US Exclusive: FOX Picks Up Hit UK Game Show “The Cube”
FOX has been forgiven for Moment of Truth as of now. According to Broadcast Now in England, FOX has picked up the hit UK game show The Cube for a run in 2010. This comes mere days after NBC announced they have picked up a dumbed down clone of the show called Perfect 10. While FOX is yet to confirm or put an announcement out regarding the deal, managing director Andrew O’Connor said FOX is in for the show in 2010 and plans to keep the ITV style that has been made infamous by now. The Cube has gone straight into series and will air sometime in 2010, bypassing the pilot stage. If you aren’t familiar with The Cube,check our video page to see our many clips of it, courtesy of ITV.
There’s two things I adore about this. One: We were all 100% right that FOX was going to be the network that picks this up. Two: FOX actually picked up a really good game show for a change! FOX has had a knack for it, though. I know Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader and Don’t Forget the Lyrics aren’t held in high regards but it’s impossible to deny they weren’t popular. FOX’s interest on keeping the same high tech and stunning look of the UK edition of The Cube is also a sigh of relief.
In theory there’s absolutely no way to screw this up. Just replace the British contestant with an American each episode and there you go. I really hope we don’t see them messing around with the format too much. I honestly don’t think we will since I don’t think FOX is that dumb, but who knows. But the good news, and without a doubt the best game show news in a very long time, is that FOX picked up The Cube and we actually get to see a good primetime game show again. Now it’s just up to them to sell it to the American public correctly so it sticks around.
We’ll put more video up of The Cube for you to enjoy this weekend.
Yes, NBC needs better shows. But they are also singularly unable to produce a good game show. Just count the number of ways that they ruined Deal or No Deal.
One other thing about the potential irony of Fox PR idiots v. The Cube:
One of the most remarkable aspects of The Cube is its use of stop-motion filming (e.g., on "Gradient," when they stop just before the ball reaches the player's hand, so you don't know if it's going to be caught or not).
How useless would that be if the PR idiots are telling you that the contestant is going to go for $250K at the first commercial break?
YAY! I commend you Fox for doing something NBC wishes it would've done. The Cube is definitely a show to watch for in 2010. I'll give Nick credit for airing Brain Surge. That'll give the kiddies something to look at after school while we adults will have our own engaging show in Tbe Cube. Now…we wait for the order(# of episodes), then, it's GO TIME!
I believe there is a great host that no one has mentioned, or maybe he's just been forgotten. He has the British thing, but is known in America (well, L.A. at least), and he has previous game show hosting experience. I think a good host for The Cube USA would be Ross King.
I believe there is a great host that no one has mentioned, or maybe he's just been forgotten. He has the British thing, but is known in America (well, L.A. at least), and he has previous game show hosting experience. I think a good host for The Cube USA would be Ross King.
I agree. NO Mark Thompson. ZERO zilch. I like the UK voice. I like the evil chuckle he makes like "Sounds easy (mahahaha) nothing is easy in The Cube"
And 1 vs. 100, for that matter.
And 1 vs. 100, for that matter.
Steve Shirippa isn't a horrible host. I say John O'Hurly, Drew Cary or Regis Philbin would be great fits. Also the current money ladder is horrible. I say have 10 tasks and a chain like this:
500,000
250,000
100,000
50,000
25,000* + 5,000
10,000* Succeed hear you get another life line, either simplify or trial run but you can only get one if it is already gone
5,000
2,500* +500 for every success until next safe haven
1,000
500
Please respond and the lifeline will be called Ressurection
Plus an aditionall 2 lives
Safe havens and buy a lifeline are great ideas if you lengthen the chain if not it is fine as is
1.In order to distingusih it Pefect 10, Make the grand prize $2 million! They haven't done that since Greed, and the level below that can be a million, simply to D&^% with NBC.
2. Make Steve Martin the host! He embodies everyting the british version of the host did ,and the job will go to an American. No more Rich List mistakes! Also, Martin's fans (mainly families) will show up in droves in the first two season alone. Plus, if the celebs shows happen, Martin will bring high end, A listers,who otherwise would avoid game shows.
3. Get Dr. Dave Winstead (Gamepro, The Video Game) to voice The Cube, he sound like the killer vocie from Scream (also a good choice) and generic DJ type in one.
4. I don't care who the body is, so long as she has big breasts and a nice ass. An Ex Deal model might be nice.
1.In order to distinguish it from Pefect 10, Get a $2 million grand prize! They haven't done that since Greed, and the level below that can be a million, simply to D&^% with NBC.
2. Make Steve Martin the host! He embodies everyting the british version of the host did ,and the job will go to an American. No more Rich List mistakes! Also, Martin's fans (mainly families) will show up in droves in the first two season alone. Plus, if the celebs shows happen, Martin will bring high end, A listers,who otherwise would avoid game shows.
3. Get Dr. Dave Winstead (Gamepro, The Video Game) to voice The Cube, he sound like the killer from Scream (also a good choice) and generic DJ type, rolled in one.
4. I don't care who the body is, so long as she has big breasts and a nice ass. An Ex Deal model might be nice.
Note-please excuse my first post and any mistakes here ,my time was up (both times) and I couldn't proof it.
given the standard stereotypical US big money game show, it'd have to be one million. :)
Steve Martin…. I think I just puked in my mouth a little bit. Keep him faaaaar away from this show. (Keep him away from EVERYTHING for that matter.)
I must disagree. I believe I have a more reasonable way The Cube can be done here in the States.
1. Money Tree: $2k, $10k, $25k, $50k, $100k, $250k, $500k; keeps the money from going too high too fast and leaves open the chance of a special final high difficulty challenge for $1m.
2. Host: This may be the oddball pick, but I'm going with John DeLancie; better known as Star Trek's Q. Given the atmosphere The Cube creates, there is a, pardon the pun, omnipotence about it, and who better to host it than one who has played an omnipotent being? That and I believe John's Q-like anecdotes will keep the presence of the game mysterious, exciting, shrewd when necessary, and still very entertaining.
3. For the Voice: My initial reaction was Pat Kiernan (the questioner from Grand Slam, et al); but something tells me his voice may have to be distorted to be more ominous. Perhaps another person will take the spot, but as of now, that's who I'd like to see be the Voice.
4. The Body: Initial reaction: Either Kari Byron from Mythbusters or Morgan Webb from G4. However, if a buxom model must be used, at least get one that is into these sorts of games. No name comes to mind as of now, but I'm sure one will pop out.
Who is Ross King?
Steve Martin?! Step away from the pipe, man!
The current money ladder is absolutely fine. If what bugs you is the $1,000 and $2,000 at the bottom, that is so that contestants will be more likely to go to the third game if they completely screwed up the first and second. And a HUGE no in this game would be a safe haven. The whole thing about the money tree is that you're risking it all, which makes decisions even harder to make.
I would say no to all three, although Regis Philbin would be my first choice from them. Drew Carey would be my last; although I'm fine with him on The Price is Right, I don't think he would work on this show at all. It's not really a show that I'd watch with a comedian hosting it.
I don't think there's really a need for another lifeline on the show. In the September 19th, 2009 show, the $100,000 level was won, and there are no helps allowed on the final level. This just proves that two helps are enough, even for someone who can't walk in a straight line.
*ice cream cake falls off plate*
YOU HAVE EIGHT LIVES REMAINING.
Ethan..
1) The money tree while I love your 8 game idea (that I myself have been pitching since the thought of Cube in the USA began), I dont like to jump to 10k within 2. As others have pointed out, going 1k-2k-10k gives a big push to go for the 3rd game even if your short on lives to get to a point that is actually worth something.
2) Now, that's an idea… John D, the more I think of it, would be a great fit for this show. While he may play it to be a little more about him than the game, as long as it doesn't go overboard it can work with an American audience who's used to that a lot more than UK audiences are.
3) The Voice, I have completely different ideas… While if we go exactly in the same path that the UK show, Kiernan is not bad at all. However, hear me out here, I'd love to combine the roles of "The Body" and the "Voice" into one, allowing the cube to show how the game can be done, and then mock as well, showing if I can do it that easily, why can't you with 3 lives remaining. This also would allow play back and forth from the cube and the host.
Thoughts anyone, especially on #3?
The money ladders 2-3 slots are awful.
I'm having a hard time coming up with a money tree for a US version of The Cube — I'm inclined to think the UK knew what they were doing when they chose a six-step ladder. If you change the number of steps, you might have to change the number of lives (which would throw off the pacing of the show and lead to viewers getting tired) or make some games too easy and seem like throwaways.
Fox probably will have to make a million dollar top price if they anticipate competing directly against Housecleaning for Dollars on NBC, which is unfortunate. $500,000 might be the sweet spot for the jackpot.
I don't care too much about a Celebrity The Body; I do feel pretty strongly that it should be a woman rather than a man and that the Voice and Body roles shouldn't overlap.
As for who should host —
Pat Kiernan: I'm a huge fan, but while he can bring the gravity needed, I think the host needs to get excited or shocked ("Oh noooooooooo!") for the contestants, and that clashes with his image.
Mike Greenberg: I like him as a radio personality, but think he didn't do well enough on Duel and also have him pegged as more of an analytical rather than emotional host.
Mark Wahlberg: My favorite choice out of those mentioned, but I'm still not satisfied suggesting him. Maybe it's just because I really, really like the job the UK host has done and he's set the bar high. I'm almost thinking a warm sportcaster type who can turn the bombast on — Michael Wilbon from ESPN's PTI has some of the attributes, but might have trouble doing "slightly menacing".
How would the "buy a second simplify for 10%" work? If you use your simplify, it's either move to the next step or bust; no walking away.
How would the "buy a second simplify for 10%" work? If you use your simplify, it's either move to the next step or bust; no walking away.
I sincerely hope that all of you who have a money tree growing in your head get to use it someday. But with The Cube, the money is really secondary to the game. The only thing the tree in this show has to do is tempt the player to take a risk and continue playing after they've spent a few lives. I say, keep it as close to the UK tree as possible, don't add any steps to it or subtract any steps from it. If they check the current exchange rates, they can grow a decent tree. My guess is Fox will go with either $500,000 or $1M as the top prize. The rest of the levels don't really matter as long as each step is a big enough jump to make it worth the risk.
I've gota feeling Fox is going to hit the Jackpot with this one, and for a host I'd like to see Bob Saget working on this one. He did very good on 1 vs. 100 and that was the last really good Primetime Game Show since Season 1 DOND and Millionaire.
And this is (IMHO) a $1,000,000 show.
Task 9- $1,000,000
Task 8- $500,000
Task 7- $250,000
Task 6- $125,000
Task 5- $75,000
Task 4- $50,000
Task 3- $20,000
Task 2- $10,000
Task 1- $1,000
btw, I think a safe haven would be a good thing at the $50,000 or $75,000 levels
But Fox, you've done well with Game Shows in the past (maybe not 5th Grader and Truth), so don't disappoint us
and (I didn't realize I didn't do the body and Voice of the Cube)
The Body: Tameka Jacobs of DOND, she was my favorite of the 26 models, and was good enough to be one of the two on Daytime Deal
The Cube's Voice: I've got to agree with Peter Cullen. Optimus Prime could make even "I would like a cheese sandwich" ominous.
Actually I change my mind on the tree
$1,000,000
$500,000
$250,000
$125,000
$50,000
$20,000
$10,000
$2,000
$1,000
9 Lives, 9 Games
Makes Sense to Me
Why are people giving suggestions on who The Body should be? We shouldn't know who it is. Just as long as they pick a hottie that can actually DO the stuff and make it look easy.
At first I thought Saget would be a bad choice as host, but now that I think about it, he could pull it off. Part of me wouldn't mind if they picked an unknown to host either.
I have no clue about Peter Cullen b/c "Pearl Harbor sucked……." (I'm anti-Mike Bey), Pat Kiernan would be cool for the voice.
To LaJuan: I agree. Who cares about who plays The Body as long as she’s a hottie, and Peter Cullen was the one who provided the voice of Optimus Prime on Transformers (both the movie and the ’80s cartoon) and also do voiceover work for commericals and movie trailers.
yes, it's too bad that Mr. "In A World" died last year