Endemol, the world’s largest independent production company, today announced that reality juggernaut Big Brother is making a comeback in two more markets.
In Germany the show is returning for the first time since 2011 having been commissioned by Sat 1 for a new celebrity series, which will launch later this year. Endemol Germany previously produced 11 series of Big Brother for RTL2 starting in 2000.
In Portugal the show is returning to TVI for the first time in ten years for a celebrity version that is due to launch soon. Endemol Portugal previously produced six series for the channel, which first broadcast the show in 2000.
14 years after its launch in the Netherlands Big Brother continues to be a hit in the USA, UK, Australia, France, Italy, Spain, Canada and Israel as well as in Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Africa and Asia. Over 20 series were broadcast in over 60 countries in 2012.
Today’s announcement is the latest in a series of comebacks for the format, which has successfully returned in territories such as the UK, where the show is now an established hit on Channel 5 and Australia where having previously aired on Ten Network until 2008 the show’s return on Nine Network in August 2012 was a breakout hit.
In February it was also announced that Endemol India will launch two regional language productions of the format in addition to the long running national Hindi version.
Iris Boelhouwer, Endemol’s Managing Director of Creative Operations comments: “Most big formats tend to have a lifespan of around five years or so but Big Brother has broken this rule more than twice over. The format is still a trailblazer, which continues to roll out in new territories and deliver hit ratings in the major markets. It’s here to stay.”
Big Brother’s most recent outing was in Brazil where the thirteenth and first ever 3D series wrapped up on Globo TV on March 26th with a 58% share; outperforming 2012’s finale by nearly 30%. Overall, the series averaged a 51% share and 24 million viewers; a 13% increase on last season’s average.
