(NBC)
Paul Zerdin took ventriloquism to a whole new level during the second “America’s Got Talent” semifinal episode on Tuesday, when he made Howie Mandel be his dummy and twerk. Watch below!
As Gossip Cop has reported, the ventriloquist was guest judge Marlon Wayans’ Golden Buzzer pick during the Judge Cuts in July. He then seriously upped his game during the quarterfinals last month when he made a dummy come alive after leaving the stage. And now he pulled off a brand new stunt for the semifinals.
Zerdin had Mandel come on stage to be his dummy this time around, affixing a special mouth to the judge’s face. Using a clicker, the contestant was able to control Mandel’s “mouth,” and using his ventriloquism skills, he gave the comedian a particularly funny voice. Mandel had no choice but to follow his puppet master’s commands, which included twerking and doing an Irish step dance.
The remaining three judges could not stop laughing throughout the unexpected performance, and gave Zerdin a standing ovation. “This was so much fun. My head hurts from laughing so hard. You are super clever and so much fun,” Heidi Klum said afterward. “And I love seeing Howie as a puppet. And I’m sure he appreciated you didn’t put your finger up his you-know-who.”
Mel B admitted, “I don’t think I’ve laughed so much and so hard. You’re brilliant. You’re absolutely brilliant, Paul.” She then hilariously turned to Mandel and said, “And you know what? You look like an idiot!”
“You are hands-down fantastic. You will probably win this entire show. I really mean it,” declared Howard Stern with the highest praise of the night. “Every time we have seen you, you come out and surprise us… You are a master ventriloquist. I love you.”
And how did Mandel feel about it all? “You humiliated me. But I hear I was fantastic,” he quipped. Check out the full video below, and tell us if you think the performance was as funny as the judges thought!
