By Travis Johnson
Netflix is bringing together Sylvester Stallone and David Broome, the producer behind Strong and The Biggest Loser, to create Ultimate Beastmaster, a ten-episode sports reality series which will see 108 competitors gradually whittled down to one final winner as they race through increasingly difficult obstacle courses.
The wrinkle is that there will actually be six simultaneous versions of The Beast: one each for the US, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, Germany and Japan, all hosted by local celebrities and featuring local competitors. Each hour-long episode will see 12 competitors – two from each participating country – go head to head for the opportunity to claw their way to the title of Ultimate Beastmaster. The hosts are as follows:
US: Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Ridiculous Six), Charissa Thompson (Extra TV, Fox Sports)
Brazil: Anderson Silva (UFC Middleweight Champion), Rafinha Bastos (Comedian, Journalist and TV Personality)
South Korea: Seo Kyung Suk (Actor, Comedian and TV Host), Park Kyeong Rim (Actress, Comedian and TV Host)
Mexico: Ines Sainz (Journalist, Sportscaster & TV Host), Luis Ernesto Franco (Actor and Producer)
Germany: Hans Sarpei (Former Soccer Player, TV Personality), Luke Mockridge (Comedian)
Japan: Sayaka Akimoto (Actress), Yuji Kondo (Sports Anchor)
“I’m thrilled and honored to partner with Netflix. Their trailblazing network is the perfect home for this ground-breaking global series,” said creator and executive producer Dave Broome. “I’m excited for viewers to see extraordinary men and women from around the world try and tackle this amazing physical course in the guise of a jaw-dropping modern monster — The Beast.”
“The invitation to partner with Netflix and mega-producer Dave Broome on this revolutionary concept was an opportunity I couldn’t resist,” said Stallone. “The world will watch in awe as amazing competitors from around the globe overcome grueling physical challenges – and in the process become champions and heroes. The course is unequaled in its daring creation and I am excited to be a part of it.”
This does sound like fun. Obstacle courses are really big right now – everyone has that one friend who’s always training for Tough Mudder or something similar – and the international angle is novel. Plus, Terry Crews is one of the hosts – everyone loves Terry Crews. No firm release date has been set, but we do know that the whole season will drop simultaneously, so be ready to marathon Ultimate Beastmaster sooner rather than later.
Wow this will be interesting and weird! Cant say im all that excited but will try anything. Found a good site for streaming news and reviews in Australia here http://streamingservices.com.au/