“Temptation Island” is back with a new trailer to prove that time has not dulled the drama of this exercise in heteronormativity.
USA’s reboot of the once-controversial reality dating series will drop four new couples into a resort full of attractive singles, where they will go on dates with other people before deciding “whether to commit to a lifetime together – or ultimately give in to the temptation.”
“Temptation Island” will, shockingly, probably not go well for at least a few of these couples, judging by the amount of crying and hot tub canoodling going on in the trailer. At one point in the clip, one of the distraught temptees wonders aloud, “How is this happening?” as though this isn’t exactly what she signed up for.
But hey, if anybody can make it work, it’s probably Javen and Shari, whose bio includes the words “Shari still can’t get over the fact that Javen cheated on her in college,” or Kaci and her boyfriend Evan, who can’t figure out why he can’t bring himself to propose even though they’ve been together for a full decade. Karl and Nicole fell for each other while she was seeing someone else, but here’s hoping this time will be different.
Or maybe John and Kady will be the ones to resist temptation. After all, they do claim to “balance each other out and push one another to be the best versions of themselves” in their bio. Although, that sentence is immediately followed by the caveat, “Kady constantly questions John’s masculinity and has always wanted an ‘Alpha guy.'” Yikes.
Read the complete bios of the four happy couples below.
USA
Javen Butler (25) and Shari Ligons (25)
Current city: San Francisco, Ca
How they met: High school sweethearts who met at 16-years-old
How long they’ve been dating: 8 years
A fiery, passionate couple who truly see one another as best friends, Javen and Shari are embarking on this journey to prove they are really meant to be together. High school sweethearts, they believe they are soul mates but Shari still can’t get over the fact that Javen cheated on her in college. They are headed to Temptation Island in order to ensure she can trust Javen again, Shari knows this experience will test their loyalty and love more than ever before. All the while, Javen would like for Shari to experience dating other men since she’s never dated anyone else besides him. Will Javen stray and cheat again or will he prove to Shari that he is a changed man?
USA
Evan Smith (28) and Kaci Campbell (29)
Current city: Los Angeles, Ca
How they met: Went to rival high schools and connected right before college
How long they’ve been dating: On and off for 10 years; exclusive for the past 5 years
Throughout the past ten years, Evan and Kaci have grown alongside each other through every success and hardship. They believe in one another, but something has been holding them back. Kaci is ready for marriage and motherhood, and while Evan says he is too, he just can’t bring himself to get down on one knee. Kaci is tired of waiting and knows this experience will open their minds and hearts to ensure they are soul mates and help them commit to the next stage of their life. Will Evan get cold feet or will he finally agree to propose to the woman of his dreams?
USA
Karl Collins (31) Nicole Tutewohl (25)
Current city: Chicago, Il
How they met: The gym
How long they’ve been dating: 2 ½ years
A fun, outgoing and down-to-earth couple, Karl and Nicole are always up for an adventure. They are both passionate about fitness and met at the gym while Nicole was still in another relationship. After her previous relationship fizzled, Nicole and Karl began dating and over two years later, they are trying to determine what is next for them. Both are starting to feel stagnant — but is it just that their honeymoon phase is over or are they getting bored of each other? On top of that, Nicole feels that Karl is her first true love, yet questions what “real love” even means. Will Nicole realize that she already has real love with Karl or will she let herself be stolen away by another man like once before?
USA
John Thurmond (35) and Kady Cannon Krambeer (30)
Current city: Fort Worth, Tx
How they met: The dating app Bumble
How long they’ve been dating: 3 years
Kady is a country girl who has always been the long-term girlfriend, but never the bride. After meeting John, she finally felt she met her partner in life. John and Kady balance each other out and push one another to be the best versions of themselves. However, Kady constantly questions John’s masculinity and has always wanted an “Alpha guy.” The two of them both thought they were ready to take the leap towards marriage, but something held them back. As they got closer to that monumental step, they began to re-evaluate and together they want to use this journey to figure out who they are separately. Will the couple’s self-control be stronger than you think?
25 Bonkers Reality Competition Shows You Forgot Existed (Photos)
For every successful and groundbreaking reality television show ("The Bachelor," "Survivor"), there have been dozens of short-lived and long-forgotten imitators, some of which were truly bizarre. And not always in a good way.
"Joe Millionaire" (Fox, 2003) Attempting to expand on the format perfected by "The Bachelor," Fox debuted "Joe Millionaire" just one year later, pitting contestants against each other for the affections of an average Joe whom they believed to be rich. Over a decade later, star Evan Marriott is still apologizing for deceiving those women.
Fox
"Boy Meets Boy" (Bravo, 2003) Long before Logo's "Finding Prince Charming," Bravo had it's own gay "Bachelor." Except "Boy Meets Boy" had a cruel twist -- unbeknownst to the show's love-seeking star, half the suitors were straight men posing as gay to win money.
Bravo
"Mr. Personality" (Fox, 2003) With Monica Lewinsky serving as host, Fox's dating show "Mr. Personality" was weird. With a premise that had one woman surrounded by 20 smiling men in metallic face masks, it was downright creepy.
Fox
"Average Joe" (NBC, 2003-05) NBC's take on the dating-competition show had a bunch of shlubs compete for the heart of a beautiful woman. The twist was that at the end of the season, she was then given the option to choose between her average-looking suitor and a more conventionally attractive man. In every season, the woman ended up choosing the handsome one.
NBC
"Forever Eden" (Fox, 2004) "Forever Eden" shared many similarities to its predecessor "Paradise Hotel," with the exception that the show's premise allowed for contestants to stay in "Eden" for years at a time.
Fox
"The Swan" (Fox, 2004-05) Each week, Fox's "The Swan" took two women and gave them complete surgical makeovers, claiming to be an attempt to better their lives. Though the show was slammed by critics from the jump, it was the end of the season, when the women were forced to then compete in a beauty pageant, that caused the most outrage.
Fox
"American Candidate" (Showtime, 2004) After the 2004 election, documentary filmmaker R. J. Cutler parodied the entire political process with the Showtime competition show "American Candidate." The idea of a reality TV show producing a viable political candidate served as satire in 2004, but seems remarkably prescient in 2017.
Showtime
"Who's Your Daddy?" (Fox, 2005) One of the most exploitative shows in television history, "Who's Your Daddy?" made a game out of a woman's attempt to find her real father. The men were to be rewarded with a cash if they could dupe her into thinking she were their daughter, but the show was shelved after just one highly controversial episode.
Fox
"Shear Genius" (Bravo, 2007-10) Perhaps the strangest of Bravo's professional competitions was "Shear Genius," which had stylists compete against each other to see who could give models the best haircuts.
Bravo
"Top Design" (Bravo, 2007-08) The only "Project Runway"/"Top Chef" offshoot that kind of made sense, "Top Design" took the familiar format and applied it to interior design. Unfortunately, the show only ran for two seasons at Bravo.
Bravo
"Stylista" (The CW, 2008) "The Devil Wears Prada" is an excellent movie, but no one thought the way Miranda Priestly treated her assistants is something that should be emulated. No one except someone in The CW's unscripted department, that is. The network turned the entire concept into a game show, with a bunch of 20-somethings debasing themselves for an entry-level job at Elle magazine.
The CW
"Farmer Wants a Wife" (The CW, 2008) The CW brought little to the dating competition show with "Farmer Wants a Wife," which was basically just "The Bachelor" set on a farm. Only this time, the women were forced to provide manual labor to prove they were worthy of their country boy prize.
The CW
"Scream Queens" (VH1, 2008-10) With challenges involving screaming, stunt killings, begging for their lives and pretending to be possessed by the devil, VH1's "Scream Queens" sought to single out Hollywood's next big horror movie star. Season 1 champ Tanedra Howard won a role in "Saw VI" for her efforts.
VH1
"I Survived a Japanese Game Show" (ABC, 2008-10) Japanese game shows are notoriously crazy, but instead of attempting to replicate that spirit, ABC outsourced the entire enterprise, sending contestants to Japan to compete on a show called "Majide" to see if they could survive the ordeal.
ABC
"13: Fear Is Real" (The CW, 2009) Much like the now-rebooted "Fear Factor," The CW's "13: Fear Is Real" basically tortured its contestants by leveraging their darkest fears. Players were buried alive, covered in rats, put through a trash compactor and left alone in the woods at night, with the lucky winner taking home a measly $66,666.
The CW
"The Phone" (MTV, 2009) MTV's "The Phone" was a neat concept, throwing unsuspecting contestants into action movie plots, complete with conspiracies, exploding cars and shady phone calls. But the show was a huge disappointment in the ratings, lasting just six episodes.
MTV
"Skating With the Stars" (ABC, 2010) Like many entries on this list, "Skating With the Stars" was an attempt to capitalize on another, more successful show. In this case, it was ABC's "Dancing With the Stars." Even with the exact same format, the addition of ice skating proved too much for audiences to handle.
ABC
"Bridalplasty" (E!, 2010) Years after "The Swan" was panned for its shallow interpretation of beauty, E! presented it's own take on the plastic surgery makeover show. "Bridalplasty" took the competition format of "Big Brother" and mashed it up with the head-to-toe plastic surgery of "Extreme Makeover," resulting in one of the most widely panned shows of the decade.
E!
"Work of Art" (Bravo, 2010-11) The idea that visual art is a suitable medium for the reality competition format is laughable, and "Work of Art" is still best remembered for the rumor that a fan-favorite contestant developed his entire persona for the show as some kind of elaborate performance art piece.
Bravo
"Platinum Hit" (Bravo, 2011) After "Project Runway" took off, Bravo tried to expand the franchise to include other art forms, with markedly less success. Jewel and "American Idol" alum Kara DioGuardi hosted the network's competition for songwriters (which failed to produce one good tune across 10 episodes.)
Bravo
"The Glass House" (ABC, 2012) ABC put 14 contestants into a house, and let America vote to decide who would be evicted and who would win $250,000. But with low ratings and a lawsuit from CBS claiming the show was a ripoff of "Big Brother," "The Glass House" lasted just one season.
ABC
"Splash" (ABC, 2013) Based on a Dutch format, "Splash" had 10 celebrities compete in a professional diving competition, coached by Greg Louganis. With low ratings, and a more than a few unfortunate injuries, the show was canceled after just one season. It also didn't help that the show aired just months after the Fox special "Stars in Danger: The High Dive," which featured a similar premise.
ABC
"Whodunnit?" (ABC, 2013) Formatted like a murder mystery dinner party, ABC's "Whodunnit?" had 13 contestants solve puzzles and piece together clues to figure out who among them was "The Killer." Additional players were "killed" each week, whittling down their numbers until the mystery was finally solved in the finale.
ABC
"Capture" (The CW, 2013) Following the craze of "The Hunger Games," The CW threw teams of two into the woods for an elaborate game of tag. But when the contestants were deprived of sleep, shelter and food, the show devolved into bizarre survival competition.
The CW
"I Wanna Marry 'Harry'" (Fox, 2014) More than a few dating competition shows involve some kind of deceit, but few were as ridiculous as the one at the center of Fox's "I Wanna Marry 'Harry.'" Starring a male lead with only a slight resemblance to the British prince, the show pushed the limits of credulity.
Fox
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Not every show can be “Survivor”
For every successful and groundbreaking reality television show ("The Bachelor," "Survivor"), there have been dozens of short-lived and long-forgotten imitators, some of which were truly bizarre. And not always in a good way.