Hulu has officially picked up The Circle after Netflix ended the series. The reboot will feature celebrity contestants, audience voting, and live filming, although Hulu has not yet announced a premiere date.
“The Circle” is back — and it is bringing some major changes with it. After seven seasons on Netflix, the social experiment competition series has a new streaming home, a revamped format, and a twist that is going to change the game entirely. Here is everything we know so far.
How We Got Here
“The Circle” ran on Netflix for seven seasons. The streamer had not renewed the series since its seventh installment aired in October 2024. In the months that followed, Hulu secured the rights to the show from producer Studio Lambert — the same production company behind Peacock’s hit series “The Traitors.”
The move came after Rob Mills, EVP of Unscripted and Alternative Entertainment at Walt Disney Television, told Deadline in April that Hulu was making a concentrated push into serialized competition programming. The Circle fits squarely into that strategy.
What Is “The Circle”?
For anyone who has not watched the Netflix version, here is the premise. Contestants live in separate apartments within the same building and remain completely isolated from one another, communicating only through a dedicated app that allows text and photos. Players can choose to present themselves authentically or adopt entirely different personas — catfishing is not just allowed, it is often the strategy. The goal is to become the most popular player in the circle and walk away with the prize.
The show originally debuted on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, where it aired for three seasons from 2018 to 2021, before Netflix introduced an American adaptation in 2020. It was one of Netflix’s earliest breakout reality competition hits and later inspired international versions in France and Brazil.
What Is Changing for Hulu
The Hulu version is not a simple platform migration. It is a genuine format overhaul on two major fronts.
First, celebrities will compete alongside everyday players in a game of popularity where identity is ever-changing and anyone can be anyone. The Netflix version featured exclusively civilian contestants. Adding celebrities to the mix changes the dynamic significantly — a famous face playing as themselves is a target, but a famous face playing as someone else is a weapon.
Second, the Hulu version will introduce audience voting for the first time in the U.S., giving viewers the ability to shape the game as it unfolds. Filmed in real time, the Hulu version will let viewers follow developments as they happen, with twists and player ratings unfolding live and audience votes directly influencing the outcome.
The format echoes the real-time approach that has helped shows like “Love Island” generate conversation between episodes, suggesting Hulu is aiming for a similar week-to-week social media presence.
Who Is Behind It
The series is produced by Studio Lambert alongside Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions and Motion Entertainment, with veteran producer Susan House serving as showrunner. House executive produced the Netflix series and has also worked on ABC’s The Bachelor. Executive producers for Studio Lambert include Tim Harcourt, Jack Burgess, Niall O’Driscoll, and Stephen Lambert, while Manning, Jamie Horowitz, and Colin Campbell will executive produce for Omaha Productions.
One notable absence from the confirmed team: Michelle Buteau. Buteau hosted all seven Netflix seasons and became closely associated with the franchise, making her absence from the initial announcement particularly noticeable.
As shown in the video above, she has recently confirmed on Andy Cohen’s “Watch What Happens Live” that she will not be returning.
What We Do Not Know Yet
Quite a bit. Hulu has not announced a premiere date or host for the new Circle. The full cast will be revealed at a later date. No casting call has officially opened, though applications are expected soon.
What is confirmed is that “The Circle” is no longer just changing platforms. Between celebrity contestants, real-time filming, and audience voting, Hulu is rebuilding one of Netflix’s biggest reality franchises from the ground up. Whether those changes improve the game is something viewers will find out soon enough.
All seven seasons of The Circle are currently streaming on Netflix while you wait.
Read next:
- Where Is Sammie Cimarelli From ‘The Circle’ Season 1 Now?
- Who Is Shubham “Shooby” Goel? ‘The Circle’ Star’s Career & Netflix Shows — Where He Is Now
- Who Is Nick Uhlenhuth? ‘The Circle’ Star’s Netflix Journey & What’s Next
- Who Is Chloe Veitch? Her Netflix Career & Where She Is Now
- Where Is Joey Sasso From ‘The Circle’ Now?
For more “The Circle” content, click here.
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