TV Shows

This month, Tinder launches the second season of its wildly popular in-app interactive series Swipe Night. The premise is a murder mystery, and participants are expected to guess who did it each week as the clues are revealed. 

The first season brought in over 20 million viewers worldwide for a choose-your-own-adventure style story, where viewers selected what they would do along the way, which led them to different outcomes. This time, according to Tech Crunch, users will watch the same mystery unfold, but they will be able to search rooms and examine objects for clues to draw their own conclusions. 

The series is live on the app from 6pm EST to 12:00am beginning Sunday, November 7th, and Tinder will continue to air new episodes each Sunday at the same time through November 21st, according to the company’s website. 

Dating App Tinder launched its new Tinder Explore section, where users can find a more interactive matching experience that is focused on events and areas of interest where users can make connections.

According to Tech Crunch, the new section will offer an events space that includes Swipe Night, its popular interactive series where users can watch and strike up conversations, and “Hot Takes,” the app’s virtual speed dating experience. Swipe Night returns to the platform for a second season later this year, featuring a who-dunnit style mystery. This time, the series will include a “Fast Chat” feature where users can interact with each other without having to match as they watch the story unfold together. 

Tinder’s Hot Takes feature will also be housed in Tinder Explore, where users can start chatting with anyone who’s there. As a timer appears, they will be given a limited time to decide whether to match before their chat expires and they are sent to the next potential match. This feature was tested earlier this year for limited periods of time, and the company says millions have used it so far.

Dating app Tinder is expanding its original content, partnering with Netflix India to produce a new reality dating series.

According to Variety, the show IRL: In Real Love, will take place in India and is produced by Monozygotic. It caters to the country’s growing younger population who are single and have become avid users of dating apps. 

There will be an in-app casting call – so instead of aspiring actors there will be real Tinder singles to star in the series. Promotional swipe cards will appear as users sift through potential matches, allowing them to swipe right to be directed to a registration page to try and become a cast member.

Dating & New York Film

The new rom com film Dating & New York is a new take on modern dating and the strange rules of dating app culture.

According to Variety, the story revolves around Milo and Wendy, two single-something New Yorkers who don’t meet serendipitously at a party or waiting in line for coffee, but rather find each other through a dating app. They both swipe right on the fictional app Meet Cute, and since they are both commitment-averse, they form a friends-with-benefits relationship with no attachment or long-term plans.

Dating in a big city is also at the heart of the story, where young singles feel both overlooked and exhausted from choice in a time where anybody can go on a dating app and meet someone else. It takes much more commitment to try and form a relationship. 

CEO Adam Cohen-Aslatei on S’More TV

Image: S'More

Dating app S’More is testing a new feature called S’more TV, offering users access to celebrity interviews and other videos the company has produced.

S’More TV was inspired by the company’s Instagram Live feed, where CEO Adam Cohen-Aslatei has been interviewing reality TV stars, WWE athletes and models about their dating lives and other dating-related topics. After gathering more than 50 hours of content according to Tech Crunch, he decided to launch the new feature and provide the content directly to users from the app as a “conversation-starter.”

To promote the new feature, S’More users will now receive prompts directing them to watch S’More TV, where they will be able to comment on the videos. Commenting is encouraged, because the feature is intended to help users attract potential matches as well as giving them a starting point for conversation.

Dating app Grindr announced the premiere of its new comedy special called Gag Reflex, featuring a lineup of up-and-coming LGBTQ comedians, who share stories of dating and the queer experience.

The special originally aired as a livestream on April 1st on YouTube and the Grindr app, and is now available to watch anytime on YouTube. According to Variety, the featured comedians include Joel Kim Booster (NBC’s Sunnyside, Hulu’s Shrill), Sydnee Washington (Broad City), Jay Jurden (The Tonight Show), Jaye McBride and Zach Zimmerman.