Sony and Mark Burnett launch Fantasy Island reality series

US studio Sony and super producer Mark Burnett are launching a reality format based on the classic drama series Fantasy Island.

The show will pitch contestants who compete to run a tropical island resort. They compete with one another by attempting to realise the fantasies of guests at the hotel, each of whom has a different set of demands. The winner of the challenge is nominated star performer of the week and is immune from elimination. One contestant is then voted off the island by the rest of the competitors.

Launching the show at MIPCOM, Mark Burnett was very keen to play up the fact that it will focus on rewarding deserving people.

“Twelve contestants compete to run a Fantasy Island resort and one is eliminated a week,” Burnett said. “It’s very important that the wishes fulfilled are those of deserving people. That’s very hard to do in a weekly competition, while still playing the game.”

Sony will distribute the series. No broadcaster is attached yet.

The original Fantasy Island series ran to nine seasons on the US ABC network, between 1978 and 1984. It focused on a mystery Pacific island where guests visited and lived out their fantasies