Being a "catfish" is now part of our regular vocabulary thanks to the documentary and MTV series. While fans think Catfish: The TV Show could be fake, it's still an entertaining series and viewers wonder if couples will actually end up together in each episode.
When The Circle began streaming on Netflix, people were immediately fascinated, as the premise involves strangers living in separate apartments and talking via an app. It also turns out that some catfishing can happen on this show, as contestants can choose to be themselves or to be someone else (aka catfish the others).
Sometimes the Catfish hosts are surprised and it's definitely true that watching The Circle is a super entertaining experience. What is the origin story of The Circle? Let's take a look.
How The Show Came About
Fans wonder how much cast members make on The Circle and it's also interesting to learn more about the show's origin story.
The American version of The Circle is based on the British show of the same name.
In an interview with Parade, Tim Harcourt, the show's creator, began discussing bringing the show into places other than just the U.K. with Netflix. He explained, "I was excited. The show is popular with young audiences in the U.K., and Netflix has captured that audience in a breath-taking way. It’s a great home for the show.
Harcourt also said that as for the inspiration of the show, "Most great ideas are the combination of two lesser ideas. The thing that led me to combine the two was realizing that a social media platform could allow us to watch people living lives close by but never in physical contact."
According to Variety, Studio Lambert and Motion Content Group started The Circle in the U.K. and then Netflix began producing American, French, and Brazilian versions.
The U.K. version is a bit different as it happens "in real time:" Harcourt explained that this meant that viewers could be part of the show and "interact." When Netflix made the American show available, a few episodes were released at a time.
Harcourt told Variety, “It was a high concept, and we didn’t want to confuse people. But there are lots of twists and turns we can now do going forward.”
The Apartments And App
When tuning into The Circle, viewers see each player in an apartment and they interact via an app. The show made sure that players were in apartments that they liked.
In an interview with Vulture, Harcourt explained that the show has 12 apartments and when someone was off the show, the crew would change the place's design. For instance, the Brazilian version had apartments that were "very light" and had plants, and for the U.S. version, there were "creature comforts" and familiar food. The apartments are really cool and they do seem like perfect spots to play the game.
The apartments seem like they could be in any city and that seems to be the point. It turns out that the show shoots in England.
Fans are also likely curious about the app itself. Harcourt compared it to WhatsApp and explained that when players are speaking to the app, a producer transcribes it.
Behind The Scenes
Since The Circle is so much fun to binge watch and definitely has an addictive quality that reality TV fans always search for, it's fun to learn a bit more about how the show works behind the scenes.
Tim Harcourt told Us Weekly that cameras would film the contestants until 12 a.m. While viewers saw the best conversations that the players had, they didn't see everything, which makes sense. Harcourt explained, "In saying that, there were times we dropped some good chats as we are essentially trying to condense a day into 45 odd minutes."
Lisa Delcampo, Lance Bass's assistant who became a player on the show and catfished everyone pretending to be the NSYNC singer, told Buzzfeed News what it was like filming the show. She explained, “You have a daytime producer and a nighttime producer. I didn’t know what they looked like for the longest time; you just hear them. If you want to go up and get fresh air, or if you need something, or whatever. Sometimes it was just nice to chat with them, because you're so bored.”
The Circle has become such a popular and talked about show that it's no wonder there are now a few versions. The season 2 winner has recently been revealed and fans are definitely looking forward to season 3 (and hopefully more than that).