Single’s Inferno producer, Kim Jae-won, is buoyed by the recent renewal of his hit Netflix dating show. But now he faces a problem.
“The program has become more and more popular and the contestants rack up so many followers on their social media,” Kim explains to The Hollywood Reporter, “This is sparking suspicions.”
Single’s Inferno, which just aired its fourth season on the streaming platform, has not only resonated with viewers in its native South Korea, but it has also become a fan favorite worldwide. Season one made history as the first Korean unscripted show to break into the global top 10 on Netflix, with its second season amassing more than 65 million viewing hours.
The premise is a unique one: a group of young men and women are stranded on an “inferno” (a beautiful yet barren island off the main coast of Korea). Sleeping in makeshift tents, they are forced to quickly become acquainted by cooking meals, socializing and competing in mini-games with each other. The catch? The relationship-ready singles are not allowed to share their ages and occupations with the rest of the group — two factors fairly integral when assessing compatibility in Korea.
Once a day, the contestants are allowed to choose someone to go to “paradise” with, a glamorous hotel just a helicopter ride away from the island. If two singles pick each other, they are whisked away to paradise for one romantic night and share a hotel room. Here, the contestants are permitted to share their ages and jobs, and return to the island with this knowledge the following morning. The show culminates in a true test of the strength of the connections made when the men reveal which women they’d like to leave inferno with.
The show is bolstered by a panel of five hosts — one of them a former contestant, introduced as an emcee in season three — offering witty commentary and analysis. Already established figures in the Korean entertainment industry, the panel is made up of rapper-singer Hanhae, YouTuber Dex, comedian Hong Jin-kyung, model and actress Lee Da-hee and singer Kyuhyun.
It’s a simple yet exhilarating format. Unlike Love Island or Too Hot to Handle, the smiles, eye contact and brief hand-holding do all the talking in Single’s Inferno. Sharing a bed, for example, is quite the talking point and speaking bluntly about your attraction to someone is downright gasp-worthy. It strips chemistry back to its bare bones, defying the scandal and raunch we’ve become accustomed to on western reality television.
The suspicion main producer Kim refers to is that, akin to those faced by the Love Island and Too Hot to Handle producers, audiences are starting to think some people are going on the show just to become famous. “The biggest challenge for us is to figure out whether a contestant is really genuine,” he tells THR. The show’s propensity to create stars has become a hindrance to their selection process.
Below, with the help of a translator, Kim Jae-won discusses inspiration for his smash hit, what producers look for in potential contestants and why it’s become one of Netflix’s most globally popular reality shows: “Single’s Inferno brings something new to the table. It’s really of a different color.”
I’m really curious to know what some of the inspirations were for the premise of Single’s Inferno.
I think the most fundamental inspiration came from my experience when I was working on another show before we shot this reality show. It was on a secluded island and the focus was more on surviving and navigating through the wildlife and stuff, but the island itself was so beautiful. It felt so surreal and fantastical. And I just really had this thought that I wanted to do a dating show on it.
At that time, most of the dating shows in Korea revolved more around the delicate or innocent emotional arcs of the contestants — more young and innocent vibes. But since I wanted to set this show on an island, it inevitably had to be in the summer season, and I thought that I might as well turn it into a show where there’s much more intense, physical chemistry involved. And of course, I think I was partially influenced by other Netflix shows — Too Hot to Handle or even Love Island — even though the Korean version, Single’s Inferno, is much more innocent.
But that’s what makes Single’s Inferno so great — those small moments make the bigger ones feel even more high stakes. Is it considered a risqué show in your native South Korea?
I believe, up until season three, the primary response among the Korean viewers was that it was the Korean version of Too Hot to Handle. But it turned out not to be that daring! In an episode in the [most recent] season, [Yuk] Jun-seo and [Lee] Si-an spent the night in the same bed, which sparked quite the controversy. But I think the controversy was more around the fact that it seemed rather abrupt. I think Korean viewers are more interested in and immersed in that narrative — everything that takes place in the lead up to a certain incident. So if there was enough emotional interaction and connection, intimate conversations that convinced them that that was supposed to happen, I think people would have embraced it more.
And I really want to point out that this is not a drama series. It’s a reality show. In real life, people’s emotions don’t really go in a linear way. The emotional arc is not so seamless in real life. So to me, it seemed more than natural that [incident] took place.
I’m sure the international reaction has been a welcome surprise, but is it as popular a show in South Korea as it is in the rest of the world?
Well, this is a little embarrassing to say myself. (Laughs.) But, of course, it’s a hit show in Korea as well. Maybe I should put it this way: the more common dating shows in Korea that revolve around more detailed emotional arcs and narratives, the pure and innocent love, are mainstream, in my opinion. Compared to that, I think Single’s Inferno brings something new to the table, and it’s really of a different color. It’s niche. I think there could be many reasons why it’s resonating so much with overseas viewers and receiving a lot of love there. I’m a little careful to say, but in my humble opinion, it’s probably thanks to K-dramas. People are taking more interest in Korea and Korean culture. I think people are interested in how the young people of Korea actually get into relationships.
Can you tell us about any behind-the-scenes details or tease any insider knowledge fans might be surprised to know about the show? Maybe about the selection process or the shoot?
For starters, we shoot for about 10 days. Finding the right island is the most difficult part of the project, because once you think that you’ve located the perfect island, it turns out to be a protected zone or the natural habitat should be untouched and we can’t film there. I’m not sure if you’ve watched Squid Game season two, but Jun-ho on the boat, he is searching for the island his brother is on. He keeps on searching. And our staff, when we were watching the show, we were like, “Oh, that’s just what we do every time we try to film.” (Laughs.)
When it comes to the qualities that we’re looking for in the contestants, I’d have to say — since I mentioned that physical attraction and chemistry is central to our show — their visuals, their appearance, is number one. We also look at their occupation and their age, because those are very important factors. When it comes to a relationship, we try to put together as diverse a group of people as possible and then we do a lot of interviews with a lot of people in the same room to make sure that this person would come off as charming and attractive when he or she is put into an environment with other love interests.
It’s super interesting because in the U.S. or U.K., for example, being on a reality show where you’re searching for love is a vulnerable position to put yourself in. You can attract a lot of hate and vitriol on social media — is that a problem Single’s Inferno contestants have faced?
I think it’s the same in Korea as well. The viewers in Korea, they show criticism or hate towards the contestants. Right before we sign the contestants onto the project, we work with Netflix to make sure that [the participants] can hold up in stressful situations. We consult with a therapist to make sure that they can handle stressful situations well enough, and after the show airs, if they’re struggling with a lot of stress or hate, we introduce them to a therapist so that they can receive counseling as well.
I think the panel’s roles are very important to our show as well. In the first two seasons, the panel tried not to comment on anything negative. They tried to shield and protect the contestants as much as possible. But then we saw that this backfired, triggering a fiery response, even, from the viewers. So, after that, we tried to have them point things out if the contestants do something wrong — in an appropriate way, not in an overly negative or aggressive way. We saw this went a long way and toned down the more reckless hate comments from the online world.
The panel of hosts absolutely make the show. I think for most viewers, they might even be the best part. I know the inclusion of Kim Jin-young, also known as Dex, who was a season two contestant, really bolstered the line-up. Was he just that popular?
I wouldn’t say that we had him join the panel just because he was on the show or because he was popular. Like I said, up until season two, there were some negative opinions among the public that the panels were too protective towards the contestants, so we were wanting a new change. We wanted some refreshing vibes by stirring it up a little. After season two, Dex ended up as a host of another YouTube show, and I watched him do it and he did really well, so I noticed that he had a gift for emcee-ing. So I gave him the offer. He then became so much more popular and catapulted to stardom.
What are the biggest challenges you face as a producer? How has the show evolved, and how else are you trying to keep it interesting?
We have renewed this show again and again. The program has become more and more popular and the contestants, after the show airs, they rack up so many followers on their social media. It’s a blessing, and I’m very happy it’s so successful. But at the same time, this is sparking suspicions in the viewers’ minds as to whether the contestants are just coming onto the show seeking attention or popularity. [There are concerns] they are not being really sincere about finding the love of their life. And they should [be looking for that], to some degree. So at the end of the day, the biggest challenge for us is to figure out whether a contestant is really genuine. Are they really coming on to find their love interest?
I believe that it is impossible to label someone’s feelings and put it in a box. It’s not the case that someone comes onto the show 100 percent with the intentions of finding a partner or 100 percent with the intentions of becoming a celebrity. There can be many reasons as to why they chose to come on board, and those feelings must be very, very complicated, right? So the best we can do is when we are filming, we want them to be really sincere and honest. We do this by preparing different segments and making it unpredictable. And when they really open up and show their true, honest feelings, we try to capture those moments as sincerely and genuinely as possible on the screen, so that it really translates.
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