What Are The Latest Global Format Trends?
Guest Expert: VP of International Scouting for Germany’s Seven One Entertainment, Bernhard Sonnleitner
Dating and more dating.
Dating has always been and will always be in the DNA of entertainment platforms - it is certainly not a new trend, but this year the shows have crossed new boundaries and taboos to stand out. Many of the new formats play with the age gap and combine it with elements of female empowerment: flipping the stereotypes so now it is the women's turn to look for much younger partners. TLC’s "MILF Manor” manages to breaks lots of dating taboos in a single show. Kinetic's "Love For The Ages" on Peacock, distributed by Red Arrow Studio International, also plays with the age gap element, and "FBoy Island” puts women in the driver's seat to find out which of the guys is just a player. "Married At First Sight” remains one of the biggest international brands, with a wide range of local approaches, from the more serious experiment in Germany to a more dating reality format in the UK. And be on the lookout for "Stranded On Honeymoon Island", which will soon be launched in Belgium on VTM 2!
Squid Game without the killing.
The Korean show started a wild series of 100 to 1 elimination game shows. Round after round, contestants are eliminated until the last man/woman is left standing. Watch "Physical 100" on Netflix or "Le Cinquante" (The Fifty) on W9 in France. In Germany, we are now in the 3rd season of the Belgian format "99 To Beat", which also follows a simple but ingenious rule: Never finish last in any round. In the quiz show genre, it is the Talpa format "The Floor" (RTL 4), which starts with 100 contestants and one gets eliminated round by round. Last year we saw Talpa's "Million Dollar Island", where 100 contestants fought to stay on an island for as long as possible.
Entering the Metaverse (slowly).
With "Avastars" in the Netherlands, "Alter Ego" on FOX in 2021 or "Dance Monsters" on Netflix, we have seen the first attempts to enter a new field of visual experiments and formats that could one day become the link between classic long-form entertainment shows and the much discussed metaverse. But there is still a long way to go. Again, especially in Asia, we are already seeing hybrids of both worlds like "Memoon Player" on iQIYI.
Outdoor adventure - go wild or go home.
Phil Gurin's Canada's Ultimate Challenge is the latest in a long line of outdoor reality shows that pit contestants against each other in the wilderness. Again, this is not a new genre - it has been around for decades. In Belgium, we saw the launch of "Bestemming X", where a group of people travelled around Europe in a bus and had to find out where they actually were. And then there is the amazing success of "SAS Australia: Hell Week" on Seven in Australia.
Don't play for the money.
In Germany, two of ProSieben's most successful game shows have no prize money - it's about being the host in the next episode of the show ("Stealing The Show") or about the two hosts winning 15 minutes of prime time the next day to do whatever they want with that slot ("Beat The Channel"), both distributed by Red Arrow Studios International. Winning 15 minutes of airtime sounds strange to most international markets - but look at them. Sometimes they fill it with pure nonsense, sometimes they use it for a strong message - those 15 minutes have become the talk of the nation.