''You've Got A Friend'' is a 2004 reality

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

program on MTV, produced by

Ashton Kutcher Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer, entrepreneur, and former model. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a People's Choice Award, and nominations for two Young Artist Awards, a S ...

and

Jason Goldberg Jason Goldberg (born 1972) is an American film and television producer. Goldberg is the producer of the films ''Guess Who'' and ''The Butterfly Effect'' and executive producer of the shows ''Beauty and the Geek'' and ''Punk'd''. He often works ...

And Jeff Fisher. It was launched near the same time as their reality prank show

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 although successful in ratings, was cancelled at the end of the first season so they could focus on its more popular counterpart. The program filmed contestants having to tolerate a 'friend' for 48 hours, while filmed on hidden camera in their home and different public settings. The 'friend' would be a trained improvisational comedian, who would progressively torment the contestant, their friends and loved ones. The catch was that the friends and family of the contestant were unaware of the

folie à deux Folie à deux ('folly of two', or 'madness haredby two'), also known as shared psychosis or shared delusional disorder (SDD), is a collection of rare psychiatric syndromes in which symptoms of a delusional belief, and sometimes hallucinations, ...

. If able to endure the embarrassment caused by the irreverent demands of the friend, the contestant would win a cash prize.

Reality comedy premise

The program filmed contestants interacting with friends and loved ones, with only the contestants aware they were on a television show. To win, the contestant had to convince friends and family over 48 hours that a trained improvisational comedian was their new ' best friend.' The contestant would not know the identity of the actor ahead of time, but only meet him while having a meal with friends at a restaurant. They would know the game had begun when the actor entered the dining area and said the phrase: "Hello, stranger!" The actor would then slowly but relentlessly torment the contestant, acting bizarre, and asking them to commit irreverent acts to prove their friendship, to the chagrin and concern of their real friends and family. Examples included the 'friend' demanding contestants shave their heads and eyebrows, break up with their girlfriends or boyfriends, or arrange meetings with loved ones to tell them the contestant was moving to Hollywood to start a new life with the 'friend'. The actor would even cause contestants to lose their actual jobs. The premise was to embarrass the contestant and progressively disrupt their personal lives as the program continued. At the end of 48 hours, if the contestant followed all direction and proved their friendship, they would receive a cash prize of $15,000.

Improvisational comedians

Notable among actors playing the 'friend' on the program was a young

Crista Flanagan Crista Flanagan (born February 24, 1976) is an American actress and comedian, best known for her work as a cast member on the Fox sketch comedy series ''MADtv'' from 2005 to 2009, various roles in films made by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, ...

, before her time on

Mad TV ''Mad TV'' (stylized as ''MADtv'') is an American sketch comedy television series originally inspired by '' Mad'' magazine. In its initial run, it aired on Fox from 1995 to 2009. After a one-off reunion show in 2015 to celebrate the twentiet ...

and

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...

Joe Hursley Joseph Gregory Hursley (born March 19, 1979) is an actor and musician living in Los Angeles, California. Early life Hursley was born in Austin, Texas. His great-grandfather is Frank M. Hursley, co-creator of ''General Hospital'', the longest ...

also played the 'friend' for several episodes, becoming progressively more sinister as the program progressed. He later worked with Kutcher on Punk'd, and was lead singer for

The Ringers The Ringers were a Los Angeles–based rock band formed in 2006. They broke up in 2010. Band members were Joe Hursley (vocals, guitar), Joe Robinson (lead guitar), Joe Stiteler (bass), and Patrick Hursley (drums). They released their second full- ...

before moving on to the Indians.

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 0443718 2000s American comedy television series 2000s British comedy television series 2004 American television series debuts 2004 American television series endings 2004 British television series debuts 2004 British television series endings 2000s American reality television series 2000s British reality television series English-language television shows American hidden camera television series Television series by Tiger Aspect Productions MTV reality television series

Reality comedy premise

Improvisational comedians

See also

References

External links