Is Hypnotize Me a Fake?
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Hypnotize Me is being billed as the next big smash hit for Fox TV.
Originally shot to be shown on Fox in 2016, Hypnotize me is now set to air on the CW. Are they hypnotized though on the show or are they faking it?
Spoiler Alert. Do Not read this unless you want answers to the questions about whether contestants are faking hypnosis!
Taye Diggs Hosts the all new gameshow based on Hypnosis, with Keith Barry as the Hypnotist in charge of making the contestants do strange and amusing things as they compete to win dollars.
But..the question on everyone's lips is "Are they faking hypnosis on Hypnotize Me?"
Back in the dim distant past of TV gameshows, or 2014 as we can call, it a new show appeared on British TV on the ITV channel. It was called You're Back in The Room and no one thought that it would be a hit. Now it has been syndicated across the world with versions in France, Australia and elsewhere. Keith Barry, a stage magician, mentalist and hypnotist has taken the reigns as the man in charge of hypnotist duties in all of these versions and he joins Taye Diggs who takes over from UK host Philip Schofield for the FOX TV show.
This is the first time the show has been renamed, so rather than using the famous quote that we often see stage hypnotists use when they bring their subjects our of trance "You're back in the Room", this time we see the rather more direct plea from those who are taking part...
"Hypnotize ME!"
It's an interesting take on language as already we can see that the people taking part really want to buy into the fact that they will do as they are told. The show also relies on some celebrity guests and included in this series are Gretchen Rossi, Adrienne Maloof and Vicki Gunvalson.
Here's a brand NEW video where I talk all about the secrets of how stage hypnotists work, based on Hypnotize Me..There is a Spoiler Alert at the start so please only watch this if you want to understand how people can be made to do things against their will and then forget everything..because that's what we are told will happen!
When the UK version of the show aired there was a lot of talk on social media and elsewhere about whether they were fake or real. In fact I was even quoted in The Mail On Sunday Newspaper after the first show with my own thoughts on the show..
I always find it interesting that sometimes stage hypnotists don't like it when you explain that what they are really doing is showbizness and magic and misdirection. It's as if they would prefer people to think everything they did was real. When the hypnotist on your show, in this case Keith Barry, bills himself as a magician and mentalist, then we already know that he isn't going to tell us what he is really doing. It's tricks and illusions designed to make us think we are seeing one thing, when we are actually seeing something else.
Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that hypnotists on stage are unable to hypnotise people...what i am saying is that there really is no need to do that. The fact that people have been through several auditions to get on a show like Hypnotise Me means that they really want to play along. They want that elusive 15 minutes of fame that Andy Warhol talked about. You can bet that they will really do all that they can to be as entertaining as they can possibly imagine.
One Instagram user already commented about her opinion after attending a taping:
thefashioistachic : Went to a taping of a new game show #hypnotizeme hosted by @taydiggsinsta The show was silly, clearly scripted. It appears to be actors pretending to be hypnotized. This was a silly game show. Will probably be cancelled before even airing. We ended up leaving early.
SPOILER ALERT: If you DO NOT want to know some of the secrets of stage hypnosis then please do not watch the videos below as in them I talk all about the showmanship needed and give some explanations as to how stage hypnosis works and why the questions about whether Hypnotise Me is Real or Fake are able to be answered in more than one way...
Here's some interesting video's all about how it works with stage hypnosis and compliance based on the gameshow format itself..
Who is Keith Barry the hypnotist on Hypnotize Me?
Keith Barry is a well known Irish mentalist and hypnotist who uses lots of magic tricks in his act and that is interesting to note. He has also worked in Hollywood on movies such as the "Now You See Me" franchise, where he taght Woddy Harrellson how to hypnotise people. Stage hypnosis always uses lots of techniques from magic to help act as convincers to people and you should never forget that it is all about entertainment. This means that any stage hypnotist, like Keith Barry is looking out for people who want to perform, and especially for a television show such as You’re back in the Room where there were extensive auditions. Of course he is very capable of hypnotising people, but you do have to ask yourself how much that is really needed on a TV gameshow where people are after their 15 minutes of fame.
You're Back in the Room in New Zealand admits to using actors in their show
Are they using actors on Hypnotize Me? Well after the show made its debut in New Zealand they had to admit that two of the contestants were in fact actors and were happy to show themselves as such on social media. You may imagine that you would try and avoid that to stop any speculation, however that's not how it worked in the NZ version of the show hosted by Jason Gunn where the Hypnotist in charge is Peter Powers, a very well know hypnotist down under in Australia and New Zealand.
When you bear in mind that there were only four contestants, the fact the half of them were actors is not a good thing really is it? They were not introduced as actors of course, which makes it even more interesting that people may wonder why not?! The two actors were called a homemaker and a student instead.
But on her website she describes herself as "a hardcore actress" and says acting "is my passion". She goes on to explain how great she is at showcasing her different range of emotions.
So, have a think about why on earth you would use actors when the first thing people would ask is.. are they using actors? Perhaps we canit believe all that we see.
Update 2019 June..
When is Hypnotize me on TV?
Hypnotize Me premieres on CW on Wednesday August 7th. It runs from 9:00 pm to 10:pm EST
There are eight episodes in this series.
When is Hypnotize me with Taye Diggs on?
After what seems like a huge wait, approaching three years it seems that finally you will be able to see the new hypnosis gameshow hosted by Taye Diggs. AFter first being scheduled on Fox it is now going to be available on the CW network in the USA
“Hypnotize Me”
The Wrap reported that...HYPNOTIZE ME is a comedy game show, hosted by Taye Diggs. Based on the hit U.K. format (“You’re Back In The Room”), the show features physical comedy and unpredictable situations, as contestants work together in teams and are challenged to complete a variety of simple, everyday tasks, from frosting a cake to blowing up balloons…after being hypnotized. With big money at stake, these contestants need to work together as a team. However, their entranced states cause hysterical hurdles that not only sabotage their progress, but reveal aspects of their personalities neither they, their family nor their friends have ever before witnessed! The series also features award-winning hypnotist Keith Barry, who stars in the original U.K. show, as resident hypnotist. HYPNOTIZE ME is produced by Tuesday’s Child and BBCLA Productions with executive producers Karen Smith (“Lego Masters”) and Joe Sungkur (“Dancing With The Stars”).
