For a show that's been running on ABC for 17 years, Shark Tank had a surprisingly rocky start. Kevin O'Leary recently shared the "legendary" story on X, revealing that the show spent its first three years teetering on the edge of cancellation.
"Everybody hated us," O'Leary said.
ABC executives were ready to pull the plug, but the show had an unlikely savior lurking in the executive suite. Willow Bay, dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, happened to be married to Bob Iger, who at the time was CEO of Disney, ABC's parent company. While network executives were drafting cancellation notices, Bay and Iger were watching the show at home with their kids.
According to O'Leary, Bay told Iger that "our kids like it, other families like it." That comment proved to be the lifeline the show needed.
O'Leary put it bluntly: "It's the only thing on TV that doesn't have everybody naked and screaming about sex."
The gamble paid off spectacularly. What started as a show nobody wanted has transformed into a global juggernaut reaching 104 million people across 54 countries. Products featured on the show have generated more than $11 billion in retail sales, according to the official Shark Tank website.
So what's the secret? After 17 years on air, O'Leary says it comes down to one thing: unpredictability. You never know what's going to walk through those double doors.
The show has proven there's a market for everything from pet DNA tests to niche inventions that industry skeptics swore would never work. Shark Tank has minted hundreds of millions of dollars for dreamers with ideas ranging from practical to downright bizarre.
"The reason it works is that we don't know — you don't know — what's going to walk through those doors," O'Leary explained.
Fans of the show clearly agree. One viewer commented that Shark Tank "was showing the way of a dream to come true for anybody who wanted to get their ideas implemented. It showed the process of how to become successful."
Another praised O'Leary specifically for using his platform to educate entrepreneurs with "straightforward and honest advice."
"Your actions are commendable, professional and a good education for all of us, and also free of charge," they wrote.
It's a reminder that sometimes the best business ideas aren't the flashiest ones. Sometimes success comes down to something as simple as a family watching TV together and someone having the courage to speak up about what actually works.