Entertainment
Netflix to create new transatlantic version of The Circle after Channel 4 axed UK series
US comedian Michelle Buteau currently hosts The Circle USA on Netflix, with the show reportedly transforming to incorporate both US and UK contestants (Picture: Netflix)
Netflix is reportedly creating a new version The Circle after it was dropped from Channel 4 this year.
The streaming service will produce and stream The Circle USA, which will feature contestants from both the US and the UK, according to reports.
The success of recent programmes such as Too Hot To Handle, which features contestants from both countries, has inspired producers to acquire a transatlantic cast.
An insider told The Sun: ‘Using an international cast of contestants is an approach that’s already proved successful with similar shows, such as the steamy dating favourite Too Hot to Handle.’
The Circle, which ran on Channel 4 from 2018 to this year, saw contestants live in separate apartments in the same building without meeting face-to-face.
They interacted through a computer messaging system similar to social media as they attempted to win £100,000 by either playing as themselves or posing as someone else, aka catfishing.
Emma Willis hosted the UK version of the show but it is not thought she will appear on the Netflix series (Picture: Channel 4)
The contenders were eliminated throughout the series, most often when players rated highly by fellow contestants became influencers, giving them the opportunity to vote someone out.
The players rated each other one last time in the final with the highest scorer taking home the cash.
The show was a success for Channel 4, with the third series pulling in an average of 1.3million viewers each week, which was up from the second season’s 1.2million.
The third series of Netflix’s US version will air later this year, with a further two series already having been commissioned. Auditions for British stars are said to have already started.
The US version of The Circle is filmed in the same block of flats as the UK version in Salford (Picture: Netflix)
The show will continue with its title of The Circle USA as Netflix has not acquired the rights to the British version from Channel 4.
US comedian Michelle Buteau will continue as host of The Circle USA, so The Circle presenter Emma Willis is not expected to return.
Speaking previously about cancelling the show, Channel 4 bosses said: ‘The Circle has been a huge hit for young audiences and has grown successively over three seasons on Channel 4, consistently outperforming slot averages.
‘We’re incredibly proud to have worked with Studio Lambert North and Motion Content Group to invest in such an innovative show and to have given it a springboard for its international format success.
‘In much the same way as when we originally commissioned The Circle, Channel 4 has a responsibility to continually look at how we reinvent and create space for new ideas, and so we have decided not to commission the show for a fourth season.
More: Netflix
‘We’d like to thank Studio Lambert, Motion and all those involved for The Circle’s huge success over the last three series.’
Metro.co.uk has contacted Netflix for comment.
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