MTV Cancels Ridiculousness — What's Next?

Welcome to The Reality Flash, your one-stop podcast for all the breaking news in the world of reality TV! Hosted by Mike Bloom, this podcast brings you the freshest headlines from your favorite shows and reality stars. From shocking cast announcements to behind-the-scenes gossip to the latest social media drama, Mike gives you everything you need to stay in the loop. If it’s happening in reality TV, we'll bring the news to you in a flash!

This episode tackles a shocking October announcement: MTV has officially canceled Ridiculousness. Described as one of the cornerstones of the network's current programming, the cancellation of this series has been called, in a word, ridiculousness.

The show, hosted by Rob Dyrdek, premiered in 2011 and is essentially a communal version of America's Funniest Home Videos. Dyrdek and a panel comment on funny internet videos, often featuring amateur stunts. The impact of this cancellation is significant: over 14 years, Ridiculousness produced more than 1,700 episodes across 46 seasons. This volume of content—850 hours of television—means Ridiculousness put out more content than Survivor, despite Survivor having been on the air a decade longer. Up until its cancellation, it was a major constant that MTV relied upon to fill a "profuse amount" of its daily programming.

The news suggests MTV is undergoing a massive shift, as the company stated it is working to "reimagine MTV for the future with a more curated slate featuring fresh formats, different creative voices, and refresh programming".

Mike Bloom explores whether this is a sign of a "full-on makeover" at the network, specifically looking at how this might affect other long-running programming, like The Challenge. Rumors suggest executives are considering moving The Challenge permanently to Paramount Plus. Is the end of the "Ness franchise" (which includes four spin-offs: Amazingness, Deliciousness, Adorableness, and Messiness) a canary in the coal mine for other tenured shows?

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