s a cooking competition like nothing you’ve ever seen.

The six-episode season will air biweekly, exclusively on Dropout.

Gastronauts premieres in Australia on 12 October on Dropout.

Also on Dropout this month

Dropout reveals Dimension 20: Misfits & Magic – Season 2

Dropout has revealed that the next season of its popular TTRPG series, Dimension 20, will be Misfits & Magic â€“ Season 2.

In Season 1, four American high school students were swept into a world of wizards, finding themselves at a prominent British wizarding school. Any similarities to existing IP here are quickly dissected and twisted into the sort of chaotic narrative only Dimension 20 can provide.

The logline for the second season reads: ‘years after the events of season one, the Pilot Program must embark on a quest for the future of magic.’

Dropout favourites Brennan Lee Mulligan, Erika Ishii, Danielle Radford and Lou Wilson return to play as characters Evan Kelmp, K, Sam Black, and Whitney Jammer. The story is led by Game Master Aabria Iyengar.

Dropout: top 5 shows to stream on the comedy streaming service

Dropout is probably the best-kept secret of streaming services right now. Confidently bucking the streamer trends of ad-based subscription tiers, third-party licensed content, and streaming libraries that are as elusive as shifting sands, Dropout is instead carving out its niche in authentic, passionate comedy.

Specialising in comedy reality series – or more specifically ‘live play’ (which includes improv comedy, panel shows, game shows and tabletop roleplaying), Dropout offers a unique lineup of shows that, in my opinion, just get better and better. Where else can you bust a gut from spot-on bird impressions, learn new party games to impress your friends, and get way too invested in a DnD character that’s just a divorced elf dad?

The biggest drawcard of the platform is that every show is an original, made in-house at Dropout. Each one focuses on a unique comedic hook and prominently features a cast of faces that you’ll become more and more familiar with as your explore their content. So while bigger streamers make use of very famous actors, Dropout makes each of its cast members a star in their own right, and soon enough you’ll be gushing to your friends about Vic Michaelis, Zac Oyama, Ally Beardsley, Grant O’Brian and Josh Ruben as though they were household names (and maybe they are – depending on your household).

The deets

Streaming service: Dropout
Formerly known as: CollegeHumor
Shows at a glance: Original comedy series like Gamer Changer, and Dungeons and Dragons playthroughs like Fantasy High.
Owned by: Sam Reich
Country of origin: USA
Founded in: 2018
How much is it: $9.17AUD per month
App or website: Both
Are there ads: Nope

Silvi Vann-Wall is a journalist, podcaster, and filmmaker. They joined ScreenHub as Film Content Lead in 2022. Twitter: @SilviReports