The first episode of "The Game" starts quietly. Neither participants nor viewers know what the game is about and what will happen. But then it takes off.
The first recording days I regretted heavily that I accepted. It felt like a big mistake. Now after the recording I don't regret it at all, says Håkan Juholt, who for the first time participates in this type of TV program.
I sought the challenge. I am 62 and have lived a fairly routine life. SVT told me that this is a completely new kind of concept and I like public service. Then I didn't want to participate in any nasty game, this is more feelgood I would say.
"Strange experience"
Julia Franzén entered "The Game" as a member of the "underclass" and had to spend several hours isolated from the other participants in a storage room from the beginning. Unlike Juholt, she has been in several reality programs, including "Robinson".
But to be in total silence in this way, it was a strange experience – which I think everyone should try sometime in life.
For the viewers, it becomes more exciting the further into the game you get. Julia Franzén and Håkan Juholt both state that it becomes more dramatic than they expected.
I've probably never been in a program with so much drama. People get completely crazy. It's like a mix of "Förrädarna", "Big brother", "Robinson". It's like everything, says Julia Franzén.
Considered withdrawal
Besides the participants in the hotel, there is also a panel consisting of four people who do not participate themselves, but comment on what happens. One of them is Gry Forssell.
–They are so damn brave who are participating. They know absolutely nothing at the beginning of the game and must be prepared for anything. I don't know if I myself would have dared to participate under those conditions, she says.
After initially considering withdrawing, Håkan Juholt decided to go all in to play the game.
I was genuinely uninterested in the other players, I admit. But I decided to crack the code. It was then it became really fun, when I could act like a Hercule Poirot, he says.
Facts: The Game
TT
Twelve well-known Swedes are isolated in a luxury suite in a skyscraper and participate in a brutal social game with eliminations. "The Game" is a South Korean format and has also been launched in Norway and Denmark.
Participants: Hanna Friberg, Håkan Juholt, Ikenna "Ike" Abika, Marcus Dübois, Fröken Snusk, Christian Bauer, Ayan Ahmed, Jan Emanuel, Zeina Mourtada, Dominika Peczynski, Julia Franzén and Daniel Paris.
Panel: consists of Samir Badran, Natalie Demirian Genna, Gry Forssell and Petri Kajonius
