2025: The Year in Formats

In a year full of challenges across the industry that led to broadcasters and streamers turning to known IP for a modicum of proven success, formats prospered across the globe, offering buyers reliable options for programming. Our inaugural TV Formats Festival featured insights from some of the top minds in the formats space, and The WIT’s Caroline Servy noted that the market has tended toward known IP in the post-Covid era, with more returning brands and reboots than new concept rollouts.

Megaformats seemed to have gotten even bigger last year, with The Traitors in particular continuing its massive success. The format, which launched in 2021 and had a breakout year in 2024, saw orders for even more adaptations in 2025, as well as a slew of renewals. All3Media International signed a deal that will see NBC air a new U.S. series with a civilian cast after the success of the celebrity version on Peacock, which will be returning for a fourth season this year and is already renewed for a fifth. New iterations of the show will also be coming to Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine and Mongolia. Luyworks Media and Something Special began production on a version for the Korean market as well. Additionally, the format landed plenty of renewals around the world, with Canada’s CTV ordering a fourth season of its iteration and Prime Video in India commissioning a second of its version.

Various long-running brands made their returns, with Deal or No Deal returning to screens in Mexico and the U.S. Hispanic market after a five-year hiatus and Project Runway being revived in Canada after last airing in 2009. In France, an adaptation of Weakest Link was ordered for M6 following the success of two specials on the channel in 2024. Plus, Metronome was commissioned to produce a new Danish version of Fear Factor after more than two decades.

In this era of known IP seeming to reign supreme, several new formats were conceived based on games and brands known off-screen. Fremantle secured the international distribution rights to The CW’s Scrabble game show. Keller/Noll partnered with Goliath and Perfect Game to launch a game show based on Shark Bite. And Trivial Pursuit, a game show based on the board game of the same name, found a new taker in 2025—Satisfaction Iberia signed up to produce a Spanish adaptation.

In terms of genre, dating remained popular throughout the year, with major success for two of its megaformats: Love Island and Married at First Sight. For Love Island, Love Island: All Stars returned for a second season in the U.S. on Peacock, which also greenlit the brand-new spin-off Love Island: Beyond the Villa. A FAST channel for the hit format—World of Love Island—launched on Prime Video in the U.S. In the U.K., Love Island: All Stars was renewed for an extended third season. Seven.One Studios International scaled its dating megaformat Married at First Sight with new spin-offs, recommissions and various FAST channels. Other dating formats continued to find success as well—Love Is Blind was renewed by Netflix through season ten, and Dori Media Group signed new deals for Power Couple in a number of territories, including Brazil, Germany and India.

Despite being in an age of known IP being king, there was still room for brand-new ideas. Netflix ordered its fair share of fresh formats, from Cheat: Unfinished Business and Age of Attraction to a Willy Wonka-inspired competition. Apple TV introduced KPOPPED, and 5 launched Celebrity Puzzling. Other new formats include Seven.One Studios International’s The Hunt, Talpa Studios’ Watch Your Backand The House of Hide & Seek, BBC Studios’ The Inner Circle, Banijay Entertainment’s All Star Hide and Seek and Fremantle’s Pandora’s Box, among others.

The drama sector faced its own increase in risk-aversion, and the scripted formats sector was able to serve it well. All3Media International’s Doc Martin landed an adaptation in the U.S., Shameless scored an Indian iteration and Step Dave secured a Malaysian version. Nippon TV signed a deal in the Middle East for versions of Mother and Woman -My Life for My Children-. The ITV series Broadchurch and Liar found international broadcasters. The Turkish dramas Three Sisters and Time Goes By, represented by Kanal D International, were remade in Kazakhstan and the Middle East, respectively. The Israeli format Your Honor also found particular success this year, with remakes in China, Ukraine, Poland and Greece.

With so much success across scripted and unscripted, many companies bolstered their focus on formats with new partnerships, labels and co-production deals. Nippon TV unveiled Gyokuro Studio. BBC Studios Productions launched a dedicated reality label led by Peter Tierney. Fremantle debuted a new format development banner under Nick Mather. ITV Studios announced a label focused on scalable entertainment and competitive formats, headed by Lily Wilson and Tom Williams. Harry King TV debuted the unscripted division Harry King Unscripted. Fremantle signed a three-year deal with Eureka Studios to develop a slate of unscripted formats. And Expectation and Plegazoid teamed up to develop titles in the game show and reality space.

Formats even got involved in the immersive gaming space, with Hell’s Kitchen becoming the first format brand to be brought into Roblox, followed later in the year by The Great Bake Off.

To catch up on all the news of the last year and stay up-to-date on the top stories of 2026, visit TVFormats.ws and subscribe to TV Formats Weekly and World Screen Newsflash, which you can do for free here.