The latest Gordon Ramsay-fronted cooking competition on Fox is called Next Level Chef. The series developed by Studio Ramsay Global and FOX Alternative Entertainment is the latest of the celebrity chef’s many TV endeavors this year — which also include new seasons of Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef (which recently spawned a Pokémon parody) and its young adult spinoff MasterChef Junior. Like Robert Irvine and Jon Taffer, Ramsay is an icon when it comes to hospitality-related reality TV.
But Ramsay’s presence isn’t the only reason the show may look familiar to audiences. Many viewers noticed a comparison between the show and the 2019 Netflix horror film The Platform, which had a similar premise and set design. It’s left them wondering if the movie might be the inspiration for the TV series.
In Next Level Chef, competitors are selected to cook in three different kitchens stacked on top of one another. In The Platform, prisoners are assigned to different cells that are also stacked on top of one another. No one knows how many levels exist in the movie, but there are at least a few hundred. While there are only three levels on the show, it’s nonetheless a similar setup.
The concept for Next Level Chef centers around the platform that sits in the middle of the kitchens. At the beginning of the competition, those on the top level are given the first pick of ingredients to use in their dishes. Each level only has 30 seconds to choose their items, but the top level has the greatest variety. The bottom level (or “basement”) can only pick from what’s left over, which gives the chefs in that kitchen the unique challenge of having to work with limited ingredients.
This concept is also similar to the plot of The Platform, in which there was also a large hole in the center of each cell. At the start of the day, a large, full table of food was presented to Level 1. The prisoners on this level were given a full two minutes to eat all they could before the food was dropped to the next level. The prisoners could not take food or save it for later, so most would eat as much as they could in the allotted time. That meant food became scarce as the platform descends, leaving little options for those who are on the lower levels. The platform even becomes empty at a certain point, so those far below don’t get a chance to eat.
There’s a strong message behind the Netflix film that overconsumption can lead to inequality among people. Those who sit at the top are usually more focused on how they can use their privilege as an advantage rather than wondering how their overindulgence impacts the next person below them. This is a much darker message than Next Level Chef, but there are even more advantages to being on the higher levels in the kitchen.
Those in the top-level kitchen have all the equipment needed with state-of-the-art appliances for the competition. The middle level has the most basic necessities one might need in a professional kitchen to put together well-made meals. Those in the basement are only given access to the bare bones when it comes to kitchen equipment. Richard Blais, one of the mentoring chefs and Top Chef winner, claimed in Episode 1 that calling the bottom-level kitchen “bare-bones” was being polite. Not only do the chefs on the top level have the first pick of ingredients, but they are also graced with better tools to bring their dreams to fruition.
Gordon Ramsay mentioned to the Sioux City Journal that Next Level Chef is akin to the trajectory of a chef’s career. Most chefs start out in the “basement” at some point to earn their place at the next level. Blais and fellow mentor Nyesha Arrington also have stories of when they had to work in bare-bones kitchens to learn and get creative. Most entry-level chefs aren’t going to have access to the best ingredients and equipment, so this competition gives these chefs an opportunity to showcase their creativity and talent in a unique way. It also just happens to sound like one of the best horror movies streaming on Netflix.
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