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It’s not often that “Game Changer” host Sam Reich is the person on the show’s colorful set made to look anxious. But the latest episode of the Dropout series begins with not just a push-in but some vignetting on Reich as he stares down the barrel of the endless wheel of content creation, coming up with “Game Changer” ideas one after the other, “backing myself further and further into a corner where it’s harder and harder to be original.” It’s real Season 7 problems.

Enter players Mike Trapp, Rekha Shankar, and Jordan Myrick, whom Reich deputized to produce the latest episode of “Game Changer” — or really, to produce the things that keep “Game Changer” inside of a virtuous cycle for online comedy series. The show’s segments get broken out into social clips, and those that perform well drive viewers who discover “Game Changer,” “Make Some Noise,...

From the very first episode of “Game Changer” — in which players were confronted with a lie detector machine that was revealed to be under the control of their significant others — the show has played with making and breaking classic game show and comedy formats. The Dropout series has continually tried to “one-up” and “yes-and” itself over the course of its run. Looking toward Season 7 of “Game Changer” on an episode of the Filmmaker Toolkit Podcast, the show’s host and mostly gentle dom Sam Reich wasn’t sure how “Game Changer” was going to keep topping itself.

The answers to that worry are starting to come in, now that Season 7 has opened with “One Year Later,” wherein Reich gives players Vic Michaelis, Lou Wilson, and Jacob Wysocki one calendar year to complete a series of tasks, ranging from keeping a sourdough starter alive to getting the most followers on a...

“Game Changer” is officially returning on Dropout starting April 7, with the ten-episode Season 7 dropping episodes biweekly on the comedy streaming service.

This season’s cast includes Brennan Lee Mulligan, Vic Michaelis, Lisa Gilroy, Lou Wilson and Oscar Montoya as the game show changes its premise every episode. Last season, the contestants faced unpredictable challenges revolving around art, bingo, trivia questions and false personas.

The show is hosted and executive produced by Dropout CEO Sam Reich, with co-executive producers including Chloe Badner, Ryan Creamer, Sam Geer, Mulligan and Paul Robalino. Sam Geer edited and directed all ten episodes.

In other TV Roundup News:

Executive News

Eli Baldrige has been promoted to EVP of development at A. Smith & Co. Productions, where he will continue to lead unscripted television.

Since joining the company in 2018, Aldridge has served as VP and SVP of development. He spearheaded the development process on Magnolia Network’s...

We're still not over the end of "Star Trek: Lower Decks," and to be quite honest, we might never be. Every "Star Trek" fan loves "Lower Decks." Well, at least all of us here at /Film do -- I can't speak for any of the contrarian weirdos out there who hate fun or are somehow allergic to animation. Fans have become extremely attached to the cast, and their voices now rattle around in the dark recesses of our brains. Whenever I do a rewatch of "Craig of the Creek" (another show coming to an end too soon), I feel my heart break a little whenever Noël Wells' voice as Kelsey creeps into sounding like her "Lower Decks" character, Ensign D'Vana Tendi. I'm just not ready to admit that it's really over.

Fortunately, it's not like all of these beloved performers are being launched out of an airlock and forced to...

The second season of indie streamer Dropout’s Rekha Shankar-hosted “Smartypants” is set to debut in the first quarter of 2025 with numerous guest stars lined up for the new batch of episodes, including Hank Green.

Per the second season description, “Join more secret gatherings of the Smartypants Society! Host Rekha Shankar welcomes new and returning members to share their bold ideas, controversial takes, and unhinged theories in a series of presentations that will change everything you thought you knew about the world.”

Along with Green, notable cast members featured across the 15 episodes in “Smartypants” Season 2, which wrapped production last week, include Alexis Nikole Nelson, Alyssa Limperis, Cameron Esposito, Courtney Miller, Demi Adejuyigbe, Max Burkholder and Vinny Thomas.

The first season of “Smartypants” debuted on Dropout in April and ran through August. It consisted of nine episodes.

The full list of “Smartypants” Season 2 new and returning guest stars also includes Anna Garcia,...

Apple TV+ has released the trailer for “Silo” Season 2. Based on Hugh Howey’s trilogy of dystopian sci-fi novels, the second season premieres Nov. 15 with new episodes airing every Friday until Jan. 17.

According to an official logline, “‘Silo’ is the story of the last ten thousand people on earth, their mile-deep home protecting them from the toxic and deadly world outside. However, no one knows when or why the silo was built and those who try to find out face fatal consequences. Rebecca Ferguson stars as Juliette, an engineer who seeks answers about a loved one’s murder and tumbles onto a mystery that goes far deeper than she could have ever imagined, leading her to discover that if the lies don’t kill you, the truth will.”

Steve Zahn joins the Season 2 cast, starring alongside Ferguson, Tim Robbins, Common, Harriet Walter, Chinaza Uche, Avi Nash, Alexandria Riley, Shane McRae,...

Indie streamer Dropout has set the full guest-star lineup for the second season of its Vic Michaelis-hosted comedic interview series “Very Important People.”

“Very Important People” features Michaelis as the host of a standard talk show series with a twist: all interview subjects receive makeovers before sitting down to chat and then must immediately invent a character to play during the interview.

Following the Aug. 14 announcement of the guest stars for the first eight episodes of “Very Important People” Season 2, which debuts Nov. 7, Dropout has confirmed that Episodes 9-16 will star Bobby Moynihan (“Saturday Night Live”), Nicole Byer (“Nailed It!”), Echo Kellum (“Arrow”), Corin Wells (“A Black Lady Sketch Show”), Alex Song-Xia (“Rick & Morty”) and Paul Robalino (“Smarypants”).

Additionally, “Very Important People” Season 1 guests Brennan Lee Mulligan (“Dimension 20”), Izzy Roland (“Sex Lives of College Girls”) and Lisa Gilroy (“Glamorous”) will return in new roles.

Left to right: Bobby Moynihan,...

Indie streamer Dropout has set the second season premiere date for its Vic Michaelis-hosted comedic interview series “Very Important People,” and revealed five new guest stars joining the lineup for Season 2.

“Very Important People” features Michaelis as the host of a standard talk show series with a twist: all interview subjects receive makeovers before sitting down to chat and then must immediately invent a character to play during the interview.

New cast members booked for an improvised interview in “Very Important People” Season 2 include John Early (“Search Party”) and Kate Berlant (“Don’t Worry Darling”), Danielle Pinnock (“Ghosts”), Chris Redd (“Saturday Night Live”) and Paul F. Tompkins (“Bojack Horseman”).

Left to right: Kate Berlant (Photo Credit: Sela Shiloni); Danielle Pinnock (Courtesy photo); Paul F. Tompkins (Courtesy photo); Chris Redd (Photo Credit: Chris Haston/NBC); John Early (Photo Credit: Michael Tyrone Delaney).

Dropout will launch the first episode of “Very Important People” Season 2 Nov.

Nothing beats a funny kids show set in a big ol' wacky house. An entire generation was raised on television programs that brought them into the wild world of some endearing homeowner, with hosts like Mr. Rogers creating safe spaces for every youthful viewer tuning in. Making these was truly an art, the creators somehow imbuing each episode with a joyful energy that turns a simple house into an endless adventure for all. An energy that Mont's Slumber Party captures perfectly. Created by Paul Robalino and streaming on Dropout TV, it focuses on famous Drag Queen Mont X Change, a glamorous performer who's wowed fans with international tours and her stellar performance on the groundbreaking reality program RuPaul's Drag Race.

Lots of people started watching “The Circle” during the Covid lockdown. But only Sam Reich and the team at Dropout have been able to fully create their own parody version, one that is even a little bit truer to the spirit of the idea. For the “Game Changer” Season 6 two-part finale, “The Ratfish,” the team rented out a hotel floor’s worth of rooms and tricked them out to reflect the vibes of seven Dropout cast members playing a guessing game of sorts.

Each came up with a fake persona and, in order to win a billboard for whatever they wanted to promote on Hollywood Boulevard, were given a goal: Interact with each other via chat to correctly guess which persona is being played by which cast member without being ID’d themselves — but of course they were not told that the eighth player Among Us (or them) wasn’t...

What might make a game of bingo more interesting than your standard gymnasium raffle affair? Well, comedians answering humorous prompts to get bingo balls would spice it up. So would a secret set of players hidden in a green room looking to achieve bingo — not by checking off numbers on a board, but by tracking the quirks and behavior of their friends playing the first game. So would an even more secret set of players trying to get bingo based on the green room players’ interactions with each other and the film crew. That’s the idea behind “Bingo,” the fifth episode in Season 6 of the relentlessly inventive show “Game Changer.”

The Dropout series is described by host Sam Reich at the top of each episode as “the only game show where the game changes every show.” Six seasons of new games — and new twists on “game samers” — lock the...

The two-part season finale of Dropout’s hit game series “Game Changer,” originally scheduled to premiere on May 20, has been delayed “to allow for more time in the edit.”

On Monday, Sam Reich, host and Dropout CEO, announced on social media: “Scheduling Update: we’re pushing the 2-part Game Changer season finale to allow for more time in the edit. It’s one of the most complicated episodes we’ve ever done (you’ll see why). Part 1 will now launch on Dropout on June 3rd, and Part 2 on June 17th.”

Despite the delay, the sixth season, which featured seven episodes, surpasses the six-episode minimum requirement for submission for the outstanding game show category. According to current Emmy rules, the two-part finale will compete as part of the upcoming seventh season when it airs during the next eligibility window. This is consistent with other competition and game shows with multiple seasons competing as one,...

Indie streaming platform Dropout, formerly known as CollegeHumor, is vying for a spotlight at this year’s Primetime Emmys with an ambitious campaign to secure its first major nominations. With a passionate and niche audience, Variety has learned exclusively about Dropout’s top contenders submitted for Emmy love, including the innovative game show “Game Changer” and the unique interview series “Very Important People.”

“Game Changer,” a standout series hosted by Dropout CEO Sam Reich, turns the traditional game show format on its head. Each episode introduces a new game, but the twist is that the three comedian contestants are clueless about the rules until the game begins. The blend of improv comedy and fierce competition has not only captivated audiences but also spawned three successful spinoffs: “Dirty Laundry,” “Make Some Noise” and “Play It by Ear.”

Two of the season’s funniest episodes, “Sam Says 3” (featuring Jacob Wysocki’s epic...