Though Christmas has passed, Netflix continues to be the gift that keeps on giving. And what better gift to start our 2022 than the cast announcement for season 3 of Too Hot To Handle?
If you’re unfamiliar with the show, don’t worry; I’ll talk you through it. Basically, Netflix finds 10 extremely (and I mean extremely) horny and conventionally attractive wannabe-influencer types and drops them off at a sexy resort. However, as the contestants believe that they’re about to have a steamy, sexed-up summer, a little computer named Lana drops the bomb: They aren’t allowed to engage in any sexual activity and, if they do, money is deducted from the massive $100,000 prize fund. I’m talkin’ three grand for a kiss.
And while I can confidently say I would kill it on this show because I’m socially anxious and would rather lay inside in my oversized hoodie than kiss a stranger on national television, it’s hilarious to watch other, arguably much hotter, people struggle.
Plain and simple, the first season was full of tea. It was the show’s first go, so the twist came as a surprise to both the audience and the contestants. It was fun to watch them struggle with sexual urges and watch men complain about how their balls hurt (c’mon, that’s like, beta level). At the end of the day, none of us knew what to expect. And that was great.
So when the second season came out on June 23, 2021, I was instantly full of questions. Are the contestants going to know they’re on Too Hot To Handle going into it? What kind of horny masochist would willingly do that?
But when the season started, the audience learned (through the narrator) that the contestants were tricked into a false casting call, and thought they were on another show. Seems simple enough. I let it slide. That is, until I saw they used the same exact set as the season before. The same bedding, the same beachfront resort, the same iconic pool. All that was missing was Lana.
Even more than that, they used the same promo set to interview the contestants. The same LED lights in the same trendy little pattern. And I found myself wondering: How do they not know that they’re on Too Hot to Handle?!
Listen, I’m not the most detail-oriented person. And I’m probably the most gullible girlie on the block (I’m a Pisces, okay?). But even I could walk into some resort and instantly recognize it from a television show, let alone one as big as Too Hot to Handle. Following the premiere of the first season, the show was the #1 television program on Netflix during the week of April 20, 2020 (thanks, quarantine). And the second season boasted phenomenal ratings, with an estimated 29 million households tuning in, according to Deadline. So yeah, let’s just say it’s not niche.
And it’s not like these people are the off-the-grid, mountain-living types. Before the show, most of these people had pretty sizable social media followings. Francesca Farago, a contestant from season one, ex-girlfriend of Harry Jowsey, and weird hookup of Tana Mongeau, spilled to Esquire that she was actually contacted through Instagram DMs to interview for the show, which was pitched to her as your typical reality dating show. After two successful seasons, if you open any social media app, you’re bound to see stills from the show — including pictures of the set. I have a hard time believing that influencers who are extremely online wouldn’t think something is up.
Maybe the Too Hot To Handle ruse is something only really, really hot people fall for. But then again, I’m really hot. You’re really hot. And I know you wouldn’t be tricked into thinking that you’re on some other random show on Netflix.
As the show begins its third season on January 19, I am genuinely wondering how in the world these people could fall for this again (if Netflix chooses to make it a secret this season). Should I be worrying about exams? Probably. But instead, I’ll be watching promos, stalking hot contestants’ IG feeds, and waiting to see how Netflix pulls this one off. While I eat Taco Bell in my sweats, obviously.