Domingão do Faustão (literallyBig Fausto's Big Sunday) was a Brazilian TV show aired every Sunday from 1989 to 2021. Produced byRede Globo and hosted byFausto Silva (also known as Faustão), it featured live music performances (usually by the most popular artists in Brazil at the time) as well as special segments, such as theDança dos Famosos (Brazilian version ofDancing with the Stars) andDança no Gelo (Dancing on Ice). It was one of the oldest and most famous of Globo's television shows since its first broadcast in 1989.
The series was originally slated to be hosted byAugusto "Gugu" Liberato, who had hosted a late-night show onSBT. However, duringCarnival in 1988, SBT's ownerSilvio Santos personally intervened with Globo's presidentRoberto Marinho to discourage him from hiring Gugu, allowing Santos to sign a lucrative extension with Gugu that would include prominent roles in SBT's Sunday afternoon lineup.[1][2] Globo quickly hired Faustao Silva—who had hosted the late-night showPerdidos na Noite onBand—to host the show instead.Domingão do Faustão would premiere on March 26, 1989, featuring a mix of music, dance performances, and interviews. Its main competitor at launch would be SBT'sPrograma Silvio Santos.[2][3]
The musicianCaçulinha was part of the cast between 1989 and 2009.
In October 1997,Faustão was overtaken in the ratings by another competitor on SBT, Gugu'sDomingo Legal; both shows accounted for a total of 60% of Brazilian television viewership on Sundays. By the 2000s,Domingo Legal's viewership began to decline amid a scandal involving Gugu and thePCC.[4][5][6][7]
From 1991 to 1997, Silva also presented aNew Year's Eve special for Globo as a spin-off ofDomingão,Réveillon do Faustão; it was replaced by theShow da Virada.[8]
In 2008,Domingão celebrated its 1000th episode.[9] In addition to the celebrations, Fausto was congratulated by some personalities, including thenpresidentLula.[10] In 2009, the program celebrated 20 years in the air, promoting the editionMelhores do Ano de 2008 (which was intentionally delayed). In December of that year, the resignation of some members of the cast and production was announced. Among them, Adriana Colin (merchandising),Caçulinha (literally little young brother - musical director) and Lucimara Parisi (director).[11]
On January 25, 2021, the columnist Lauro Jardim announced that the show would be ending in December, after Silva declined an offer by Globo for him to move to a new show on Thursday nights.[12]
On June 13, 2021, Silva missed an episode ofDomingão for the first time for medical reasons (citing aurinary tract infection), withTiago Leifert filling in as guest host.[13] On June 17, Globo announced that Silva had left the network after 35 years, and thatDomingão would be succeeded by a new program hosted byLuciano Huck. Leifert would remain as an interim host.[14] The following month, Silva signed with Band to host anew nightly program on the network.[15][16]
It was later announced that theDomingão do Faustão title would not be used for this transitional period (thus making the June 13 broadcast its final episode), with the remainder ofSuper Dança dos Famosos being broadcast as a standalone program with Leifert as host.[17][18] The program's official replacement,Domingão com Huck, premiered on September 5; the new show carries over segments that were featured onDomingão do Faustão (such asDança dos Famosos andShow dos Famosos), while also featuring segments that were seen on his Saturday showCaldeirão do Huck (such asQuem quer ser um milionário? andThe Wall).[19]
Domingão debuted with a central objective: to surpass the audience of the popularPrograma Silvio Santos (SBT). According toIBOPE, some affiliated stations SBT recorded 60 rating points during program airing, an easy win for Globo.[62] Soon after the premiere,Domingão, broadcast during prime time on Sunday, between 4:00 pm and 19:00 pm, scored 36 points average, compared to 20 for Silvio Santos inSão Paulo. InRio de Janeiro, it was 36 points for 'Domingão' versus 16 points forTV Manchete.[62]
The program remained leader for 8 consecutive years (which made the media call Fausto theKing of Sundays), until the SBT launchedDomingo Legal, a similar program presented by Augusto Liberato, who quickly became popular and took over the leadership of IBOPE ratings.[63] The loss of ratings forced Fausto and his production team to appeal to alternatives, such as the controversial segmentSushi Erótico (Erotic Sushi). However, the program still lost more audience and popularity, andDomingo Legal continued to grow.[64] However, some years later, the rival program would lose popularity, after displaying a false report in which alleged members of thePCC threatened the death of some of Brazil's media personalities.[65][66] Later, Fausto again lead the IBOPE Ratings.
Fausto continued to lead the public by the end of the 2000s (even considering the boom ofRede TV! which did not affectDomingão directly). However, in 2010, Fausto returned to facing problems with the audience. Gugu, who moved toTV Record a year earlier, began broadcasting its program in the new station simultaneously, and performed well in the ratings, and beat Fausto several times.[67][68]
In 2011,Domingão recorded its worst audience: 10 points on average, according toIBOPE Media Information. At some times of the day, Fausto came in third place, surpassed by Gugu (Record) andEliana (SBT).[69]
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