{"id":812938,"date":"2026-07-20T20:40:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T20:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/812938\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T20:40:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T20:40:10","slug":"networks-at-war-inside-the-battle-for-im-a-celebrity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/812938\/","title":{"rendered":"Networks at war: Inside the battle for I\u2019m A Celebrity"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A TV insider has revealed the behind the scenes battle that Australia\u2019s biggest networks fought to gain the rights to air a new series of I\u2019m A Celebrity&#8230; Get Me Out Of Here!<\/p>\n<p>Network 10 announced back in May that it had <a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.news.com.au\/entertainment\/tv\/reality-tv\/seven-poaches-im-a-celeb-after-ten-rested-tv-show\/news-story\/1df644f9966be1e8e02b951b5baf682b\" data-tgev=\"event119\" data-tgev-container=\"bodylink\" data-tgev-order=\"1df644f9966be1e8e02b951b5baf682b\" data-tgev-label=\"entertainment\" data-tgev-metric=\"ev\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">decided to axe the iconic reality series<\/a> from its schedule, giving rivals the chance to bid for the show. <\/p>\n<p>Following <a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.news.com.au\/entertainment\/tv\/reality-tv\/julia-morris-addresses-rumour-im-a-celeb-will-return-without-her\/news-story\/5a5206435d326519ccc38744be8ed31a\" data-tgev=\"event119\" data-tgev-container=\"bodylink\" data-tgev-order=\"5a5206435d326519ccc38744be8ed31a\" data-tgev-label=\"entertainment\" data-tgev-metric=\"ev\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">weeks of rumours regarding its future<\/a>, it was revealed earlier this month that Seven had beaten off stiff competition and poached the show for itself. <\/p>\n<p>The news came almost two months after Ten confirmed I\u2019m A Celeb would not be part of its 2027 line-up, but had insisted the show was simply being \u201crested\u201d rather than axed for good.<\/p>\n<p>Now, a TV insider has revealed what went down behind the scenes as rival networks fought tooth and nail for the hugely popular show.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNine genuinely wanted the show,\u201d the TV insider told <a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.skynews.com.au\/lifestyle\/celebrity-life\/inside-the-threenetwork-bidding-war-for-im-a-celebrity-get-me-out-of-here-and-tens-lastditch-effort-to-save-reality-series\/news-story\/e5257f476b60eb930845933fac9543f2\" data-tgev=\"event119\" data-tgev-container=\"bodylink\" data-tgev-order=\"e5257f476b60eb930845933fac9543f2\" data-tgev-label=\"lifestyle\" data-tgev-metric=\"ev\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sky News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey saw it as a proven tentpole that could comfortably sit between two of their biggest franchises and give audiences another major event series.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The source claims that Nine\u2019s pitch for the show may have seen the it moved back Down Under as a prerecorded series. <\/p>\n<p>Viewers notably complained about the latest series being prerecorded, with many taking to social media while the season was airing to share their grievances with the format. <\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"poster-img\" src=\"https:\/\/content.api.news\/v3\/images\/bin\/2832247ecdbb148eacda48126433281a\" data-sctrack=\"op-poster-img\" alt=\"I\u2019m A Celeb finalists reflect on top moments from the show\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/p>\n<p>It wasn\u2019t only Nine that was interested in reviving the show, however. <\/p>\n<p>The insider claims that Ten ended up having second thoughts about axing the show, and at the eleventh hour \u201crealised what they\u2019d lost\u201d. <\/p>\n<p id=\"U1015659076970lB\">MORE: <a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.news.com.au\/entertainment\/awards\/logies\/all-the-2026-logie-nominations-revealed\/news-story\/f15c3d3329ae54248ca9e06567d30d52\" data-tgev=\"event119\" data-tgev-container=\"bodylink\" data-tgev-order=\"f15c3d3329ae54248ca9e06567d30d52\" data-tgev-label=\"entertainment\" data-tgev-metric=\"ev\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">I\u2019m A Celeb stars up for Gold Logies<\/a><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s believed one of the problems for Ten was finding the right talent for a new series after \u201cexhausting their established pool of talent\u201d with previous seasons. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019d already used a significant portion of their established talent pool,\u201d one source alleged.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFinding enough recognisable personalities who hadn\u2019t already appeared on the show was becoming increasingly difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As the power struggle for the show went on, Seven reportedly came in with the \u201cstrongest\u201d vision for the franchise, which has been declining in popularity in recent years after becoming a somewhat stale format. <\/p>\n<p>Seven reportedly pitched a \u201crefreshed\u201d version for the iconic show, with plans to draw from it\u2019s array of in-house talent.<\/p>\n<p>When the network announced that it would be taking over the franchise, a spokesperson for the broadcaster teased that it plans to bring a \u201cfresh energy\u201d to the ageing show. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m A Celebrity&#8230; Get Me Out Of Here! is one of the world\u2019s most recognisable entertainment formats and we\u2019re incredibly excited to welcome it to Seven in 2027,\u201d said Southern Cross Media Group\u2019s Managing Director, Television and Streaming, Angus Ross.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a proven franchise with a passionate fan base and we look forward to bringing our own fresh energy and ambition to its next chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A TV insider has revealed the behind the scenes battle that Australia\u2019s biggest networks fought to gain the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":812939,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[387837,387858,387867,387879,89838,387854,387849,387851,387875,387869,387872,387888,387859,387876,387883,387856,387877,387866,381288,387832,387850,266424,387840,64,172001,63,20871,387841,387847,134,387846,387839,387855,387857,387885,387886,377861,387860,16761,4758,378577,387845,387873,6622,1917,51393,387887,380174,127249,387834,283723,81330,387852,47714,1314,357148,106656,19023,387868,45060,387881,387882,387848,387836,376648,376941,387884,379824,379840,387871,387864,387880,387838,376832,387842,387844,242087,387862,387833,376754,387870,383974,387835,387853,384482,387878,356269,387863,60939,376867,387843,54798,387861,387865,387874,385613,387648,36191,301712,6900,29258],"class_list":["post-812938","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-s-array","tag-s-biggest-networks","tag-s-managing-director","tag-s-pitch","tag-89838","tag-a-fresh-energy","tag-a-refreshed-version","tag-a-celeb","tag-a-celeb-finalists","tag-a-celeb-stars","tag-a-celebrity","tag-a-new-series","tag-a-passionate-fan-base","tag-a-prerecorded-series","tag-a-proven-franchise","tag-a-proven-tentpole","tag-a-significant-portion","tag-a-somewhat-stale-format","tag-a-spokesperson","tag-a-tv-insider","tag-almost-two-months","tag-angus-ross","tag-another-major-event-series","tag-au","tag-audiences","tag-australia","tag-camp","tag-earlier-this-month","tag-enough-recognisable-personalities","tag-entertainment","tag-entertainment-formats","tag-gold-logiesit","tag-good-now","tag-in-house-talent-when","tag-its-2027-line-up","tag-its-future","tag-its-next-chapter","tag-its-schedule","tag-network-10","tag-networks","tag-one-source","tag-only-nine","tag-our-own-fresh-energy-and-ambition","tag-part","tag-plans","tag-popularity","tag-previous-seasons","tag-recent-years","tag-recognisable","tag-rival-networks","tag-rivals","tag-rumours","tag-second-thoughts","tag-sky-news","tag-social-media","tag-southern-cross-media-group","tag-stiff-competition","tag-talent","tag-television-and-streaming","tag-ten","tag-the-strongest-vision","tag-the-ageing-show","tag-the-battle","tag-the-behind-the-scenes-battle","tag-the-broadcaster","tag-the-chance","tag-the-eleventh-hour","tag-the-format","tag-the-franchise","tag-the-hugely-popular-show","tag-the-iconic-reality-series","tag-the-iconic-series","tag-the-iconic-show","tag-the-insider","tag-the-intense","tag-the-jungle-it","tag-the-last-day","tag-the-latest-series","tag-the-network","tag-the-news","tag-the-power-struggle","tag-the-problems","tag-the-right-talent","tag-the-rights","tag-the-scenes","tag-the-scenes-war","tag-the-season","tag-the-secret-battle","tag-the-show","tag-the-source","tag-the-tv-insider","tag-the-world","tag-their-biggest-franchises","tag-their-established-pool","tag-their-established-talent-pool","tag-their-grievances","tag-their-time","tag-tooth-and-nail","tag-viewers","tag-war","tag-weeks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/812938","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=812938"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/812938\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/812939"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=812938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=812938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=812938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}