What is old becomes new again.
One of the headliners of Banijay Entertainment’s format scheduled for London TV screenings this week is the rebooted revival show “Fear Factor: House of Fear,” Lucas Green, chief content officer of operations at Banijay Entertainment, tells Variety.
Green said the film “really captures what audiences and clients want,” adding, “What they did with ‘Fear Factor’ was take a very simple twist and turn it into an arc of reality.”
“By making this an arc-shaped show with a reality cast together, we not only have one-off, very scary challenges, but we also have a larger reality storyline, tying it all together. And I don’t think it’s a coincidence that it’s done amazingly well on streaming.”
The show, hosted by Johnny Knoxville, is Hulu’s No. 1 streamed show, and between Fox and Hulu, 1.5 billion minutes of the new season have already been streamed, starting with the fifth episode.
“This idea of coming back and turning it into an arc-shaped reality show where we want to see what happens to the ‘Fear Factor’ contestants is completely justified. They live in a scary cabin in the woods and they’re not only trying to overcome their fears, but they’re also trying to overcome each other to come out as the ultimate winner.”
Banijay is already in talks to revive the show and produce local versions in Europe.
“It’s not just a revival of an old title, it’s a really great response to the type of programming and the way people watch it.
“We turned what was previously a never-ending show into an arc reality.”
Other popular returning shows include “The Summit” and “Shaolin Heroes.” Both have been launched in the last couple of years and are currently gaining traction. “The Summit” has local versions in 7 regions, and “The Legend of Shaolin Heroes” has local versions in 6 regions. He attributes these successes in part to the fact that producers “were able to learn from the lessons of other regions.”
“I think that by combining all of our editorial expertise, we can not only be the format police dictating how the programming has to be made, but really provide an opportunity to leverage these big new IPs and collaborate creatively and adapt them to local needs, budgets and culture.”
One thing these shows have in common, he says, is that they’re so gluttonous because they’re stripped of realism. “These are all the types of shows that you watch two or three episodes in a row. They work really well on streaming.”
One relatively new aspect is the introduction of content creators. For example, they are included in the cast of Banijay’s ‘The Fifty’.
“[These shows]are very well-suited for content creators who can bring in their existing followers and viewers. They’re kind of a new breed of VIP. And while I think the term ‘influencer’ used to have a bad rap, the reality is that a lot of these content creators really know their audience and have very passionate and dedicated followings.”
