The Rebel Billionaire: Branson's Quest for the Best is a reality show for Fox's 2004–05 season.
Premise The premise for the series was that billionaire Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, challenges 16 contestants to tasks that will prove to him which is most qualified to take over as president of Virgin. This format is strongly derivative of popular NBC reality show The Apprentice, though as well as business-related tasks it also incorporated many tough physical challenges, reflecting Branson's love of daredevil stunts. Each week also saw the contestants travel to a different country, whereas The Apprentice is just situated in one area. Shawn Nelson was the winner.
Presentation The one-hour show premiered on November 9, 2004 on the Fox network, and aired 12 episodes through January 2005. Although the show had over 5.5 million viewers, it was considered a ratings disappointment for American television prime-time programming. The show found ratings success internationally though, airing in 19 countries around the world, ranking as the #1 show in many countries where Richard Branson does business. The Rebel Billionaire also reran on the Fox Reality Channel.
Contestants (as they appeared on the show & in order of elimination)
Contestant Occupation Shawn Nelson (Winner) Founder of LoveSac Corporation Sara Blakely Founder of Spanx, Inc. Heather Maclean Founder of Little Laureate Inc. Gabriel Baldinucci Real Estate Investor Erica Vilardi Model Nicole Harvat Labor Attorney Candida Tolentino Founder of Earth Cafe Living Foods Steve Berke Real Estate Manager/Tennis Pro Jessica McCann Former Owner of Sales Company Michael Zindell Wall Street Strategist Jermaine Jamison Technology Sales Specialist/Motivational Speaker Sam Heshmati Financial Analyst Jennifer Grinspan Radio Station Advertising Manager Tim Hudson Trial Attorney Aisha Krump Pharmaceutical sales representative Spencer Car Salesman
Broadcasting Country Broadcaster Channel Seven Plug TV FX Global TV International Channel Shanghai OTV TV3 TVB Pearl KTN TV3 TV3 8TV TV3 Studio 23 MNET Series TV8 (Broadcast during the end of 2007 and again from March 2009) FX ITV2 Fox FX
References
External links
The Rebel Billionaire at Reality TV World Salon.com article about the show