Dozens of A-list celebrities to play in $1m charity PokerStars event
Stars including Bryan Cranston, David Schwimmer and Edward Norton already confirmed for live-streamed online poker game
A host of famous faces are to compete in a PokerStars online poker tournament on 9 May to raise funds for the relief efforts during the global pandemic.
‘Stars CALL for Action – powered by PokerStars’ has already signed up the likes of Edward Norton, Michael Cera, Don Cheadle, David Schwimmer, Amy Schumer, Bryan Cranston, Jon Hamm, Jason Alexander and Jeff Garlin.
PokerStars is donating $10,000 on behalf of every celebrity who plays, meaning the prize pool is expected to total $1m.
The event, which was the brainchild of actor Hank Azaria and journalist, author and screenwriter Andy Bellin, will be broadcast live on Twitch, Facebook and YouTube, while viewers will be able to contribute to the cause via a ‘Donate’ button.
The top-placed celebrities will donate their portion of the $1m prize pool to a charity of their choice, while half of the total donated, along with the proceeds collected from the audience, will go directly to CARE International.
Meanwhile, for every famous person who participates, PokerStars will be inviting one randomly selected poker fan to join in and play.
The two groups will battle it out separately down to two tables before combining for the finale, with videoconferencing service Zoom turned on and broadcasting live to the finish.
Those celebrities knocked out early on in the proceedings will be able to play in a side event where the winner will pledge 10% of the winnings to charity.
Rebecca McAdam Willetts, associate director of public relations at PokerStars, said: “This event began as a simple conversation between our team, Hank, Andy and the Entertainment Industry Foundation as a way to create positive entertainment and raise support for critical causes during these challenging times.
“We were thrilled that they came to us and have been blown away by the momentum it’s gained.”
The Simpsons actor Azaria added: “This event is a great way to combine genuine giving where it’s needed with a way to stay home and yet still connect with people from around the world. A friendly game of poker reminds us how life used to be, which hopefully we get back to soon.
“When PokerStars stepped up like that, I was actually kind of moved by it. We were hoping they’d put in some money, but to basically finance the whole thing to the tune of a million dollars is pretty incredible.”