Jean Louis Blot, president of Endemol France which produces the TF1 talent show, announced that the 3 candidates excluded before the start of season 11 will be included in the cast of the next edition in the event of renewal of the program.
“We are with them”. While 13 candidates set foot on the castle of Dammarie-Les-Lys for the first time, joining the eleventh promotion of the “Star Academy” this November 4, 2023, three candidates selected at the end of the casting phases organized by TF1 were not in the party. In question: for “budgetary reasons”, the 2023 edition which began on Saturday only has 13 students despite the numerous announcements which mentioned 16 students on the starting line of the TF1 tele-hook. Nearby “Parisian”, Jean Louis Blotthe president of Endemol France which produces the show”, revealed that these unsuccessful candidates would benefit from an advantage if the program was renewed for a new season.
“We understand them”
“If there is a season 3, they will participate directly in the last phase of castings”, he announced. No guarantee therefore that they will enter the castle but they will be in a good position on the starting line. The producer added that the skimming of the casting desired by TF1 has been “humanly difficult”. “We understand them”, he assured. If other options than the outright eviction of these three candidates before the start of the program were evaluated, Jean-Louis Blot believes that the decision chosen is the least worst. “It wouldn’t have been good if there were three eliminated in the first week.”he notes.
Interviewed the day before the first prime by Thomas Isle in the show Culture Médias on Europe 1, the producer had already given details on the commitment made by Endemol to young singers who were rejected at the last minute. “They had signed their contract, we are contractually committed to them so we are going to pay what we owe them. We are absolutely sorry to have had to take this step, it was not something easy”he regretted.
The duration of the show reduced at the last minute
Monday October 30, 2023, one of these failed candidates testified at the microphone of Sud Radio. “Last Monday, the 23rd, I was suddenly told, 12 days before the launch of the show, that for reasons of budget reduction they had to reduce the number of shows. Going from 13 to 11 weeks and therefore naturally reducing the number of candidates. Going from 16 to 13. 12 days before the first prime, they tell me that I am no longer part of the ‘Star Academy’“, he was moved. He specified that the reasons given for this decision concerned both the defeat of the French XV in the Rugby World Cupthe conflict between Hammas and Israel and a new program that TF1 is preparing for the coming months.