Suurmestari season 4 cast, air date, and trailer released

The good news from the international Taskmaster franchise just keeps on coming, with the release this week of the cast and air date for the next season of Finland's Suurmestari, along with a trailer teasing some of what's to come.

On 13 February 2023, former season 2 guest contestant Kalle Lamberg announced on his Instagram that he would be one of the fixed contestants in the fourth season, starting on 18 March 2023, alongside Pirjo Heikkilä, Fathi Ahmed, and Eija Vilpas (who also appeared as a guest contestant in season 2).

Kalle also shared that the guest contestants in the new season would be Jukka Rasila, Susani Mahadura, Paleface, Erin, Timo Lavikainen, Helmi-Leena Nummela, Miska Haakana, Krisse Salminen, Linda Wiklund, and Ali Jahangiri.

This news was subsequently confirmed by an MTV press release, and the release of a trailer video for the season, giving us a glimpse at the cast in action. You can watch a version of this trailer with added English subs right here (thanks to zadorvp for the translation!):

As has now become customary here at TMI, here's a quick guide to the contestants, and what they are known for. Feel free to click through to their full profiles on the site for additional information, and links to their socials.

The fixed contestants

Kalle Lamberg is a Finnish actor of stage, film and TV. His film and TV roles have mainly been comedic. He appeared in MTV3's live pop entertainment programmes Saturday Night Live and Kingi, and he played a supporting role in the comedy Luokkakokous 2 – Polttarit. As noted above, Kalle appeared as a guest contestant in an episode of season 2 of Suurmestari, but he finished that episode in last place.

Eija Vilpas is a Finnish actress and screenwriter who has played film roles since 1981. On TV, her most famous characters have been Pirjo "Pirre" Kaasinen in Fakta, Vappu Nieminen in the series Hynttyyt yähten, and Raili in Paavo and Raili. As noted above, Eija appeared as a guest contestant in an episode of season 2 of Suurmestari, and she finished that episode in third place.

Fathi Ahmed is a Finnish stand-up comedian and actor. He is of Somali heritage, and his humour often draws from his experiences as a second-generation immigrant. He has played roles in several TV series, such as Downshiftaajat, Modernit miehet, and Aikuiset.

Pirjo Heikkilä is a Finnish comedian, actor, and screenwriter. She has previously done stand-up comedy, and is known for writing and appearing in the Siskonpeti and Pirjo TV series. She has also worked as a voice actor and audiobook reader.

The guest contestants

Ali Jahangiri is an Iranian-Finnish stand-up comedian and presenter. His comedy includes material about prejudice against immigrants. In 2017, he competed in the tenth season of the Finnish version of Dancing with the Stars. In 2021, he became a grocery store entrepreneur.

Erin Anttila (aka Erin) is an Irish-Finnish singer, composer, and songwriter. She rose to fame as one of the members of the band Nylon Beat, which took part in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1998 and 2000. As a solo artist, she has released four albums since 2009. She also appeared as a judge on the Finnish version of Pop Idol in 2017.

Helmi-Leena Nummela is a Finnish actor who has mainly performed in theatre productions, but has also appeared in some short and indie films, such as Derek-it (2017), and Äiti (2019). On TV, she has appeared in the comedy sketch show Putous, and in the drama show Syke.

Jukka Rasila is a Finnish actor, who has become most well-known for TV comedy shows. Between 2010 and 2014 he appeared in the MTV3 comedy sketch show Putous. He has also performed as a voice actor, playing 'Donkey' in the Finnish dubs of the Shrek films, and 'Donald Duck' in the Finnish dubs of Walt Disney cartoons.

Karri Miettinen (aka Paleface) is a Finnish rap artist, and belongs to the groups 'Q-Continuum presents (This is) The Marienhof', 'Fat Beat Sound System', and 'Conscious Youths'. He currently also hosts his own weekly social criticism radio show, Act Like You Know, on Radio Helsinki.

Krisse Salminen is a Finnish actor and stand-up comedian. She rose to fame as the reporter character 'Krisse' on the Hyppönen-Enbuske Experience talk show, which led to her reprising the role on her own shows, Krisse Show and Krisse Road Show. She has also worked as a voice actor on the Finnish dubs of the animated movies Robots, Shrek the Third, and Toy Story 3. In 2012, she won the Finnish version of Dancing with the Stars.

Linda Wiklund is a Finnish actor, who has mostly appeared in stage productions. In 2017, she played the character 'Anna' in the Finnish adaptation of the British comedy show The Office and, in 2018, she was one of the actors in MTV3's comedy show Kingi, in which the cast members play both the contestants and the judges in a fictional singing competition show.

Miska Haakana is a Finnish YouTuber, actor, and musician. He has appeared as a contestant in the Finnish adaptations of Survivor, Celebrity MasterChef, and The Mole. He has recently also performed acting roles in the film Pohjola satoa, and the TV show Salatut elämät.

Susani Mahadura is a Sri Lankan-Finnish journalist and film director. She has hosted radio shows with a focus on covering issues from a multicultural perspective, and about psychology. Her directorial debut was the documentary Kelet (2020), about a Finnish-Somali trans woman who found a new family and home within vogue dance culture.

Timo Lavikainen is a Finnish actor and musician. Between 2017 and 2019, he was an actor in the comedy sketch show Putous. He has played drums in two bands, Kalle Päätalo, and Timo & Teräsmieht. He also participated in the Finnish version of Dancing with the Stars in 2019.