Faced with the worrying drop in audiences and the dissatisfaction of the public, who deplore too many changes in the casting, the production of “Tomorrow belongs to us” hopes to raise the bar and “save” the series. Explanations.
Less than a year after the launch last August of season 5 of Tomorrow belongs to us, accompanied by numerous changes, including the airing of a new credits signed Vianney, the observation is clear: mayonnaise does not did not take and the daily soap is, in part, the cost of this reboot badly received by the fans of the first hour.
Watched by 3.37 million viewers on average the year of its launch, for an audience share of 22.4%, as recalled by our colleagues from Parisian in an article published this weekend, Tomorrow belongs to us has shown a drop in audience since the start of 2021. Which has accelerated further in recent months.
Friday, only 2.7 million faithful were in front of the soap opera around 7:10 p.m. But it is above all on the favored target of advertisers, the famous woman in charge of purchases under 50, that the shoe pinches since the same episode shows an audience share of only 16% on this indicator. Which is not enough for a channel like TF1, for which a score below 20% is often considered a failure.
Tomorrow belongs to us weakened by an overflow of changes?
So why such a drop in audience? Obviously, the arrival of the spin-off Here it all begins is partly in question since the series carried by Aurélie Pons, Vanessa Demouy or even Nicolas Anselmo has given a significant boost to the parent series.
Launched in front of 3.8 million onlookers on November 2, 2020 on TF1, for a market share of 23% on the FRDA-50, Here it all begins continues, unlike Tomorrow belongs to us, to post very good scores on targets, and in particular on young people (31% of 15-24 year olds on March 17, for example).
But the drop in DNA audiences can also be explained by less strong plots for more than a year now and by numerous departures (Anne Caillon, Linda Hardy, Juliette Tresanini, Théo Cosset, Rani Bheemuck, Audrey Looten, … ) which displeased the public.
A fan base that has also struggled to get used to the slew of new characters introduced since last summer and who are embodied by Emmanuel Moire, Jennifer Lauret, Charlotte Gaccio, Alexandre Varga, Xavier Deluc, Maxime Lélue and even Adher .
Telsete/TF1
The revival hoped for with the reboot operated in season 5 and the new image quality of the series is therefore not there, and Le Parisien reveals that Marc Kressmann, appointed collection director and artistic producer of Tomorrow belongs to us l last year, is already leaving his post. Replaced at the head of the screenwriters by Nicolas Brossette and Sarah Belhassen.
Will they manage to raise the bar? The future will tell. Even if Vincent Meslet, the former producer of Tomorrow belongs to us who became general manager of the Newen group, tempers the drop in audience by explaining that the quality of the series and the changes on the casting side cannot be held solely responsible in this period. complicated at the level of the news.
“We must contextualize the audience figures”he explains at the microphone of the Parisian. “There are exogenous elements, such as the health crisis which has greatly disrupted the teams and complicated the work of production.
Added to this is a particular topicality. The Olympic Games, Ukraine, the presidential campaign… have changed the daily life of the French people. Our appointment which, in theory, builds loyalty, has been destabilized by these events”.
“The next season is going towards stabilization”
In any case, the machine seems to be in motion on the side of TF1 and Newen to “save” Tomorrow belongs to us and bring the public back to the Sète intrigues of Chloé Delcourt (Ingrid Chauvin) and Alex Bertrand (Alexandre Brasseur).
In addition to a long-term plot centered on the rapprochement between Victoire (Solène Hébert) and Samuel (Axel Kiener), both very popular with fans, the current main arc, entitled “Murder Party”, brings back to life a buried secret. And highlights the young adults in the series, including Bart (Hector Langevin), Gabriel (Martin Mille), and Charlie (Clémence Lassalas), who had moved into the background in recent months in favor of “new teens”. With a good dose of thriller and mystery.
Telsete/TF1
“We’re going back to basics, with crime fiction, intergenerational intrigue, all anchored in Sète”continues Vincent Meslet, whose group, Newen, also produces Here everything begins and Plus belle la vie. “Our great obsession is to renew ourselves. This is the case for our three soap operas. We test a lot of things, the public needs to be surprised”.
And to add: “With DNA, we may have gone a bit quickly. It would have been worth making the changes more gradually. The next season is going towards stabilization, there will be few new characters”.
Good news for viewers loyal to the post, who will thus be able to continue to enjoy the emblematic figures of the series while getting to know the new characters a little better, such as François Lehaut and Raphaëlle Perraud, portrayed respectively by Emmanuel Moire and Jennifer Lauret.
And everything suggests that the summer arch, currently in writing, will be decisive in its ability to captivate or not for weeks during the public. Like in the good old days of the summer intrigues of 2018 and 2019 which smelled good of the saga with their revelations about Chloe’s past and the famous Lazzari secret which had turned the lives of Sandrine and Victoire upside down.