YouTube Canada is taking one of its New York-born creator formats north of the border. At the platform’s annual Features showcase in Toronto, YouTube unveiled a 2027 slate anchored by SubwayTakes Toronto, with host Kareem Rahma bringing the long-form interview series to the Toronto Transit Commission’s subway system.
The original SubwayTakes has built more than 1.1 million subscribers and 800 million views by turning unscripted subway conversations into shareable, advertiser-friendly segments. The Toronto version will feature what YouTube Canada calls “iconic Canadian guests” and place viewers “in the middle of the authentic, unscripted mayhem” of the city’s subway cars.
What’s on the slate
The new commissions pull from food, sport, comedy and family formats that already have built-in audiences on YouTube:
- SubwayTakes Toronto — Rahma shifts the interview format to Toronto in 2027.
- Virtuoso — Tessa Virtue hosts a video podcast about mastery, drawing on her five Olympic medals and three world titles.
- Iron Chef Dad vs. The Internet — Susur Lee and his son Jet Bent-Lee test viral food trends, hacks and snacks.
- Roots — Jeenie Weenie and Johnny reconnect with their Korean heritage as new parents; the creators have 13 million subscribers.
- Becky and Miranda — Julie Nolke and Nicole Power star in a dark comedy about friendship.
- Matty’s Farm — Matty Matheson and Super Athletic Film Co. follow a rural Ontario farm build.
- Hardly Workin — The Kalogeras Sisters take on jobs they are not qualified for in a Gen Z reworking of The Simple Life.
Alexandra Gater’s Dream Apartment Makeover also returns for a third season, and Sarah Nurse’s Sarah’s Side Quests follows the hockey star learning new skills from other Canadian athletes and creators.
Why it matters
This is not simply another slate of YouTube uploads. The announcement came at YouTube’s marketing showcase, where the platform is positioning creator-led shows as what Nicole Bell, head of YouTube Canada, called “must-see programming that is shaping culture and redefining entertainment.” For media planners and entertainment marketers, that language matters: it signals local creator formats being packaged as brand-ready original programming, not just influencer content.
The strategy follows the 2026 YouTube Brandcast slate that included Rahma’s Keep the Meter Running and projects from Alex Cooper and Trevor Noah. Canada is becoming a test bed for taking proven creator IP into new local formats—importing the SubwayTakes format, using known food and sports personalities, and attaching advertisers to formats with measurable subscriber bases.
For buyers, the useful question is whether these shows unlock predictable, brand-safe inventory around known creators. For competitors and rights holders, it is a reminder that YouTube’s content investment is shifting from generic creator development to market-specific commissions with global format potential.
Source: Variety
