Top Global TV Trends in 2022 Revealed at MipTV

In scripted content, or “The Godfather,” people should never take sides against the family. As proven by some of 2021 and 2022 top launches, from “Kin,” a RTE One No. 1 launch in Ireland, to South Africa’s “House of Zwide” (E.TV) and Fox’s “The Cleaning Lady,” family bonds continue to dominate no matter the genre.

“The main reason for family being so strong in so many shows, is that if you really want to break out in a linear way, you have to create co-viewing potential,” observes Avril Blondelot, head of content insight at Glance, who co-presented on Monday In Cannes the conference session One TV Year in the World: Cracking Audience Trends.

An analysis of global TV trends which marks one of the highlights at the first day of of the MipTV trade fair, the session was presented with Frédéric Vaulpre, Glance vice president, and Beatrice Rossmanith, Tape Consultancy clients service director.

Fathers struggling with their responsibilities marks another notable trend, Blondelot noticed. The trend is underscored by “Le Bonheur,” the best 2022 launch in French-speaking Canada so far – produced by Quebecor Content and Aetios Productions – and ITV’s upcoming “The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe,” distributed by All3Media International.

The latter, based on the true story of ‘canoe conman’ John Darwin, sees Eddie Marsan as a man who suddenly disappears, faking his own death for insurance money and lying to everyone except for his wife, played by Monica Dolan.

“We talk a lot about strong women, but there is another side of the story: Men who are not as strong as they used to be. The difficulties these fathers encounter, struggling with the role of traditional family leader, are really interesting,” said Blondelot.

But it’s still up to female cops to react when the going gets tough, as exemplified by France’s top launch “HPI” – the best new local scripted series on TF1 since 2010 – Italy’s “Lolita Lobosco” and ZDF’s “Kolleginnen,” which became Germany’s No. 1 launch as well.

Period dramas focusing on the 19th and early 20th century are also popular, with smash hit “1883,” Paramount Network’s prequel to “Yellowstone,” becoming the top new series launched on cable since 2016.

“It’s great news, because we always talk about streamers. We tend to forget that cable TV can still create very popular titles in a linear way,” noted Blondelot.

National security-related topics continue to be a safe bet in the U.K. – with BBC One’s “Vigil” and “Trigger Point” capturing the audience’s attention – as well as globally, with CCTV 8’s “Enemy” launching in the top spot in China and “The Shadow Team” (TRT 1) making a mark in Turkey.

If the keyword for scripted content is family, unscripted entertainment turns to studio-based shows, surprise and games, with the latter resonating also with young adults.

Viewers appreciate elaborate sets, such as the one in Fox’s “Next Level Chef,” the No. 1 launch in the U.S., distributed by Propagate International and hosted by Gordon Ramsay.

The show sees people competing in one of three kitchens, equipped with different tools and stacked on top of each other, echoing Netflix thriller “The Platform,” where its protagonists were fed via a platform. Filled with food at the top floor, the platform would then descend through the tower’s lower levels.

“I really love seeing all these influences between genres,” says Blondelot.

While “The Masked Singer” continues to reigns supreme, reaching new markets and launching in the top spot in Canada (TVA) and Sweden (TV4), two other formats stand out: “Game of Talents” and “I Can See Your Voice,” ranked five and four times in Top 5 format launches.

“I have been talking about ‘The Masked Singer’ for more than three years now and it’s still continuing to launch so successfully in new territories. It’s not going to stop,” said Blondelot, noting the show’s popularity with young adults also in 2022.

Finally, TV has the cultural heritage to “leverage its own hits,” she notes, as proven by Romania’s “Râzi cu Roast” and Denmark’s two-episode TV2 special “Livet er fedt – 20 år efter,” which saw its reality stars come together again to fight obesity – 20 years later.

“It’s not exactly a ‘Friends’ reunion, but it worked for the local market. TV channels can bet on these long-standing relationships they have with their viewers and it’s a real asset.”

From Variety US