For the past few weeks, Americans have been getting to grips with one of the UK’s most outrageous TV formats.
Seven years after the outrageous dating show Naked Attraction debuted on Channel 4, the show was quietly added to the US streaming service Max last month, and has proved to be every bit as divisive and polarising across the pond as it is on its home turf.
In the past two weeks, the show has been picked apart on social media, debated on panel shows like The View and, naturally, slammed by more conservative critics who are already calling for it to be removed from the platform.
Responding to his show’s mixed reaction, executive producer Darrell Olsen told The Hollywood Reporter that “what’s happening in the States right now” mirrors the show’s reaction in the UK seven or so years ago.
“You have [people saying] ‘I can’t believe this is onscreen’ – shock and outrage – mixed with, ‘This is quite amazing’,” Olsen told the outlet.
“The show isn’t for everyone, but everyone is interested in it. I think what will happen with you guys is, hopefully, what happened over here, where the ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe this is on TV’ turns into, ‘It’s a pretty good show’. Also, the stories get better and we push more boundaries [in the latter seasons].”
Olsen also admitted he and his colleagues previously thought the UK show would never air in the US “due to the general restrictions in the States and the public feeling about nudity on TV”.
“There [has] been talks about it and [the reaction has] always been, ’We’re not sure US audiences are ready to see this,” he admitted. “That’s been the sticking point.
“This time, Max said, ‘We’re a cutting-edge streamer, we’re just going to go with it’. A lot of people in the US were already big fans, including celebrities like Chrissy Teigen and RuPaul. That it’s already a hit on Max has taken us by surprise.”
Also among the show’s biggest fans are The Crown stars Olivia Colman and Emma Corrin, who previously confessed to watching the show during their downtime from filming the fourth season of the award-winning Netflix drama.
Meanwhile, Anna Richardson’s unique dating show isn’t the only UK export causing a stir overseason.
The latest season of the Great British Bake Off is currently streaming on Netflix, with many US viewers being introduced to Alison Hammond for the first time, with predictable results.