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Laila Ali is a world-class athlete, fitness & wellness expert, cooking enthusiast, founder of the Laila Ali Lifestyle Brand and mother of two toddler-aged children. In addition to her latest work as a cast member of NBC’s highly touted reality program “Stars Earn Stripes” where she competed to raise money for a charity that supports veterans and their children, Laila is currently the host of “Everyday Health” airing nationwide on ABC, and former co-host of “American Gladiators.” Laila also authored and published a motivational book for young women titled “Reach!”. She has appeared in various cooking segments on Rachael Ray, as well as Food Network’s “Emeril,” “Paula Dean” and “Chopped All-Stars” with tasty recipes geared towards a healthy, active lifestyle. In 2007 she captured the hearts of millions and made it to the final round of the fourth season of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.” She’s also appeared...

Amazon’s bid to be a Prime mover during TV’s annual Upfront Week is causing it to crash into long-held industry protocols.

The streaming and e-commerce giant plans to shift its upfront presentation to the Monday evening of the week of May presentations that top media companies hold annually for Madison Avenue. In doing so, Amazon will likely force some advertisers to abandon other events that have long been held in that slot. Fox Corp. traditionally holds an upfront presentation late Monday afternoon, while NBCUniversal’s Spanish-language Telemundo network has for the past several years held a Monday-night event and concert for advertisers.

Rivals believe Amazon’s maneuver will make Mondays more manic. What’s more, the new event is likely get in the way of not only their scheduled presentations, but ancillary meetings that have already been set between advertisers and the networks’ sales executives.

“The Upfronts are...

On Thursday, Hallmark announced that they are dropping the entirety of its 2024 Countdown To Christmas and Miracles Of Christmas movies. However, one podcasting duo is still waiting for the network to do one simple thing. They want the movies to stream in stereo.

Photo: B.J. Britt, Jonathan Bennett, Tyler Hynes Credit: ©2024 Hallmark Media/Photographer: Elena Nenkova Hallmark Cafe Podcasters Discover Hallmark+ Is Streaming In Mono

This holiday season, Santa may be leaving a few lucky recipients a Dolby Atmos system. However, those gift recipients may not want to test out their new sound system on Hallmark+. That is because a podcasting duo have discovered that Hallmark+ is streaming in mono.

The duo that has identified this flaw is the Hallmark Cafe podcasting couple, Dianne Garnett Killen and Michael Killen. From the beginning, they reported to their listeners that they enjoyed the programming on the rebranded streaming channel, Hallmark+. However, they...

It’s been a weird year for the unscripted television business.

Networks and streamers have been greenlighting fewer shows and producers are struggling, with numerous mid-size companies closing and layoffs across the sector and global outsourcing and budget issues becoming major talking points with the reality industry.

Travis Kelce became a game show host, Alec Baldwin started filming a TLC reality series and Colin Jost is hosting a Jeopardy! spinoff.

Blake Shelton and Taylor Sheridan have a new singing competition at CBS, which also is developing a new cooking show with Padma Lakshmi. Hulu breathed new life into reality with Mormon wives, Netflix is going full Willy Wonka, American Gladiators is returning, shows like The Traitors and The Floor are being renewed at quite the clip, and Meghan Markle still is getting attention at Netflix.

Related: Renewed TV Series 2024: A Photo Gallery

There were some interesting business models...

Bob Yerkes, the acrobatic stunt performer who slid down a clock tower cable for Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future and hung around the Statue of Liberty under repair for Fred Ward in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, has died. He was 92.

Yerkes died Tuesday of natural causes in Northridge, Darlene Ava Williams, a stunt performer and one of his many mentees, announced.

The amiable Yerkes, who started out in the circus and was a skilled trapeze aerialist and tightrope walker, also plummeted from a helicopter through a roof in Breakout (1975), starring Charles Bronson.

“I was getting ready for the stunt and the guy said, ‘Break a Leg!,” and I broke them both,” he recalled in a 2017 interview. He said he also broke legs while working on Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) and Her Alibi (1989), but, in a career that spanned eight decades, that was the extent of his serious injuries.

Exclusive: Saddle up, TikTok stars the Montana Boyz are getting their own reality show. The plan is to show them juggling life on the ranch with their newfound social media stardom in a new unscripted series, which is now in the works.

Kaleb Winterburn, Mark Estes and Kade Wilcox – better known as the Montana Boyz – have blown up on social media where they show off their rugged cowboy lifestyles, lip-sync to country music tracks and party. Vice Studios Group and Viral Nation, the creator agency that reps the trio, have joined forces to develop the series about them.

The working title is Montana Boyz. The show will capture the former college football stars and Montana born and bred boys – or boyz – as they divide their time between working on the ranch, partying in Music City and looking for love. The relationship status of some members is already headline news, notably that of Estes,...

Amazon MGM Studios Distribution heads to content market Mipcom, Oct. 21-24, with a lengthy slate of series and films. Series include apocalyptic drama “Earth Abides,” the final season of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the revitalized “Gladiators” format and the “Are You Smarter Than…” format. “The Accountant 2,” “Mercy” and a sequel to “A Simple Favor” are among the film titles being launched for distribution.

Just over a year ago, the studio launched the distribution division with the goal of licensing Amazon Original films and series, in addition to MGM theatrical films, MGM Television and MGM+ Studios series, and library titles to worldwide buyers.

For television, Amazon MGM Studios Distribution will bring the limited series “Earth Abides” to market. This new take on George R. Stewart’s sci-fi novel of the same name stars Alexander Ludwig (“Vikings”) and Jessica Frances Dukes (“Ozark”). When a plague of unprecedented virulence sweeps the globe, the...

September has been a big month for Terry Crews, who this year marks 25 years in Hollywood, having gotten his start on the American Gladiators-style competition show Battle Dome in 1999. The role of T-Money perfectly aligned with the America’s Got Talent (AGT) host’s dream of one day being an action movie star, a goal which was once again realized with his part in longtime friend Dave Bautista’s action-comedy The Killer’s Game.

Crews stars as assassin Creighton Lovedahl in the J.J. Perry-directed film that released on Sept. 13 — Crews and Perry previously worked together on 2014’s The Expendables 3. Based on the 1997 novel of the same name by Jay Bonansinga, The Killer’s Game centers on a veteran assassin (Bautista) trying to outlive a hit he put out on himself after learning he incorrectly received a terminal diagnosis. The movie also stars Sofia Boutella and Ben Kingsley, actors of whom...

Prime Video is moving further into the reality space with “Wear Whatever the F You Want,” a new series hosted and executive produced by Clinton Kelly and Stacy London. The eight-episode series will mark the pair’s first on-camera collaboration in more than a decade after “What Not to Wear” ended in 2013.

The upcoming style transformation show will focus on a series of clients. Over the course of a couple of days, Kelly and London will empower them to “live out their fashion fantasy and find their style truth,” a press release for the series reads.

“The world has changed a lot since the run of ‘What Not to Wear,’ and, thankfully, so have we. These days, we have zero interest in telling people what to do, based on society’s norms — because there are no more norms!” Kelly and London said in a joint statement to press. “However, style...

Quick Links The Running Man Isn't Far Away From Today's Reality The Running Man Predicted the Rise of Deepfake Technology and Fake News Arnold Schwarzenegger Became a Political Gladiator The Running Man accurately predicted the future with its vision of a dystopian society and its merging of entertainment and politics. The film's portrayal of manipulation through media resonates now more than ever with the rise of reality television and fake news. The Running Man's commentary on entertainment and politics intertwining became a reality with Arnold Schwarzenegger's venture into politics.

The 1987 dystopian action film The Running Man stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Ben Richards, a police helicopter pilot who, after being wrongly convicted of the mass murder of unarmed civilians, is sentenced to life imprisonment and then coerced into being a contestant on Americas most popular television program, the diabolical game show The Running Man, in which Ben must win to survive.

Prime Video will take a fresh peek into The Mallorca Files this summer.

The streamer announced Thursday that it will be the Stateside home for the British detective drama’s third season, all eight episodes of which will drop Thursday, Aug. 8.

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The first two Mallorca Files seasons — which aired on BBC One across the pond — are currently available to watch via Amazon’s free streaming service Freevee, but...

“Pachinko” Season 2 Premiere Date Announced

Apple TV+ has announced the official return of one of its most acclaimed series.

Soo Hugh’s Peabody Award-winning “Pachinko” will have its Season 2 premiere on Friday, Aug. 23. Based on The New York Times bestselling novel of the same name by Min Jin Lee, the sweeping, four-generation, three-language story “chronicles the hopes and dreams of a Korean immigrant family…as they leave their homeland in an indomitable quest to survive and thrive.”

Watch the date announcement video for “Pachinko” Season 2 below:

Returning starring cast members include Yuh-Jung Youn, Soji Arai, Jin Ha, Junwoo Han, Eun-chae Jung, Lee Minho, Minha Kim, Anna Sawai, and Sungkyu Kim.

New episodes of “Pachinko” Season 2 will be released weekly every Friday through Oct. 11.

7-Day Free Trial $9.99+ / month apple.com “Hacks” Renewed at Max

“Hacks” has hacked it at Max!

After wrapping its third season this past Thursday, the award-winning comedy series,...

American Gladiators is returning to the Gauntlet.

Prime Video has picked up a revival of the physical competition series, which originally aired in syndication from 1989-1996.

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The new iteration will once again pit a team of Gladiators against a team of Contenders in classic challenges like Gauntlet, Hang Tough and The Eliminator, as well as new ones. A nationwide casting search is currently underway for Contenders.

American Gladiators was previously rebooted in 2008 by NBC,...

American Gladiators, a classic series, is being rebooted on Amazon Prime, featuring iconic competitions like Gauntlet and Hang Tough. Originally airing in the late 1980s, the show has influenced many athletes' careers and is considered a cultural phenomenon. Despite previous attempts at revival, Amazon Prime's new series is creating excitement among audiences for the return of American Gladiators.

American Gladiators, the iconic series that pits tremendous athletes against each other in battles of strength, is returning to viewers thanks to Amazon Prime. Originally airing in the late 1980s and revived in the late 2000s, American Gladiators is considered one of the first reality TV competition series. The show's premise was simple: some of the country's best athletes would be tasked with beating amateur competitors in challenges designed specifically for the series that would push their strength and fortitude to the limit. With athletes having began their careers because of American Gladiators,...

Get ready because gladiators are set to hit the arena once again.

Amazon Prime Video has ordered a reboot of the iconic competition series “American Gladiators” and is currently searching for contenders that can pass the test of speed and strength to take on the gladiators in the ring. It will also include new and classics challenges like “Gauntlet,” “Hang Tough” and “The Eliminator.”

“Doing a cross-country casting search is exciting for us, and for the fans. Our goal is to find a real cross-section of America’s fittest and fiercest competitors,” Barry Poznick, general manager of MGM Alternative at Evolution Media and Big Fish Entertainment. “This is the ultimate in sports entertainment.”

The original series first debuted in 1989 and ran for seven seasons until 1996. It was hosted by Joe Theismann and Mike Adamle and included over 30 gladiators during its original run in the U.S.

The franchise later expanded...

Season 4 of the Jesus drama The Chosen is at long last making its pilgrimage to the small screen.

The CW announced Monday that it has officially picked up the fourth season: The two-hour premiere will make its broadcast TV debut on Sunday, Sept. 1 at 8/7c.

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In addition, as first reported by sister site THR, The Chosen‘s Season 4 premiere was released exclusively...

The gladiators are set to return to the arena … this time for Prime Video.

The Amazon-owned streaming service says that it has picked up a reboot of the classic competition series American Gladiators, with a nationwide search now underway for contestants to take on the professional gladiators in the custom-built arena.

The arena will include brand new challenges, as well as some classics from the original series like “Gauntlet,” “Hang Tough,” and “The Eliminator.”

The new series will be produced by Amazon MGM Studios and MGM Alternative.

News that a revival of the competition series was imminent became clear in April, when Range Sports signed Gladiators creator Johnny Ferraro with plans to develop the IP “across TV, film, attractions, merchandise and live events.”

The original series, which ran in syndication from 1989-96, saw contestants face off against elite “gladiators” in made-for-tv competitions. It was revived in 2008 as a primetime show for NBC,...

Hit the theme song. The classic athletic challenge show American Gladiators will be gearing up for some new games as Amazon will now be rebooting the series. American Gladiators initially ran between 1989 and 1996 in syndication and is widely considered one of the first reality competition series. The show had amateur athletes that competed against each other as well as the shows’ own gladiators across a range of challenges and obstacle courses. The show was previously rebooted on NBC in 2008 with WWE wrestling star Hulk Hogan and Muhammad Ali’s daughter Laila Ali hosting.

Now, Deadline is reporting that Amazon has ordered a newer incarnation of American Gladiators for Prime Video. The rebooted series will be produced by MGM Alternative and Amazon MGM Studios for the streaming giant in association with Flor-Jon Films, the production company from American Gladiators co-creator Johnny C. Ferraro, who exec produces. All the fan-favorite games will be making a glorious return.

Exclusive: Prepare the Eliminator, American Gladiators is coming back, again.

Amazon has ordered a reboot of the classic competition series for its Prime Video service. The series is produced by MGM Alternative and Amazon MGM Studios for Prime Video in association with Flor-Jon Films, the production company from American Gladiators series creator Johnny C. Ferraro, who exec produces.

American Gladiators is considered one of the first reality competition series. It pitted a cast of amateur athletes against each other as well as the shows’ own gladiators across a range of challenges including a tough obstacle course.

The new series includes classic competitions such as Gauntlet, Hang Tough, and, of course The Eliminator.

The move comes as the format has been rejuvenated across the pond where British broadcaster BBC has found success with a new generation of Gladiators. That version has become its biggest entertainment series launch in nearly a decade...

The American Revolution comes at ye fast.

So Claire and Jamie are in a very somber mood, indeed, in the new teaser for the back half of Outlander Season 7.

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Starz released the first peek at the drama’s upcoming episodes Saturday in conjunction with World Outlander Day. As previously announced, the second half of Season 7 will premiere on Friday, Nov.

Get ready for more Gladiators.

Range Sports has signed American Gladiators creator Johnny Ferraro for representation, with plans to revitalize the reality competition franchise.

Range plans to work with Ferraro and his partners “on the development of the American Gladiators IP across TV, film, attractions, merchandise and live events.” Ferraro and Range “are in active development on multiple projects” to bring the American Gladiators brand to new audiences.

“American Gladiators is an iconic brand, and we couldn’t be more excited to work with Johnny to accelerate its growth and expansion across sports, culture and entertainment,” said Will Funk and Greg Luckman, co-presidents of Range Sports, in a statement.

The original series, which ran in syndication from 1989-96, saw contestants face off against elite “gladiators” in made-for-tv competitions. It was revived in 2008 as a primetime show for NBC, and earlier this year it was rebooted by the BBC, earning a quick second series pickup.

American Gladiators is a reality competition show featuring athletic men and women competing in a variety of sports-based challenges. The best games on American Gladiators combined sports with inventive obstacles, requiring a full range of athletic capabilities. The most memorable games included Swingshot, Hang Tough, Joust, and Assault, all offering unique and exciting challenges for contenders and gladiators.

The reality series American Gladiators features contestants competing in a variety of games that range from standard athletic events to creative and exceptionally difficult gauntlets. Premiering in 1989, American Gladiators is a reality show similar to Survivor except contestants compete with the show's specially prepared "gladiators" who return week to week. Generally, two women and two men, known as the "contenders" would appear in each episode, with one of each advancing. The series lasted until 1996 and was revived for two seasons in 2008 before being canceled once again.

Contenders would compete against winners from...

Not all action stars are as tough in real life as they appear on-screen. Many actors rely on stunts and stunt doubles to pull off their action sequences. Some actors have real-life experience in combat or sports that make them more believable as tough guys on screen.

Enough fire and smoke, and anyone can be an action hero. The majority of the dudes on-screen kicking ass and taking names, posing without their shirts, wouldn’t last five minutes in a bar-room brawl. When the stuntmen finish extinguishing their smoldering clothes and the Emt crews on stand-by go home, you find out a lot about an actor. Just ask Jack O’Halloran, who nearly beat the crap out of his Superman co-star, Christopher Reeve, on set.

Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise only play bad asses on-screen. It’s a testament to their charisma and determination to their stunt-work that they can pull off those kinds of roles.

The Netflix documentary series Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators sheds light on the lives of several American Gladiators stars at the height of their fame, but it doesn’t get into what happened afterward. American Gladiators was a vastly popular reality TV series that ran from 1989 to 1995. The show invited normal people to compete against the titular “Gladiators”, larger-than-life characters with physiques to match. However, while the series rocketed many of the Gladiators into the limelight, the athletes unfortunately had to contend with poor management, drug abuse, and dangerous working conditions.

Muscles & Mayhem allows several key members of the American Gladiators cast to come forward and discuss the impact, better or worse, that the show had on their lives. While some were able to successfully leverage their American Gladiators stardom into thriving careers, others struggled with the adjustment to post-Gladiator life. A few even chose to forgo the spotlight altogether.

Welcome to the 220th episode of TV’s Top 5, The Hollywood Reporter’s TV podcast.

Every week, hosts Lesley Goldberg (West Coast TV editor) and Daniel Fienberg (chief TV critic) break down the latest TV news with context from the business and critical sides, welcome showrunners, executives and other guests, and provide a critical guide of what to watch (or skip, as the case may be).

This week’s episode features a look at two beloved comedies and their respective end games and checks in on the latest news in Hollywood’s labor wars. Here’s how everything plays out:

1. Headlines

Ryan Seacrest, the purge at Paramount+, Breeders, From and another beloved CW executive leaving the Nexstar-controlled network lead the week’s top industry headlines.

2. The Other Two hangs it up

Comedy Central-turned-Max cult favorite The Other Two has wrapped its run as this week’s season three...

“American Gladiators” aired in the 1990’s, but the competition still remains a phenomenon decades later. Last month, ESPN’s “30 for 30” explored the show, and now, Netflix is getting into the game.

Netflix’s five-part docuseries, “Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of ‘American Gladiators,” dives into the hit, chronicling the meteoric rise and sweeping impact the superhero-like athletes had on both fans across America and their “average Joe” competitors.

Co-directors Jared Hess and Tony Vainuku were fans of “American Gladiators” as teens, so it was natural to revisit the TV show when Netflix presented the opportunity. In their series, the filmmakers explore the good, the bad and the ugly, bringing audiences insight through access to executives who greenlit the production in the ’80s, original crew members and gladiators, including Nitro (Dan Clark), Storm (Debbie Clark), Diamond (Erika Andersch Bunker), Laser (Jim Kalafat), Ice (Lori Fetrick), Zap (Raye Olson), Blaze...

Ever since Netflix’s The Last Dance and Drive to Survive became highly-rated documentary series, the platform has become a hub of sports drama documentaries in the hope of capitalizing on the newfound popularity of the genre. Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators is a Netflix Original limited documentary series about “American Gladiators,” the famous television show that ran on American networks from 1989 to 1996. Directed by Jared Hess and Tony Vainuku, it was released on June 28, 2023, and skates by on the nostalgia element and nothing else.

The entire documentary series takes the audience through the lives of the so-called ‘gladiators’ that took part in this good old television show, the journey they began, and how it changed them as individuals. This strenuous part of their lives is filled with only fame and no fortune because the ‘gladiators’ went through tough times during their eight years on this show.

The fascination over American Gladiators isn’t over just yet: Three weeks after ESPN aired 30 for 30: The American Gladiators Documentary, Netflix is now shining a spotlight on the inimitable ’80s competition show that gave us Nitro, Gemini and thrilling jousts with what looked like giant, padded Q-tips.

Like ESPN’s penetrative two-parter from director Ben Berman (The Amazing Jonathan Documentary), the new Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators (dropping June 28 on Netflix) reminds us that TV’s first big reality show stars weren’t privileged women who throw wine in fits of rage. They were pumped-up athletes who donned patriotic colors while playing Goliath to some poor civilian’s David in a makeshift battledome.

But while ESPN’s documentary from Vice Media focuses more of its narrative on Johnny Ferraro, the infamous figurehead behind the memorable franchise, Muscles & Mayhem keeps the attention on the gladiators and how,...

We may live in a post-truth world, but most viewers still settle in to watch documentaries with the assumption that what we’re going to be treated to is at least some version of “truth.” Surely, we think, “truth” is what most documentary filmmakers aspire to.

If that sounds familiar, you probably read too many of my reviews. It was the start of my take on The American Gladiators Documentary, Ben Berman’s four-hour 30 for 30 treatment of the syndicated spandex-and-steroids phenomenon that was American Gladiators. Less than a month after that project, which took an intentionally truth-evasive look at authorship controversies surrounding American Gladiators, along comes Tony Vainuku and Jared Hess’ new Netflix’s five-parter, Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators, which has a different approach to “truth.”

“The time of the American Gladiators. It was the ’90s,” Dan “Nitro” Clark says in the introduction to the series.

"You are never gonna defeat 220 pounds of twisted steel and sex appeal." Netflix has revealed an official trailer for a documentary series streaming event called Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators. This seems to have originally been developed as a doc film, but its being split into five 45 minute episodes (for a total of 225 minutes - which is almost 4 hours). In the 1990s, TV's stunt-filled "American Gladiators" show thrilled fans. This docu-series explores the show's success and how it almost ended before it began. The meteoric rise, dramatic fall, and gripping behind-the-scenes stories of one of the biggest spectacles on television during the height of the '90s. Told first hand from the stars who lived through it, this five part series reveals untold stories of the iconic American Gladiators' triumph, turmoil, and ultimate price of fame. Bring it on! Featuring appearances from many of the actual...

Netflix has unveiled the official trailer for “Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators,” which will offer a behind-the-scenes look into one of the biggest spectacles on television during the height of the ’90s.

The five-part docuseries includes firsthand accounts from the stars who lived through it, sharing untold stories of American Gladiators’ triumph, turmoil and the ultimate price of fame. They include Dan “Nitro” Clark, Debbie “Storm” Clark, Erika “Diamond” Andersch Bunker, Jim “Laser” Kalafat, Lori “Ice” Fetrick, Michael “Gemini” Horton, Raye “Zap” Olson, Shari E “Blaze” Pendleton Mitchell, Shirley “Sky” Eson-Korito, Steve “Tower” Hennebery

“Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators” is directed by Tony Vainuku and Jared Hess, produced by Campfire Studios and Game Seven Media and executive produced by Clark, Vainuku, Hess, Ross M. Dinerstein, Kyle McCutcheon, Peter Sussman and Chris Koras.

Also Read:

‘American Gladiators’ Star Michael Horton on the Sacrifices...

Amid the pending fate of its co-parent company Vice Media Group, Vice TV is focusing on its latest season of “Dark Side of the Ring,” and Vice Studios-produced projects recently launched on other platforms, including “American Gladiators” on ESPN, “Bama Rush” at Max, and “100 Days to Indy” at the CW network.

It’s also looking to the future, ordering second seasons of “Dark Side of Comedy” and “Sex Before the Internet” and greenlighting new series “Dark Side of the 2000s” for its own cable channel, in addition to moving Vice web series “One Star Reviews” to linear.

As Vice’s president of global TV, Morgan Hertzan, put it, the Vice TV network — which is part owned by A+E Networks — is “very, very busy” right now.

“The parts of the business that I oversee are doing really well,” Hertzan told Variety. “And I have to say, our partners through...

With larger-than-life men and women battling the everyday person in feats of strength, endurance, and agility, audiences seemed to be stuck to their television sets ever since American Gladiators first premiered on television sets in September 1989. Running for seven seasons and over two hundred episodes, names like Gemini, Malibu, and Thunder quickly became household idols and were trademarked on all sorts of products, including video games, lunchboxes, and action figures.

Unbeknownst to most people who were mesmerized by the David and Goliath premise of the show, there is a captivating and thrilling story that not only revolves around the actual gladiators but also the two original creators, John Ferraro and Dann Carr. With a brand-new documentary released under ESPN’s 30 for 30 moniker, director Ben Berman opens the door for the entire audience to see what happened before, during, and after the legacy of one of America’s most-watched...

The two-part “30 for 30” documentary on the seminal 1990s competition show “American Gladiators” has now concluded, wrapping up an epic saga that cut right to the core of the American Dream.

The documentary dove deep into the largely unknown history of the show, which dominated the TV landscape in its initial run in syndication on US television and around the world. It revealed stories of love, lust, betrayal, friendship, injury, agony, and everything in between from the creators of the show and the Gladiators themselves.

So how did a nearly three-hour doc about a show famous for events like jousting with things that looked like huge cotton swabs and rolling around in giant steel balls called Atlaspheres come together? According to the doc’s director Ben Berman, he was skeptical when initially approached by Vice about the project but changed his mind once he learned more about the story.

We may live in a post-truth world, but most viewers still settle in to watch documentaries with the assumption that what we’re going to be treated to is at least some version of “truth.” Surely, we think, “truth” is what most documentary filmmakers aspire to.

Perhaps owing to a background that’s in comedy — Lady Dynamite, Comedy Bang! Bang! — rather than nonfiction, Ben Berman doesn’t operate on that level. Berman, who made his documentary debut with 2019’s Sundance entry The Amazing Johnathan Documentary, is more interested in the lengths that people go to avoid the truth. He isn’t angry at liars — he’s not Alex Gibney — so much as he is fascinated with the prevarication itself, not always the motivation for it or the reality behind it.

Berman’s new film is ESPN’s two-part The American Gladiators Documentary, which airs under the 30 for 30 banner, even though,...

Johnny Ferraro comes across like a Mafia soldier in witness relocation as a used car salesman, or maybe that one casino employee you really don’t want to mess with. He has a way of looking at the camera like he wants to strangle it, or at least spit on it. But somehow, some way, he musters charm. Ferraro is the creator of the much-mocked, absurdly popular proto-reality-tv competition series American Gladiators. Or is he?

This question lingers over the new two-part ESPN 30 for 30 film The American Gladiators Documentary, whose...

The original form of “sports entertainment,” “American Gladiators” is the subject of the next “30 for 30” from ESPN. “The American Gladiators Documentary,” is a two-part film directed by Ben Berman that tells the story of “American Gladiators,” one of the most popular syndicated programs in television history. What begins as a traditional documentary soon gives way to greed, divergent narratives, and ultimately questions how history itself is written. “The American Gladiators Documentary” airs this Tuesday, May 30, at 8:30 p.m. Et and Wednesday, May 31, at 9 p.m. Et on ESPN. You can watch ESPN with a subscription to Sling TV. You can also watch with Directv Stream, Hulu Live TV, Fubo, or YouTube TV..

How to Watch ‘The American Gladiators Documentary’ Premiere When: Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 8:30 Pm Edt TV: ESPN Stream: Watch with a subscription to Sling TV. Get $10 Off$40+ / month sling.com

Limited Time: Get $10 Off Your First Month...

Just because the week is shorter, doesn’t mean that there’s any less stellar programming on the horizon, with new seasons of “I Think You Should Leave,” “Dark Side of the Ring,” “Nancy Drew” and “Painting with John,” plus the series finales of “Barry” and “Succession.” And that’s to say nothing of a ripped-from-the-headlines HBO movie (starring Sydney Sweeney no less), a documentary about the American Gladiators and a LeBron James biopic. A jam-packed week, even with one fewer day!

On with the television!

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“I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson”

Tuesday, May 30, Netflix

Netflix

Television’s most deliriously funny series returns. If you’ve never seen “I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson,” it springs from the deranged mind of star and creator Tim Robinson, who worked as a performer...

Netflix’s Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators documentary series takes an in-depth look at the world of American Gladiators, the competition series that premiered in 1989 and ran through 1996. The series was briefly revived in 2008.

Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators will premiere on June 28, 2023 and, per Netflix, “chronicles the meteoric rise, dramatic fall, and gripping behind-the-scenes stories of one of the biggest spectacles on television during the height of the ’90s. Told first hand from the stars who lived through it, this five part series reveals untold stories of the iconic American Gladiators’ triumph, turmoil, and ultimate price of fame.”

Dan “Nitro” Clark, Debbie “Storm” Clark, Erika “Diamond” Andersch Bunker, Jim “Laser” Kalafat, Lori “Ice” Fetrick, Michael “Gemini” Horton, and Raye “Zap” Olson participated in the five-episode documentary series. Past American Gladiators competitors Shari E “Blaze” Pendleton Mitchell, Shirley “Sky” Eson-Korito, and Steve “Tower” Hennebery...

ESPN has released an exclusive clip from a new two-part documentary that will shed light on the behind-the-scenes story of the famed reality competition show “American Gladiators.”

From 1989 to 1996, “American Gladiators” was one of the most popular syndicated programs in television, a competition show that predated the reality TV era but used many of the same techniques to attract viewers. Every week, “amateur” contestants would go up against a cast of “professional” gladiators in a range of physical competitions, setting up David versus Goliath matchups that were popular with big television audiences but also earned considerable criticism for being “crash TV”.

The documentary, which will debut on May 30 and 31 on ESPN and be made available on ESPN+ following its premiere, features original interviews with Johnny Ferraro, Deron McBee (‘Malibu’), Michael Horton (‘Gemini’), Lynn ‘Red’ Williams (‘Sabre’), the late William Billy Smith (‘Thunder’) and Salina Bartunek (‘Elektra’).

“What we were doing consumed us so much.

Doctor Who star Bradley Walsh and his son Barney Walsh are to host the BBC’s rebooted Gladiators.

The show, which hasn’t aired in the UK for almost 25 years, is coming back later this year along with another rebooted show, Survivors, on the BBC.

Bradley Walsh, who also hosts ITV’s The Chase and the BBC’s rebooted Blankety Blank, will take the reins alongside son Barney Walsh. The pair have hosted ITV’s successful documentary format Bradley & Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad, in which they travel around the world.

Bradley Walsh’s wife Donna Walsh was head choreographer for the original Gladiators cheerleaders and Bradley Walsh also competed in a ‘Celebrities vs Jockeys’ special in 1997.

In the rebooted Gladiators, which is produced by Hungry Bear and MGM Television UK, a new generation of superhuman Gladiators will compete against contenders in a test of speed and strength. Brand new games...

Kiara Pichardo, Maria Teresa Dizzia, and Spencer Macpherson in ‘School Spirits’ episode 3 (Photo Cr: Paramount + © 2022 Viacom International Inc)

Mr. Anderson’s stalking behavior places him on the suspect list as Paramount+’s School Spirits episode three begins. He refuses to tell Simon (Kristian Flores) why he was lurking in the auto shop, and Simon’s spidey sense is tingling like crazy.

Maddie (Peyton List), on the other hand, refuses to consider Mr. Anderson a suspect. He bent over backward to help her out when she was alive and seemed to genuinely care about her, not just as a teacher but as a human being.

Angry mom Sandra heads to Sheriff Baxter’s house and demands to know why he’s called off the searches and only has one deputy assigned to Maddie’s case. She believes it’s because he’s worried about his upcoming election.

Xavier (Spencer Macpherson...

Exclusive: Nancy Dubuc is leaving Vice Media Group where she was CEO for the past five years. She just announced her decision to her staff in a memo (you can read it below.) It comes as the board has launched a process to sell — an acquisition of the whole company, a strategic recapitalization, or other transactions involving individual assets — under the oversight of a Special Board Committee. According to sources, Dubuc was at the end of her contract and decided it was time to move on.

“Nancy joined Vice at a pivotal time and put in place an exceptional team that has positioned the company for long-term success,” the company’s board of directors said in a statement. “We thank Nancy for her many contributions and will soon announce new leadership to guide Vice forward into its next stage of growth and transformation.”

Dubuc, who had been on the Vice...

Vice Studios global president Kate Ward is joining BBC Studios to oversee its factual portfolio, Variety can reveal.

Ward has been appointed to the role of managing director for factual at BBC Studios Productions, where she replaces Tom McDonald, who left the company earlier this year to join National Geographic.

With her new role, the well-respected executive — who most recently served as president of global studios and Pulse Films for Vice Media Group — will take on one of the most significant production portfolios in the U.K. industry, spanning the BBC’s Natural History Unit, Documentary Unit and Science Unit. She will also oversee relationships with BBC Studios’ roster of production companies, including Louis Theroux’s Mindhouse Productions, David Olusoga’s Uplands TV and James and Soleta Rogan’s Rogan Productions.

Ward, who starts the role in February 2023, reports into Ralph Lee, CEO of BBC Studios Productions.

The Bbcs managing...

UK Saturday night television in the 1990s cannibalised its own audience, relying on them not merely to watch its entertainment, but also to be the entertainment. It was all good, harmless fun, and none of it placed particularly great demands on the contestants or the audiences from which they were plucked. Blind Date invited us to trade cheesy chat-up lines with strangers, and sometimes go on holiday with people we didn’t like. Noel Edmonds wanted to secretly monitor us in our homes, and then pour gunge on us. But then came Gladiators, and by golly it wasn’t interested in giving us an easy ride.

Each week, Gladiators pitted members of the public against the eponymous gladiators: a coterie of contoured, chiselled athletes and bicep-bulging body-builders with fearsome names like Hunter, Lightning, and Warrior. Two male and two female contestants competed against the gladiators, and each other, across a series of six gruelling games,...

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Reality hit show Survivor, “one of the world’s most successful TV formats,” is set for a British reboot on the BBC, the public broadcaster said Monday.

“A new U.K. adaption of the entertainment phenomenon has been commissioned by BBC One and BBC iPlayer from Banijay U.K. company Remarkable Entertainment, run by leading entertainment producers Natalka Znak and Claire O’Donohoe,” the broadcaster unveiled.

The 16-episode season “promises viewers a compelling test of brains, brawn and betrayal as players compete to outwit, outplay and outlast their rivals to be crowned the Ultimate Survivor,” the BBC said in summarizing the format’s tried and tested formula. “Twenty people, carefully selected from across the U.K. will be marooned in a tropical location. They will be divided into two tribes, going head-to-head in a range of physical and psychological challenges. Following a number of...

A “Gladiators” revival is heading to BBC One next year.

The competition series is returning with an eleven episode series produced by MGM Television UK and Hungry Bear Media, and will focus on “a brand new generation of superhumans who will compete against contestants in the ultimate test of speed and strength.”

Per BBC One, this new iteration of “Gladiators” will incorporate fresh games alongside classic challenges, culminating at the end of each installment with the iconic “The Eliminator” event.

Filming will take place at the Utilita Arena Sheffield in 2023. Additional information about the series, including broadcast details, will be announced at a later date.

It’s notable that “Gladiators” is being revived internationally by MGM while the studio is in a state of limbo under new parent company Amazon, and at the same time as MGM is still trying to get a reboot off the ground stateside for “American Gladiators,...

Blue Planet III and Gladiators are coming to the BBC. The Junior Eurovision Song Contest will also air on the network for the first time.

The Sir David Attenborough-presented landmark was revealed at the Edinburgh TV Festival this afternoon by BBC commissioners, described as “using the very latest in underwater filming techniques to reveal brand new and untold stories from magical underwater worlds.”

The show from the prestigious BBC Studios Natural History Unit will take on the legacy of 2017’s Blue Planet II, which led to a sea change in plastics pollution and the perception of life in our oceans. Blue Planet II was one of the most-viewed BBC shows of the decade, coming a few years after the first Blue Planet.

The third series will focus on the five major underwater habitats: the Tropical Seas; Temperate Seas; Polar Seas; High Seas; and Deep Seas, while the sixth episode...

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Contenders ready!

Gladiators, the U.K version of American Gladiators and a show that became a staple of British Saturday night TV in the 1990s, is getting a reboot.

Confirming rumors that emerged last month, the BBC has revealed it is the new home for the spandex-friendly, muscle-flexing entertainment show, which originally ran on ITV from October 1992 to January 2000 (Sky had a short-lived revival that lasted just a year between 2008 and 2009).

The eleven-episode series — made by Hungry Bear Media (behind BBC game show Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel) and MGM Television U.K. (part of the Amazon-owned MGM, which owns American Gladiators) — is set to land on screens in 2023 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, with brand new games alongside some of the original classic challenges, culminating in the classic head-to-head race, The Eliminator.

“Gladiators is back and a whole new generation of...

The BBC plans to bring back one of Britain’s biggest shows of the 1990s, with the broadcaster reported to be in talks with rights holders MGM Studios to relaunch the very physical game-show Gladiators.

Broadcast Magazine had the scoop that, three decades after professionals with unlikely but catchy names like Blaze, Falcon and Wolf took on contestants in a series of muscle-flexing challenges, the BBC hopes to bring the show back by next year, say insiders, who report that a set of new professionals has been selected and filming will take place in Sheffield, northern England.

The BBC is currently keeping quiet on its plans for the show, but Broadcast Magazine cited a source who told them, “It’s exactly the kind of Saturday night family entertainment show that BBC One needs.”

While Strictly Come Dancing continues to bring in big Saturday evening audiences for the BBC, ITV has...