“Here, La Voix” will sound again on TF1 from 11:30 p.m. this Tuesday. The first channel is relaunching “Secret Story”, one of its cult programs. After seven years of absence, this return is awaited by a large nostalgic audience who get excited about each teaser posted on social networks.
As soon as the trailer was revealed, die-hard fans began to dissect each image, looking for clues about the content of this new season. However, this comeback “wasn’t obvious”, to use the words of Rémi Faure, head of TF1’s streaming programs. In particular, we had to convince Ara Aprikian, the deputy general director of content at TF1, who was, according to our information, not the most enthusiastic about the idea of seeing the concept return to the front page.
“We wanted to be sure of being able to do a season for TF1”
Moreover, when he made this new season official, presented by Christophe Beaugrand, in January, in the columns of La Tribune Sunday, the boss clarified that nothing had yet been decided as to the channel which would host it. “Secret Story” could very well have landed on TMC or TFX…
“We wanted to do a season for TF1. We took the time to confirm because we wanted to be sure of getting there,” reveals Rémi Faure today. “We had to make sure we found the right balance between what a show should be with the values of TF1 in 2024 and the fundamentals,” he explains.
In previous seasons, “Secret Story” saw its share of clashes and emotionally exhausted candidates. However, the watchwords of this new version, like the – successfully – revised version of “Star Academy”, are “benevolence” and “feel good”.
Among the more than 20,000 applications received, we had to get our hands on “fun” and “player” profiles. ” Two months ago [en février], we had a meeting about the casting. We found five or six candidates who seemed to correspond to what we wanted, continues Rémi Faure. We said, OK, we got it. [le bon dosage pour TF1]. »
“Two years of work”
“We want to be in something more authentic,” warns Jean-Louis Blot, the president of Endemol France, who says that this return “is two years of work.” “We tested things. We brought the brand to life on social networks, we used the archives a little over a year ago and it was a digital success with millions of views on our tweets, he recalls. , before explaining why this return is so anticipated. We are going through a complicated, tense period, and the nostalgia is quite strong. “Secret Story”, for those aged between 20 and 30, is the holidays, the show we watched in the summer when coming home from the beach. »
If the new season promises to be relatively short compared to the previous ones, the fact that it is launched this Tuesday, just after “Koh-Lanta” is no coincidence. TF1 wanted to “reproduce the cult combo”, says Rémi Faure. A way to stimulate viewers’ memories.
But the public of the time should also notice that time has passed and that other shows have passed by. Starting with concepts such as “Les Traitors” on M6, “The Circle” on Netflix or “The Power, who has the power? » on W9, with mechanics based on double-dealing, pretenses and benign manipulation.
“The program is part of international trends,” says Julien Degroote, director of development and creation at TF1. We must embrace this current craze for strategy games. And the ultimate concept in this matter is “Secret Story”. We wanted to strengthen it: surveys, challenges, challenges. There won’t be a day without a surprise or an amazing game. »
Despite everything, the return remains cautious. If the launch takes place in the second part of the evening on the front page, the on-set debriefs, which will follow each elimination announced in the 5:15 p.m. daily on Friday, will be visible at 8 p.m., but on TF1 +. The group uses its platform to complement each other, allowing the most addicted to find bonus sequences and follow four hours of live daily. But it is also a way of limiting the risks in the event that the audiences are not there, pushing La Voix to remain silent for a moment…