How Love Island’s success inspired ITV to reboot Big Brother

ITV bosses have explained their decision to reboot Big Brother on ITV2.

It was confirmed earlier this year that the iconic reality show will return in 2023, five years after it last aired on Channel 5.

Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival, ITV content chief Kevin Lygo said the success of Love Island inspired the return of Big Brother.

He said (via Daily Mail): “We look at Love Island and we see this extraordinary successful show that defies all the sort of current logic and goes against what people say in that, ‘Young people don’t watch (linear) television.

“And then you think every single night at nine o’clock on ITV2 and on the Hub is this show for eight weeks that more young people watch than they watch anything else.

“And we should all take great joy in the fact that if you get the right show, they’re going to come and watch it.”

Meanwhile Channel 4 chief content officer Ian Katz also spoke at the event about Big Brother’s return.

While describing Big Brother as a “wonderful show”, he added: “I’m sure it will bring an audience to ITV, but I do think there is something depressing about this microwave moment of TV of shows being reheated…

“If Channel 4 is about anything, it is about finding that new dish.”

While Love Island may have inspired Big Brother’s return, sources say bosses are keen to set the show apart.

Producers are reportedly keen to avoid ‘influencer types’ often seen on Love Island.

A source told the Daily Mirror: “There will be a diverse casting across a range of ages, which is what made Big Brother so special. It won’t be like Love Island, where the contestants are all young social media influencer types – they want ‘all walks of life’.

“There will absolutely be no outside influence – just like in the original series – so they won’t get a day off every week like they do in the villa.”