MAISON TABOU: ORION sets new standards in the reality genre in collaboration with UFA and RTLzwei
Cologne / Flensburg, July 2026 – UFA Show & Factual, in collaboration with RTLzwei, is making a bold statement in the reality genre with MAISON TABOU. The programme deliberately breaks with familiar dating conventions and, right from the start, focuses on topics that are rarely discussed openly: physical attraction, fantasy and desire.
The project is also an unusual one off-screen for UFA Show & Factual: for the first time, the company is retaining the rights to its own intellectual property (IP) – a deliberate move in the area of new business. Together with the erotic brand ORION, MAISON TABOU is set to become more than just a TV show: the plan is to create a standalone brand with high-quality products and its own range of sex toys under the “Maison Tabou” label.
Vanessa Schmit and Sascha Rustmeier, Managing Directors of UFA Show & Factual: “Behind the doors of MAISON TABOU, anything is possible and everything is allowed. Eroticism is part of life and deserves to be portrayed in a high-quality way. With MAISON TABOU, we explore attraction, fantasy and dating in a way that has not been seen before in the reality genre. We are very grateful to RTLZWEI for giving us the opportunity to bring this topic to broadcast television together with them. The fact that we are pursuing this path with our own IP and can develop MAISON TABOU step by step into a brand of its own, together with RTLZWEI and ORION, makes this project very special for us.”
Malte Kruber, Head of Entertainment Programming at RTLZWEI: “MAISON TABOU is bold, provocative and, at the same time, emotionally compelling. It challenges conventions and offers a fresh perspective on attraction and eroticism. It is our aim to continually set new trends in the reality genre. That is exactly what this format achieves. It is therefore a perfect fit for RTLZWEI.”
Birte Fulde, Head of E-Commerce Marketing Strategy at ORION: “We need authentic perspectives, precisely because content relating to sex and sex toys is ever-present nowadays, yet it often seems staged and somewhat intangible. Real people make all the difference – especially in an environment that exudes quality and value.”
The MAISON TABOU format: Sex first, love second
MAISON TABOU is different from traditional dating programmes – right from the very first second. It doesn’t start with conventional conversations, nor with the cautious getting-to-know-you stages. It begins with a night spent together.
At “Maison Tabou”, a place deliberately far removed from everyday life, the participants set aside their usual identities. Instead, there are masks, roles & special settings: what then emerges are intense encounters, in which the boundary between performance and genuine emotion becomes increasingly blurred. The question of whether sexual tension turns into genuine desire is answered on this first night.
The morning after is where things start to get exciting. The participants meet for the first time without playing a role, without wearing a costume and without the atmosphere – they use their real names, are in everyday clothes and it’s also during the day as well. What remains once the thrill of the previous night has faded?
A format as a brand
In collaboration with RTLZWEI and ORION, MAISON TABOU is being developed as a standalone brand that extends beyond the TV show. Merchandise and a high-quality product range are being created alongside the broadcast – with the aim of bringing the world of MAISON TABOU to life off-screen as well
MAISON TABOU is developed and produced by UFA Show & Factual in collaboration with RTLZWEI and ORION. The programme is scheduled to air and the product line to be launched in the autumn of 2026.