NBC Picks Up ITV’s “Surprise Surprise” with Host Jenny McCarthy, Plus Others
This weekend NBC announced their Fall 2012 television schedule, and a few new unscripted shows came along with it. We already knew about White Elephant, the Howie Mandel hosted game show. A new British import called Surprise, hosted by Jenny McCarthy, has also been announced. Surprise is based on the ITV show Surprise Surprise which has recently been revived with host Holly Willoughby. Surprise sees McCarthy and others bring people together for dramatic reunions and good-natured pranks in what is being billed as “funny, touching, engaging, exciting and always unpredictable.” The show has not been given a debut date yet but some footage has already been taped. We’ll let you know when it makes it to air.
As we previously stated, NBC has also picked up several other unscripted television series. The one most around here will be interested in is White Elephant, where Howie Mandel hosts the classic parlor game where you can either steal a prize previously revealed or keep your own. A new stunt show called Stars Earn Stripes is also coming, where nine celebrities tackle intense challenges and stunts that some of America’s biggest heroes perform daily.
Meanwhile NBC has cancelled several other unscripted shows such as Minute to Win It, Fear Factor, and Who Do You Think You Are. Minute to Win It survived two seasons and Fear Factor just one abbreviated season.
I think the cancellation of Fear Factor was more of a political move than a ratings move.
Ratings were down anyway. Not sure why they decided on the couples format for the revival.
Sounds like the 1986 pilot Jamie Farr hosted for ABC, “Surprise Surprise.”
I am pretty sure I read that It’s Worth What? and Who’s Still Standing? got the boot as well?
I haven’t seen the official press release from NBC. I don’t know if they have officially cancelled It’s Worth What? and Who’s Still Standing? They’ve been left off the official Fall and Mid-Season schedules for the coming season, and I’m sure many press organizations and bloggers assume that means cancellation, but not necessarily. After all, Minute To Win It was never on this past season, and they’re just now announcing the official cancellation.
NBC may be hanging onto these two shows in case a ton of shows bomb and they need emergency replacements. NBC does own the distribution right to Who’s Still Standing? which makes it even cheaper to produce as an emergency replacement.
Does anyone know if these two show were mention on the official NBC statement?
I still can’t believe they cancelled Fear Factor. Except for the sacrificial episode thrown against the Whitney Houston-fueled Grammys, every episode pulled a 2.0 or better in the demo, which is a rarity for this network. That’s dumb, but seeing as how NBC is focusing on comedies now, that alone wouldn’t be enough to set me off. What gets me going is that they renewed Fashion Star, which got a big The Voice Results Show lead-in and did nothing with it. Sure, two comedies will get the boost in the fall, but no one can convince me that FF wouldn’t do better Sundays at 8 leading into Celebrity Apprentice. Unscripted shows are going to have a very short leash from now on if NBC is following the CBS model of getting dramas and comedies to syndication and everything else is filling a slot.
I am happy that NBC canceled Fear Factor. The current version wasn’t as good as the original run that lasted six years. Back then the stunts were cool and exciting while the current version just recycled old stunts to appeal to younger viewers. Overall it was just too little too late for it.
As for Surprise and White Elephant, those are interesting shows, though I have never seen the original version hosted by Cilia Black who was the original host before she hosted the UK’s version of The Dating Game AKA. Blind Date, but with Jenny McCarthy at the helm, it should make for an interesting show.
Joe Rogan actually confirmed the cancellation of Fear Factor several months back. Apparently, the episode that had contestants drinking donkey semen or whatnot, which never even made it to air, ended up killing the series.
What a waste of time and effort on NBC’s part. Producing and promoting the highly-anticipated return of Fear Factor, which only lasted 6 episodes, and then scattering those 6 episodes throughout 3 months, making it even harder for viewers to find out when it was on.
We all assumed Minute to Win It was cancelled when it didn’t return last fall, so no big surprise here. The show needed to be cancelled, the way it was going. I bet Who’s Still Standing and It’s Worth What are also gone for good. We have to get rid of these M2WI producers and stop them from producing any other game show. They don’t know what they’re doing.
And for Who Do You Think You Are?, I’ve always asked, “Who Do You Think Watches That?”
Looking forward to White Elephant, AKA U.K. Deal or No Deal. :)
I thought they already cancelled Who’s Still Standing.
For reasons I won’t go into (google “Death clock”) I won’t support anything Ms. McCarthy does.
I’m losing faith in NBC. How long will it be until Comcast converts it to a cable network?
You know what? outside of localy produced news, sports & other programs, you could see the four broadcast networks becomeing cable outlets. However that would kill the profitability of over the air cyndication. Then again that process may have already started with the end of Oprah
i am hoping this show is a hit