''Prank Encounters'' is an American horror-themed

hidden camera A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obje ...

streaming television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air aer ...

series. It is a

prank show A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

recorded with hidden cameras. Each episode pairs two members of the public, strangers to one another, who are unwittingly introduced to each other by show actors, under the ruse of a tryout for a new job. Subsequently, a sequence of scares orchestrated by

Gaten Matarazzo Gaetano John Matarazzo III (; ; born September 8, 2002) is an American actor. He began his career on the Broadway stage as Benjamin in '' Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' (2011–12) and as Gavroche in ''Les Misérables'' (2014–15). Matara ...

occur in order to scare the participants for comedic value, with Matarazzo adapting the prank via headsets fed to the actors on the fly. The first 8-episode season debuted on October 25, 2019, on the

streaming service Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

Netflix. A second season was released on April 1, 2021, and consisted of 7 episodes.

Cast

* Jack Crawford * David Storrs *

Mary Gallagher Mary Gallagher is an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, actress, director and teacher. For six years, she was artistic director of Gypsy, a theatre company in the Hudson Valley, New York, which collaborated with many artists to create ...

* Sven Holmberg * Julian Gant * Peter Giles * Olivia DeLaurentis *

Episodes

Season 1 (2019)

Season 2 (2021)

Due to the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...

, this series was recorded with limited social distancing and was filmed during late 2020 and early 2021. The participants and actors were tested for COVID-19 before recording. The series was released on

April Fool's Day April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may ...

, in respect of the show's theme of

prank A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

ing.

Release

''Prank Encounters'' was released on October 25, 2019, on Netflix streaming.

Reception

The show has received negative reviews. Some viewers of the show have accused the reactions to the pranks of being entirely staged.

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had unfavorably compared the series to ''

Punk'd ''Punk'd'' is an American hidden camera–practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003. It was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, with Kutcher serving as producer and host. It bears a resemblance to both the ...

'' and criticized the reactions, stating "Netflix's ''Prank Encounters'' is a riff on ''Punk'd'', but it doesn't do anything to set itself apart. ..The reactions from the people getting pranked (who are not supposed to be actors) are so formal and stiff that it feels like watching bad improv."

Controversy

When the series was announced back in June 2019, there was controversy regarding the premise of the show being disrespectful towards people in search of employment. A spokesperson for

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

stated that individuals involved were financially compensated for their time and had fun being in the show. When the series launched later in October, the executive producer of the show, Kevin Healey, reassured to ''Entertainment Weekly'' that individuals pranked were aware the job they took was only for one night, and that they were indeed paid afterward. Matarazzo also responded to the initial controversy when the show was announced on his

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

account. Matarazzo stated, "Thank you guys for your concern for these people. It means so much to me and the rest of the producers of the show. We hope you enjoy the show, and we are very excited to show you all what we've created .." In March 2020, it was reported that Healey's former co-executive producer, Scott Hallock, sued him for creating a show that was similar to their series, ''

Scare Tactics ''Scare Tactics'' is an American comedy horror hidden camera television show, produced by Scott Hallock and Kevin Healey. Its first two seasons aired from April 2003 to December 2004. After a hiatus, the show returned for a third season, beginn ...

''.

References

External links

* * * {{Netflix original ended series (2019–present) 2019 American television series debuts 2021 American television series endings 2010s American reality television series 2010s American horror comedy television series 2020s American reality television series 2020s American horror comedy television series American hidden camera television series English-language Netflix original programming Practical jokes Television controversies in the United States