NRK has confirmed a set of changes to this year's Maskorama, the Norwegian broadcaster's masked-singer competition. In a press release cited by VG, the network said the gong is being retired and that an unmasking will now take place in every episode. The announcement was reported by VG on Thursday, with Dagbladet, Nettavisen and TV 2 among the outlets also covering the format changes.
The broadcaster has also reworked how the masked contestants appear across the season. According to the press release reported by VG, the masks will be divided into two groups: four perform in the first show, the next four appear in the second, and the six remaining masks then meet in the third episode.
Pia Basberg, executive producer of Maskorama at NRK, explained the reasoning behind the split in comments carried in the press release. She said the aim is to let viewers build curiosity and anticipation, and to get to know each individual mask better. Under the new arrangement, each mask gets two songs and more chances to drop hints about who is hiding underneath, she said.
Why it matters
The changes touch the core mechanics of one of NRK's most talked-about entertainment formats. Maskorama's appeal has rested on concealment: viewers spend the season guessing which celebrity is inside each costume, and the reveal is the payoff. By scheduling an unmasking in every episode, NRK is spreading those payoffs across the run rather than saving them for the end.
The removal of the gong is a smaller but visible break with tradition. The gong has been part of the show's ritual, and dropping it signals that the production is willing to rework familiar elements rather than simply refresh the costumes.
The two-group structure is the more consequential change for the audience. Splitting eight masks across the first two broadcasts means viewers will not meet the full cast at once, and the third episode becomes the point where all six survivors come together. That gives the production more room to introduce each contestant slowly, but it also asks viewers to follow two separate line-ups before the season consolidates.
NRK's stated goal, as Basberg put it, is to give the public more time to engage, debate theories and follow their favourites. That framing suggests the broadcaster sees the guessing game around the masks as central to the show, not just a by-product of it.
A longer introduction for each mask
The producer's comments point to a specific trade-off. In earlier seasons, viewers met the whole masked line-up at once and had to form impressions quickly. The new schedule gives each mask two performances before any consolidation, which NRK believes will help the audience pick up more clues about the person behind the costume.
Basberg said the extra songs and additional hints are intended to serve that purpose. Two performances per mask in the early rounds means more material for viewers to analyse, and more opportunities for the production to plant the small details that fuel online speculation.
The reveal in every episode fits the same logic. Rather than a single climactic unmasking, the show will deliver a steady stream of answers, with each episode resolving one mystery while leaving the rest open. For a format built on collective guessing, that keeps the discussion moving week to week.
What to watch
The production has been in the works for a long time. Bygdanytt reported that the team behind the show has spent ten months on the project and has promised a "wow-show," a claim attributed to the outlet rather than to NRK's press release.
What remains to be seen is how the two-group structure plays out on screen. NRK has not, in the material reported so far, detailed how the six remaining masks will be handled once they meet in the third episode, or how the weekly unmaskings will affect the pace of the competition. Those details are likely to become clearer as the season approaches.
For now, the confirmed changes are the end of the gong, a reveal in each episode, and the split of the masks into two initial groups of four. Viewers will see the first four masks when the season opens, with the second group following in the next broadcast.
