NBC Taps Seacrest to Host ‘The Million Second Quiz’

Ryan Seacrest, who hosts “American Idol” on Fox and “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” every year on ABC, now has a prime-time gig on a third broadcast network. On Monday, NBC announced that Mr. Seacrest would be the host of “The Million Second Quiz,” an interactive game show that is taking over nearly two weeks of the network’s schedule in September.

The announcement came after weeks of talks between NBC and Mr. Seacrest’s representatives, who had to ensure that the game show wouldn’t affect his many other commitments, like his daily radio show for Clear Channel. Mr. Seacrest is based in Los Angeles, but he will be in New York for the duration of the “Quiz,” which will pit trivia players against each other inside an hourglass-shaped structure in Midtown Manhattan.

The first hourlong episode will be shown on Sept. 9, a Monday, and will run nightly through Saturday. Then, after a one-day pause for “Sunday Night Football,” the show will resume on Sept. 16 and run through Sept. 19, when the ultimate winner will be crowned. During the 23 hours between episodes, the competition will continue at the hourglass and through a mobile phone app promoted by NBC.

Paul Telegdy, NBC’s president of alternative and late night programming, said in a statement that having Mr. Seacrest as host would help make the “Quiz” feel like the big-league television event that NBC wants it to be.

“When people see Ryan Seacrest, whether at the Emmys, the Oscars or New Year’s Eve, he is at the epicenter of national events,” Mr. Telegdy said. “He is a broadcaster, in all the traditional sense, but also in the most contemporary â€" he is an accomplished host of live TV and a master of social media and pop culture. This makes him perfect for ‘The Million Second Quiz.' ”

Still, the arrangement is unusual, since networks typically do not like to share talent; the fact that it came together is a testament to Mr. Seacrest’s broad appeal. He will be an executive producer of the “Quiz” as well as its host. On Twitter on Monday he called it an “insane concept”: “The game will take one million seconds to finish…12 days, unknown bathroom breaks.”

The “Quiz” is initially a one-time scheduling stunt, but as with most things in television, if it proves to be popular, it could come back for another season. It is unclear whether Mr. Seacrest has committed to hosting future iterations, however. His main television job each winter and spring is at Fox, where he hosts “Idol” beginning in January. His “Idol” contract ends when the next season of the singing competition ends in May.

Separately, Mr. Seacrest has a wide-ranging but nonexclusive contract with NBC’s parent company, NBCUniversal, that has him contribute to Olympics coverage, file reports for the “Today” show and produce reality shows for E! and other NBC-owned channels. That contract also ends next spring.