It feels like lately we’ve gotten a rash of reality competitions where one of the contestants holds a secret and the others have to figure out which person is holding that secret. This format is not only part of Netflix’s revival of The Mole, but in the Peacock hit The Traitors as well. In a new reality competition, the secret that’s being kept is that one of the contestants is in position of the $1 million dollar prize.
MILLION DOLLAR SECRET: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: A scene of a mansion on a seaside cliff. Then wooden boxes with contestants’ names on them are set down.
The Gist: Million Dollar Secret is a reality competition, hosted by deep-voiced British comedian Peter Serafinowicz, where one of the twelve contestants is awarded the $1 million prize on the first day of the game. In order to keep the prize, the new millionaire needs to keep their identity secret for the duration of the game, and the other 11 contestants are tasked with figuring out the millionaire’s identity.
Serafinowicz meets with the new millionaire and gives them a “Secret Agenda,” which they have to get done before the evening group activity. In the first episode, for instance, the millionaire has to hug every other contestant before the deadline; of course, that person has to do it in a way that doesn’t arouse suspicion. Completing the Secret Agenda gives them an advantage after the group activity is over.
The first group activity is an obstacle course. One person in a pair runs through it, and the other person tries to memorize a code to unlock a gate that has a hunting dog behind it, which will likely catch the runner if released. If the runner finishes, they go to the “trophy room”; if the codebreaker wins, they get to go. In the “trophy room,” they get information on who might be the millionaire. Later that night, the group votes on who they think is the millionaire; the person with the most votes is eliminated.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Million Dollar Secret is essentially the same game as The Mole and The Traitors.
Our Take: Despite the similarity of Million Dollar Secret to the two reality competitions we cited above, we ended up enjoying the first episode for a couple of reasons. First, we seem to be drawn to shows where one of the contestants has to keep a secret from the others, who have to figure out who the secret keeper is. Second, the person that the producers chose to hold the million dollars at the outset of the game is someone the audience wouldn’t expect, and the ability of that person to continue to keep the secret is going to become harder as the game goes along.
What we find out in the second episode, though, is that the person holding the million occasionally gets the chance to move that money to someone else, thus relieving the burden of keeping the secret, and also throwing off fellow contestants that may think they have a bead on who the millionaire is. It certainly makes the contest more interesting, and it makes the money a dynamic thing, knowing that there’s more than one way it can move — we’re suspecting that if the millionaire is eliminated, the money moves to another contestant, so that’s another way.
But what we enjoyed the most about the show is Serafinowicz; the producers of Million Dollar Secret have followed the Traitors template of installing a funny actor as host, and Serafinowicz’s arch tone is evident, especially when he interacts with the contestants. Sure, he’s got a deep voice with a posh British accent, and he looks like he’s serious. But most of what comes out of his mouth is said with a bit of an impish attitude, as it seems like he’s having fun watching these contestants get increasingly cutthroat as the first couple of days progress.
The contestants themselves are the usual mix of the go-getters,get-alongers, the ones who are suspicious of everyone, and people who keep their true professions secret. A few get highlighted in the first episode, but we figured we’ll get to know them better as the group gets smaller.
Sex and Skin: None.
Parting Shot: The vote to see who the millionaire is commences.
Sleeper Star: Se Young Metzroth claims she’s too nerdy for this group, but she’s more ruthless than she lets on. On the other hand, Samantha Hubbard, an NYPD officer, claims she can spot liars, but she herself isn’t a good enough liar to avoid suspicion.
Most Pilot-y Line: We’re amazed at how many of the contestants come down for breakfast in full makeup. Yes, we know they’re on TV, but why not just get dressed and not wear PJs and make it look like you just rolled out of bed and came downstairs?
Our Call: STREAM IT. The gameplay in Million Dollar Secret moves along at a good clip, and the playfully arch Serafinowicz really adds some fun to a format that we’ve been seeing a lot of lately.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.
The post Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Million Dollar Secret’ On Netflix, A Reality Competition Where One Person Has To Hide The Fact That They Have The $1 Million Prize appeared first on Decider.
