X Factor host in the dark on its secrets

Sometimes in Reality TV, even the host is left guessing until the last minute.

X Factor host Luke Jacobz has no idea what the ‘Wildcard’ that the show has been promoting, pertains to.

Eliminated act returning? Public vote for the Top 12? Jessica Mauboy turning up as judge?

“I rang up Channel Seven publicity and said ‘What is the Wild Card?’” he tells TV Tonight.

“They said ‘You will have to wait to find out.’

“I said ‘As long as I know before the Live Shows. Because I don’t want to find out on Live TV.’

“They said they would keep me in the dark and put it out later.

“But I don’t want to get an envelope on Live television and have to read it.”

Jacobz was being deadly serious about a move designed to elicit maximum surprise by the producers.

“I get left out in the loop all the time. I found out who the judges were the day that I arrived at auditions this year. They like to keep me in suspense,” he concedes.

“They tell me when they think I need to know.”

Jacobz is now hosting his fifth season of Seven’s talent juggernaut, having stepped into the breach at the last minute after Matthew Newton was replaced.

The former Home and Away actor now spends the bulk of his year on the show, from auditions to Grand Final.

“To be honest there’s no more room on the plate to do anything else. I have December and January off which is all about catching up with friends,” he explains.

“We start auditions in February / March so we’re pretty much on the go throughout the whole year. So there’s not a lot of time to do anything else.

“We speak to contestants outside and then when they’re in the building, before they go on stage, then when they’re on stage and off stage and leave the building. So there are quite a few interviews with everyone, every day.”

Producers cull most of the acts prior to Jacobz stepping before the cameras, but this year he insists there is still no shortage of talent.

“There’s a 14 year old who sounds like she’s been singing for 20 years. There’s a mum in her 40s who has a beautiful, Aretha Franklin voice. But if you look at the history of the show we’ve had rock & roll with Reece Mastin, a pop star with Samantha Jade and a belting diva last year with Dami. So it depends on what is Australia is wanting to taste this year,” he says.

X Factor certainly has its share of chart acts. But while singing is the ticket to the the show, it’s just one facet of the Reality format.

“When you let your defences down you become vulnerable and you allow yourself to be heard,” Jacobz explains.

“The camera sees more than what a normal eye can see. If you speak to someone, (with) the environment, the atmosphere, the tone of their voice –you can read what they’re giving. But when you’re actually seeing it on the camera you can look a bit deeper and I think you can actually see more of the person. So you can whether someone is faking it or not.

“There are countries in the world that love the jock, someone who says ‘I’m the best!’ Someone to get out there and say ‘I will beat you!’ But in Australia we like the underdog, someone who is humble and will get out there and give it a go.”

Last week The Voice: Kids came under fire when a 12 year old broke down in tears during her audition. While Producers defended the way it was handled by the show’s coaches, Jacobz says X Factor would never have aired a similar scenario with a child.

“We have our ages down to 14 but we also have the choice about what we put to air with auditions. So if we have a 14 year old who wants to get up there and give it a go then it’s about duty of care,” he explains.

“We tell them ‘If you get up there and you don’t get through this year then maybe it just means you need a little bit more practice.’

“But if we see someone who gets up there and maybe they feel a little bit bad about it then we’re not going to put that to air, because it may hurt that kid. So we look after them. We’re not going to put them out there for the scrutiny of the public.

“We like people to have the happy ending, not tears.”

But last week X Factor itself was criticised by a former contestant who objected to being told to sing a song that didn’t suit him, while the judges derided his poor performance.

“It depends on the age of the kid. Sometimes we have people who say ‘We’re happy to put that to air, that was all fine.’ But then they didn’t actually get what they wanted from the show., they change their minds. We always speak to their families and if they are young we have loads of people there to support them. There are counsellors to make sure everything is ok,” Jacobz insists.

“We’ve had people who are up there having a good time and the judges are tell them ‘You’re terrible!’ But they are 35 and laughing their heads off, and when we say ‘You’re terrible,’ they’re laughing with us. So that’s the difference with someone who has thick skin and can handle that.”

The X Factor airs 6:30pm Sundays, 7:30pm Monday and Tuesday on Seven.