Summary

Controversial Japanese reality show trapped a man for 15 months with no outside contact until he won money through mail-in competitions.
Documentary ”
The Contestant
” explores the impact of reality TV on contestant Nasubi, comparing his experience to
The Truman Show’s
Truman Burbank.
Nasubi reflects on the psychological effects of isolation on reality show contestants, calling for better protection of participants.

One real person, living inside a world created entirely for television, cameras forever rolling, constantly being streamed 24/7 on Live TV. While that may sound like the plot of the 1998 Jim Carrey classic, The Truman Show, it was also the concept for a controversial Japanese reality show. Titled, Susunu! Denpa Shōnen (Do not proceed! Crazy youth), the series put one man alone in an apartment, with no connection to the outside world and no resources, until he won a certain amount of money through mail-in competitions. The show first aired in 1998, and it took the contestant 15 months to complete the challenge.

A new documentary from director Clair Titley, The Contestant, looks at the controversy surrounding the long-running show, and how its contestant, Tomoaki Hamatsu’s (better known as Nasubi), life has changed after leaving the series. Titley and Nasubi both sat down with Comicbook.com to promote the documentary’s premiere on Hulu, and Nasubi likened his experience to Truman Burbank’s experience in the ’98 ‘sci-fi’ movie.

“I felt like I’m the only one in the world that really truly understands the character’s feeling,” Nasubi said.

Unlike modern game shows, which are cut and edited into neat hour-long episodes, Susunu! Denpa Shōnen was live-streamed 24/7, just like The Truman Show. Nasubi said:

“I saw
The Truman Show
. When I saw it, even though it’s fiction, I felt like I’m the only one in the world that really truly understands the character’s feeling and what he went through. Nobody else but me, that’s how I felt. 25 years ago I was kind of a pioneer figure in the world of reality shows.”

Nasubi Blames Audiences’ Desire to Witness ‘Crazy Stuff’

Whether it’s for a game show with a cash prize or not, spending 15 months in isolation will have long-lasting psychological effects on anyone who undertakes such a monumental challenge (no matter how introverted they claim to be). Nasubi said he isn’t opposed to those kinds of reality shows, but says that he feels “very protective” of their contestants, given his own personal experience. Nasubi said:

“Now, more reality show type of things have been coming around. So I feel very protective of them, even though in this era there is more protection for the people who participate in reality shows, than the time 25 years ago when I was there. However, there are still some people who get hurt in the programs, some even end up ending their lives, and so on.”

Related Nasubi and the True Story of a Reality Show That Destroyed the Contestant’s Life Reality TV can put its competitors through cruel and unusual punishment, but none like the story of Nasubi, The Contestant.

Nasubi then went on to discuss why such game shows are being made. He likened audiences’ desire to a never ending cascade of one-upmanship, where each crazy idea has to be topped by another. Nasubi continued:

“And what the audience wants, it will always reflect on the TV shows. So the more radical stuff, the more crazy stuff the audience wants to see, the demand is there and then there will be a reality show that will provide that. So my wish is that all those people will be protected and don’t get hurt that much and do not produce any more victims anymore.”

The Contestant premiered in 2023 at the Toronto Film Festival. The documentary was recently made available on Hulu, premiering on May 2. The official synopsis reads:

”
The Contestant
is the incredible true story of a man who lived for 15 months trapped inside a small room, naked, starving and alone … and completely unaware that his life was being broadcast on national TV in Japan, to over 15 million viewers a week.”

The Contestant
is available to stream on Hulu.