Netflix is ordering a healthy dose of “reality”

Netflix, where fantasy shows like The Witcher, The Umbrella Academy, and Locke & Key live, is leaning into reality TV.

The streamer yesterday renewed romantic-focused reality shows The Ultimatum and The Ultimatum: Queer Love. It also announced three brand-new reality TV shows:

• Selling the City, another installment of the Selling franchise that follows a group of real estate agents at Douglas Elliman in New York.
• Building the Band, a show following 50 singers who form their own bands without ever laying eyes on each other, described as Love is Blind meets The Voice.
• Battle Camp (a working title), which features stars from across the Netflix Reality Universe pitted against each other in “the ultimate physical and mental competition.”

Netflix is in the midst of a reality-TV push. New seasons of The Mole, Too Hot to Handle, and Perfect Match will be dropping over the next two months. The streamer will also debut a UK version of Love is Blind in August.

These programs join Netflix’s existing base of reality shows, which includes titles like Is It Cake, Love on the Spectrum, and Rhythm & Flow.

👀 Zoom out: Reality TV attracts major eyeballs. ~79% of US adults that watch TV watch reality shows, according to data from market research firm Gitnux.