Wilfred Genee confirms that he is dissatisfied with his program package at Talpa, but denies that he is openly flirting with RTL. “Not at all. Absolutely not,” said the Today Inside star.
There is no talk show more successful than Today Inside, but Wilfred Genee still has the idea that there is more in store for him. He complains in his podcast that Talpa doesn’t allow him to do anything else. “When I read that Beau van Erven Dorens will be doing four or five more programs in the near future, I think: that is apparently possible at RTL.”
RTL application
A clear threat that Wilfred will return to RTL if Talpa does not come over. Or not? Johan Derksen asks him about it Today Inside. “Hey, Wilfred, I was very surprised by this week’s publicity that you are a bit upset about how Talpa is acting. I even tasted a very cautious application for RTL.”
Wilfred then: “Not at all. Absolutely not.”
Johan: “Oh, but that’s how it came across.”
‘Not meant that way’
That is unjustified, says Wilfred. “No, it’s really not meant that way. I just said – but I’ve told you that often enough and you too – that I would like to do an interview program. The funniest thing is that last week Talpa himself threw a ball for the first time.”
He continues: “You know that I want that, but I absolutely don’t want to leave here. That is framed again, as it is so nicely called, but I also said – I don’t know if any of you have listened to the podcast – that I really enjoy doing this program. You also do a podcast and so do you.”
‘I was shocked’
Johan has another question in store for Wilfred. “I was a bit shocked by one thing: René and I are ourselves here, we are just as vulgar as we really are, but you said that you play a role here. I have never felt that way.”
Wilfred: “No, look: I think we all exaggerate ourselves here on TV. I don’t know whether you are laughing and making jokes all day long and you are not insulting people all day long either, because you are actually a very nice man in real life. You are actually very nice, but you disguise that on TV.”
Annoying Genee
Wilfred says he also does something like that. “It works for me, especially for this program, to magnify my very irritating side and I can do that well. I can be very irritating. I bring out those character traits, that irritating quality.”
Johan does not understand where Wilfred gets the urge to do all kinds of other things besides VI. “I’ll say something else: if we have this program every day, then it really is a day job for me. I do some little things on the side, but I couldn’t come up with a real program.”
Day job
Preparing VI is already a lot of work, says Johan. “You start recording all those newspapers in the morning, then I have to record two hours of radio and then you go through everything in the afternoon.”
Wilfred: “I’m less bothered by that. I just enjoy doing more things in a day.”
Johan: “I think: the way we can work here, so freely and everything with John de Mol, you won’t find that anywhere, right?”
Wilfred: “I thought we did that at RTL too.”
Completely covered
Johan believes that Wilfred should realize that they are in a luxurious position at Talpa. “Yes, we just did it there, but we started here and you are completely covered. It is our program and with other programs you have all kinds of owners who interfere.”
Wilfred finally: “I don’t want to leave here either, I am very happy with you both, really, from the bottom of my heart.”