Wondering if ‘Single's Inferno’ cast members earn any money? The truth is surprisingly complicated
Although the last four seasons of 'Single's Inferno' on Netflix brought to the table some of the most chaotic and wild love-triangles, pacts, and betrayals, the ongoing Season 5 is working hard to break all previous records. As the latest instalment of the Korean reality television cum dating show marches through the middle batch of episodes, one can get a sense of why it reigned atop Netflix's Top 10 list for several weeks. Thereafter, one can't help but wonder, how much do the contestants of 'Single's Inferno' Season 5 get paid?
As confirmed by Dexerto in 2024, 'Single's Inferno' doesn't have a cash prize that is awarded to the winners on the show, contrary to other popular gaming shows like 'The Traitors'. Furthermore, as of this writing, Netflix hasn't revealed whether the contestants are paid per episode. On the surface, it seems 'Single's Inferno' offers its contestants little more than the prospect of finding a romantic partner on the show.
But it's not just about the money. It is well known that 'Single's Inferno' is an immensely popular show, and Season 3 is said to have amassed 71 million views on the streaming platform. The first two seasons had fared similarly well. Therefore, being a contestant on the show enables them to savour the spotlight, which is seldom accorded to them by any other show. This was repudiated by the case of Season 3 contestant Choi Hye-Seon, who had 3,000 followers on his Instagram page at the time of his entry into the show. By the time he walked away from the show, the same follower count had catapulted to 1.2 million.
Pop Rant has aptly summarized the ongoing Season 5 as one of the most chaotic to date. From the ritzy premiere episode onward, the focus has been on Choi Mina Sue, who has brought a new trend of love quadrangles to the show. The most interesting example of such a quadrangle now involves Mina Sue, Woo Seung-min, Kim Go-eun, and Jo I-geon, with Shin Hyeon-woo. The result has been unprecedented chaos, betrayals, and heartbreaks on a massive scale.
The fifth, sixth, and seventh episodes have also featured the mid-season 'game-changers', bringing in two new players. The first game-changer contestant is Lee Ha-eun, who is a hip-hop dancer and beauty model. On the other hand, Jo I-geon is the second game-changer, a 34-year-old actor and dancer. 'Singe's Inferno' involves a group of young and eligible bachelors who are stranded on the island known as 'Inferno'. The game's format requires them to leave the island only for the Paradise dates.
