A man who was kept naked in a room for 15 months has revealed he had no idea that he was being broadcast to millions of viewers.
The TV show has since been described as ‘grotesque’ after a man known as Nasubi - whose real name is Tomoaki Hamatsu - took part in a challenge.
Unaware that the contest was being filmed, Nasubi was left naked in a room and tasked with winning magazine competitions in order to survive.
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The show was aired to millions of people in Japan and now the man has lifted the lid on what that experience was like.
Taking to Reddit, Nasubi wrote: “In the late 90s I lived inside a small room for 15 months, naked, starving and alone, surviving solely off of magazine contest prize winnings ... all while my life was broadcast to over 15 million viewers a week without my consent.”
He went on to say: “You may be familiar with my story, which has been shared over the years on Reddit. In 1998 in Japan, I won an audition to take part in a challenge. I was led into a room, ordered to strip naked, and left with a stack of magazines and postcards. My task was to enter contests in order to win food, clothing and prizes to survive, until I reached the prize goal of 1 million yen.
“This lasted 15 months, all while 15 million people watched me - without my consent.”
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During the show, Nasubi survived on crackers given to him by production before winning some sugary drinks.
He later won a bag of rice but his main source of food was canned and kibble dog food after running out of rice.
Nasubi was shocked to be met with a live studio audience after completing his challenge in 15 months, which many online have likened to The Truman Show.
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When asked on Reddit if he’d seen the Jim Carrey film, Nasubi replied saying: “The only person who really truly understands the feeling of what Truman went through is me. It felt like it was my story.
“His life was much easier than what I had, but it was a similar situation that everyone was watching both Truman and me, and we had no idea we were being observed.”
He was also asked if he was kept against his will, to which he replied: “I didn't think that the competition would last that long. The door wasn't locked, but I was determined to stay with it until the end. You could say it was Yamato Spirit, or Japanese spirit, I would not quit.”
Nasubi recently appeared in a Hulu documentary called The Contestant about the TV show.