DUBAI: MBC’s reality survival game show “Million Dollar Land” has returned for a second season, with 30 contestants from across the Arab world navigating grueling challenges in Saudi Arabia’s NEOM desert for a shot at the grand $1 million prize.
The show, comprising 13 episodes and 60 dailies, promises unpredictable and jaw-dropping twists as participants compete over 30 days in new games that will be revealed throughout the series.
“The second season brings with it numerous surprises — from structural changes to the format, to new layers of competition, narrative, and thrill,” said Bassam Al-Braikan, general manager of public relations and corporate communications at MBC Group.
He noted that the second season comes after the show’s overwhelming success two years ago, with updates and enhancements introduced.
The game show, a spin-off of the Dutch “Million Dollar Island” from Talpa Studios, will see participants from different countries and professions partaking in challenges that test their endurance in the harsh desert life, survival skills and mental and physical resilience.
Upon arrival, participants receive bracelets worth $10,000 each. Their goal is to collect as many bracelets as possible through various challenges.
To survive, they need to form the right alliances, friendships, and secret pacts as they chase the grand prize.
“While the main rules of building alliances and strategies to gather the biggest number of bracelets are the same in the second season, viewers can expect new twists and turns. There are changes in the gameplay, unexpected twists, and new clashes among contestants,” Jenane Mandour, the show’s director, told Arab News at the program’s exclusive screening at Vox Cinemas at the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai.
Mandour added that the number of contestants has been reduced to 30 from the first season’s 100 participants “to introduce a change from the first season and to get to know each and every candidate more and focus on their stories.”
Contestants were selected through a wide casting search of candidates between 18 and 70 years old, provided they had no pre-existing health issues.
“Conditions are harsh in the desert, and not anyone can handle the hot and dry climate. Participants need to have mental resilience and strategic thinking to be able to gather as many bracelets as possible,” said Mandour.
However, to ensure players’ safety, organizers set clear guidelines and kept a 24-hour medical team on site for any emergencies.
On the question of whether only one winner walks away with the grand prize, Mandour said “you have to watch till the end to know.
“Like in all game shows, participants have to play hard and well to earn the $1 million.”
The Dubai-based TV company Blue Engine Studios executive produced the Arabic version of the show for MBC and the third season of the Dutch “Million Dollar Desert” for NET5 in NEOM, which has emerged as a burgeoning audiovisual production hub.
Ziad Kebbe, CEO of Blue Engine Studios, said that “Million Dollar Land” fills a gap in regional reality TV and aims to respond to viewer demand.
“Reality competitions are a major component of television content globally. These shows put everyday people in unpredictable and sometimes harsh conditions, prompting the audience to ask: ‘What would I do in their place?’,” said Kebbe.
On choosing NEOM as the filming location, Kebbe described it as “visually cinematic and historically significant. It’s not just filming a show; it’s capturing the story of a nation reinventing itself.”
Saudi actor Mohammed Elshehri, who hosted the show, told Arab News that “Million Dollar Land” presented “a mini model of reality,” making it a layered social experiment.
“It was fascinating to see how people changed on a daily basis physically and mentally under pressure.”
The reaction of contestants to participants who withdrew also served as a reminder of the impact people make on each other, said Elshehri.
“What surprised me consistently was seeing people cry when someone withdraws even though they haven’t known each other for a long time. Difficult conditions create powerful bonds, and the reason why people cried over some people and not others reminded me that it’s the impact you have on people that makes you unforgettable,” he added.
The program also highlighted the importance of withholding judgment, he said. “Viewers might see a participant’s choice as wrong, but in that moment — with limited information — it may have been their only option. Right or wrong is subjective.”
For Elshehri, the show helped expand his reach to different audiences across the Arab world, beyond Saudi Arabia.
The second season of “Million Dollar Land” will broadcast every Wednesday night on MBC Group’s TV channels and on Shahid from April 9.
