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University of Guelph student and her modern Italian family to appear on Canada's Family Feud

U of G physics student Melanie Hudakoc and her diverse family will see their episode of the Canadian version of the popular show air on Jan. 1, 2020 on CBC
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The Peccia family on the Canadian Family Feud! Supplied photo

The Canadian version of the iconic television game show Family Feud is officially launching next week and a University of Guelph student and her family will be one of the families competing on it.

The journey towards filming their episode, which airs Jan. 1, 2020 was quite a ride. 

When U of G student Melanie Hudakoc saw an Instagram ad for the game show looking for contestants for its Canadian version this summer, she immediately contacted her cousins to get on the show. 

Coming from an outgoing and energetic family, Hudakoc says this is her 'family’s thing.'

“Me and my cousins have been talking for years about how we wanted to go on the American one and we’re like its so upsetting that they don’t let Canadians go on it,” says Hudakoc, who hails from Woodbridge. 

So her cousins from her mom’s side got together on Thanksgiving weekend to film a five-minute audition clip that challenged the contestants to stand out. They also used Hudakoc’s Italian mother’s maiden name Peccia because of its Italian origin.

“The spin that we wanted to portray was that we are the modern Italian family,” says Hudakoc about the family members auditioning, which included herself as a woman in STEM studying physics, her cousin Philip and his boyfriend Dario who are members of the LGTBQ+ community and her cousin Andrew and his wife Simran, who are an interracial couple. 

“Family Feud ended up getting over 1,600 audition clips and they auditioned, I believe, 600, and they were only going to choose a handful for this season."

After a phone interview, the Peccia family was called for an  in-person Toronto audition where the family sang and danced to the famous tune of Mambo Italiano.

“We showed up in aprons and in spoons that were the colours of the Italian flag and then we brought a jar of tomato sauce,” says Hudakoc who then also gifted the sauce to the hosts of the audition,” says Hudakoc.

“There were families that had NBA players on their team, a family that worked with Stevie Wonder. People were very impressive and we showed up and were the modern Italian family.”

She says after a mock version of the game show, the family was officially selected and filmed the show on Nov. 17. 

“I felt like a celebrity it was insane,” says Hudakoc who enjoyed every part of the production.

Hudakoc says the show had a uniquely Canadian twist to it because the producers wanted to show how diverse Canada is. 

They liked how people were different. The fact that my cousin and his boyfriend were there, that’s something that you don’t really see on the American show very much so I think they really wanted to showcase what it means to be Canadian. 

"It was nice how they were so open to our ideas and making it different and wanting to show our personalities through, even what we chose to wear.

Hudakoc says not only was it fun playing the game and engaging with the host, but the other family also had incredible energy that complimented her own. 

She says her education in physics prepared her for the game by being able to think fast and problem solve. It also gave her a platform to advocate for women in physics.

“I think people have a misconception of what female physicists are like and they have only The Big Bang Theory to go off of," says Hudakoc adding that being on the show allowed her to break stereotypes.


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Anam Khan

About the Author: Anam Khan

Anam Khan is a journalist who covers numerous beats in Guelph and Wellington County that include politics, crime, features, environment and social justice
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