Arjen Lubach may be putting on a brave face regarding his recent demotion from prime time to the late evening slot on RTL 4, but insider Tina Nijkamp believes he is anything but pleased about it. “He’s obviously not happy,” she states bluntly.
© RTL
The situation seems quite transparent: RTL 4 has demoted Lubach from a prime-time slot at 10 PM to a later slot at 11 PM, largely due to the channel’s desire to boost the profile of Renze Klamer. However, to avoid losing face, the transition is being branded as an improvement, with his show now also airing at an earlier time of 9 PM on Videoland.
‘Had to Happen for Renze’
Lubach claims this change is beneficial since his audience tends to be ready for bed by 10 PM. This, of course, invites skepticism. As stated by Tina Nijkamp, even the viewers of Omroep MAX would still be lounging on the couch at that time. “I think Renze himself pushed for this: ‘Let’s just start at 10 PM, that’s much better,’” she comments in her podcast Tina’s TV Update.
Furthermore, she points out that Lubach lacks ‘flow viewers’; people tune in specifically for his program and leave afterward, which does little to enhance the overall brand value of RTL 4.
‘Lubach Isn’t Happy’
Tina believes Lubach is quite irritated by this shift. “Is he really happy about this? Honestly, I don’t think so. Of course, he acts like it in public. I’d do the same. But it’s not as if he inked a deal with Videoland at the start of 2024,” she notes.
Expectations were high for Lubach; he was seen as a golden ticket for RTL 4. However, this expectation hasn’t turned out as planned. “His audience doesn’t quite align with the typical RTL 4 viewer. The viewership isn’t disastrous—absolutely not—but most of it tends to be viewed later,” she explains.
Future of Lubach on RTL 4
The pressing question is whether RTL 4 will extend Lubach’s contract, which wraps up next year. The renewal largely hinges on how many subscribers he can attract for Videoland. “Will this later time slot significantly boost subscriptions? That’s a crucial factor,” Nijkamp emphasizes.
“If Lubach successfully pulls in a hefty subscriber base, there could still be a future for him. Otherwise, it might signal the end of his journey at RTL. Don’t be surprised if we see him back at NPO by 2027. There’s certainly a place for Lubach on television, but this move suggests that he might not fit well with a commercial network,” she concludes.
