Belgian distribution company Be-Entertainment has secured the international distribution rights to the Dutch entertainment format Make Up Your Mind, the company reported. The format, created by production company Herriemakers for RTL4, is currently in its sixth season in the Netherlands.
How the format works
Make Up Your Mind is a studio-based guessing game that blends celebrity performance, drag culture and light-panelroom competition. In each episode, celebrities adopt a full drag persona — complete with elaborate makeup, costumes and a stage persona — while hiding their real identity from two rival panels and the studio audience. The panellists and viewers try to identify which famous face is behind each queen, while the disguised celebrities aim to advance through the show by lip-syncing and performing convincingly.
- Production origin: Created by Herriemakers for RTL4 in the Netherlands.
- Current status: In its sixth season on Dutch television.
- Existing local adaptations: Germany, Belgium and Italy.
- Air slot in the Netherlands: Saturday nights on RTL4.
International potential and format appeal
Be-Entertainment’s acquisition places Make Up Your Mind among the catalogue of formats now actively offered to broadcasters and producers outside the Netherlands. The show combines several elements that have proven attractive in global markets: celebrity participation, the mainstreaming of drag performance as entertainment, short-form mystery mechanics and moments designed for social sharing.
Those features have helped similar formats travel well because they are straightforward to localise: producers can cast familiar national celebrities, adapt cultural references and tune comedy to local tastes while retaining the core guessing-game structure. The format has already seen adaptations in three European territories, demonstrating early international interest.
| Country | Adaptation status |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | Origin; airing on RTL4 (sixth season) |
| Germany | Adapted |
| Belgium | Adapted |
| Italy | Adapted |
For South African producers and broadcasters, formats like Make Up Your Mind offer a ready-made structure that can be infused with local music, fashion, languages and celebrity culture. The show's combination of performance and guessing creates moments that are easy to clip for social media — a valued attribute for programmes that aim to reach younger viewers and create digital buzz around linear broadcast.
Format distributors typically promote shows at market events and directly to commissioning editors; Be-Entertainment’s role will be to pitch Make Up Your Mind to interested broadcasters and production houses worldwide, negotiating local-language remakes or licensing terms for co-productions. The existing adaptations in Germany, Belgium and Italy indicate that the format has cross-border appeal within Europe. Whether it will translate to markets beyond Europe, including South Africa, will depend on local appetite for celebrity-driven performance formats and the willingness of commissioners to back a show centred on drag performance.
Make Up Your Mind joins a wider wave of formats that draw on drag performance as mainstream entertainment rather than niche programming — a trend visible in talent competitions, panel shows and variety formats where drag artists feature as contestants, judges or performers. That evolution has reshaped opportunities for makers, performers and casting directors seeking formats that combine spectacle with interactivity.
Be-Entertainment’s announcement does not list confirmed international commissions beyond the existing adaptations. Broadcasters and producers interested in pursuing the format will engage the distributor for licensing terms and local production details.
As broadcasters look to diversify slate offerings and capture younger audiences, formats with clear studio mechanics and high shareable moments remain attractive. Make Up Your Mind presents another option for channels seeking a light, performance-led entertainment programme with built-in celebrity draws.
