Twenty years after it debuted and a decade after it last aired, The Joe Schmo Show is returning to dupe someone into believing he’s competing on a reality show.
TBS is behind the new iteration, which will follow a guy named Ben who believes he’s on a competition show called The Goat. Cat Deeley of So You Think You Can Dance hosts The Joe Schmo Show, as well as the fake show inside it. As with past versions of the show, the rest of the cast will be made up of actors and improv performers whose job is to push the show’s absurdity levels while also keeping Ben believing in the illusion (see a trailer below).
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TBS’ announcement comes on the heels of Amazon Freevee airing Jury Duty, a similarly premised show that had actors (and one mark) staging a pretend court case.
“When The Joe Schmo Show launched 20 years ago, it was ahead of its time,” said Jason Sarlanis, president Turner Networks, ID and HLN, linear and streaming. “In rebooting this classic for a modern, savvy audience, it gives us the opportunity to comment on the often absurd and hilarious tropes of reality television in ways our viewers will love.”
The first Joe Schmo Show debuted in 2003 on Paramount Network forerunner Spike TV. It became a word-of-mouth hit, and its finale set what was then a ratings record for the cable channel. The second season in 2004 spoofed dating shows — and featured one of the two non-actors, Ingrid Wiese, figuring out the ruse and later joining in on it.
Joe Schmo then disappeared for nine years before returning in 2013, with the premise of finding a bounty hunter. Lorenzo Lamas, who starred in the 1990s bounty hunter series Renegade, played himself. Ralph Garman hosted all three seasons of the show, playing characters in the second and third editions.
Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese (Deadpool) created the series. The show had an eye for talent, casting Kristen Wiig, Natasha Leggero, David Hornsby (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) and Jon Huertas early in their careers.
Wernick and Reese are also involved in the TBS series, which is produced by MTV Entertainment Studios and Fly on the Wall.
