Host Phil Keoghan has The Superb Race all the way down to a science — actually. Earlier than casting started for Season 38 (which is at present in manufacturing; Season 37 premieres Wednesday, March 5 after Survivor), Keoghan spent every week combing via years’ price of fan feedback on social media and filtering that into knowledge. This “large evaluation,” he says, was was a complete checklist of the present’s High 50 moments, which he shared with the Superb crew.
As his conservationist father taught him, “Science doesn’t lie,” and the information says that the watermelon launch snafu from Season 17 (under) is followers’ favourite second by far. In addition they love when contestants are “self-driving” and “when there’s drama on the airport with getting tickets,” Keoghan reveals, including that “my high topic at college was utilized math, so I really like statistics.” Gathering this intel was as entertaining for him because it was informative.
He reads off extra moments from the High 50 checklist: “Folks talked about a number of the disasters that occurred with the journey, like there was the automotive flip in Season 7. They talked about a number of the lengthy pit stops the place groups had been trickling in. There was a 19-hour pit cease in Season 11. They talked about key moments the place we had the head-shaving moments, Uchenna and Joyce, after which, in fact, Rachel Reilly breaking down not eager to do it. One other one: the dancing water problem. They needed to take part in that elaborate stage manufacturing in Macau, after which dive in for a fish underwater. I went all the way in which all the way down to 50 of them.”
The spicy Hungarian soup, Keoghan’s dad being a Season 13 greeter, the primary all-female crew to win (Season 17), and Oswald and Danny going buying additionally made the checklist, as did a scene in Season 6, “when Gus and Hera depart Gorée Island off the coast of Africa, and we sluggish the entire present down and we take an opportunity to actually absorb that second and the that means of that second,” he shares.
Keoghan’s analysis didn’t cease there. “So far as what they discuss, I additionally did a breakdown. Twenty-five p.c of the issues they discuss are competitions, 10 p.c are humorous moments. 5 p.c are consuming moments, heartfelt moments are additionally at 10 p.c. Touring mishaps are additionally at 10 p.c. So it’s simply to remind ourselves, how will we get extra of those? How will we get extra humorous? How will we get extra of the heartfelt moments?”
The principle takeaway is that what labored once they launched in 2001 nonetheless works now.
“We’ve got a shock in each episode” in Season 37, Keoghan reveals (it’s additionally the biggest solid ever, with 14 groups, above), “however on the finish of the day, [viewers] like to see those that appear to be themselves struggling and typically reaching their objectives whereas they journey around the globe.” Hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t repair it! However a couple of experimental tweaks right here and there are additionally a part of the system.
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The crew at all times asks, “What can we do every season that doesn’t steer away from the gorgeous format that exists, but in addition doesn’t really feel like we’re not making an attempt new issues?” Keoghan shares. Some experiments don’t work out as they deliberate, like in Season 36, when “the brother and sister bought trapped down the tip of the street, they couldn’t flip their automotive round,” he provides. However the snafus are typically goldmines.
“They are saying luck is the residue of design. And there, that was one thing that ended up changing into a spotlight of the season that everyone talked about and was an excellent second in that episode, however not essentially one thing that we deliberate for,” the host explains. “So that you arrange issues to occur. You could have all of the elements for issues to occur, however on the finish of the day, you don’t know. A number of the greatest plans usually are not fulfilled, after which some issues that you simply simply by no means noticed taking place occur and you find yourself with nice moments. It’s on us to proceed to strive new issues.”
Season 37 has a mixture of basic Superb Race options and new ones. Recreation items the Quick Ahead and U-Flip will probably be again, and the premiere will introduce the Fork within the Highway, which Racers will confront on the primary leg in Hong Kong. When groups arrive on the Fork within the Highway, they must select which path and route they need to take to the Pit Cease, creating two parallel races the place two groups will probably be eradicated. “It’s fairly self-explanatory,” Keoghan says, “however it does restrict who can go in both path.”
As for the brand new shock per episode, Keoghan’s comfortable to disclose that they did stun some gamers. “The viewers, they let you understand fairly rapidly whether or not they like one thing or don’t like one thing, however what I’ll inform you is there’s a few stop-down moments through the season the place we do get some jaws dropping from the groups,” he teases. “Hopefully, which means the viewers may even have some jaws dropping.”
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One other new expertise this season was screening the premiere at SCAD in Atlanta for a stay viewers and the solid. “That’s such a invaluable method of seeing what the viewers love,” Keoghan shares. “And one of many issues that basically resonated in that screening was the followers actually rooting and getting behind the contestants to get via the challenges.”
He continues: “They determine with them once they wrestle, after which they see them obtain the aim and get via to the tip. Folks had been actually cheering for a number of the groups that struggled and a number of the groups that lagged behind, however then made up time. And so it’s a very good lesson once more in realizing that though we’re not making scandalous TV and we’re not making stunning TV the place this particular person simply broke up with that particular person and yelled at that particular person and slapped this particular person and voted this particular person out and did that, we are able to nonetheless make actually entertaining content material that makes individuals snicker and cry and really feel good, however with out having to resort to exploiting the characters.”
In brief, The Superb Race‘s format is simply as wonderful as ever, 37 seasons in.
The Superb Race, Season 37 Premiere, Wednesday, March 5, 9:30/8:30c, CBS