You Can Choose How Bear Grylls Almost Dies in Netflix’s New Interactive Show
March 18, 2019Last week, Netflix announced plans to make a whole slate of new interactive films and series after the massive success of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. In a recent speech, Netflix's Vice President of Product, Todd Yellin, teased that the upcoming choose-your-own-adventure projects wouldn't all be bleak-as-fuck dystopian dramas like Bandersnatch.
"It could be a wacky comedy," he reportedly said. "It could be a romance." What he didn't say, though, is that it could also be a survival show where you repeatedly put Bear Grylls in life-threatening situations—and, uh, that's exactly what the first new interactive series is going to be, Variety reports.
Grylls is starring in You vs. Wild, a choose-your-own-adventure survival show that will be Netflix's first interactive TV series for adults. (Apologies to all the grown-ups who love Buddy Thunderstruck). The first season is set to premiere next month. The streaming service announced the news Monday with a YouTube video that is also, unsurprisingly, interactive:
"I’m so proud to deliver this first-of-its-kind live-action interactive series, really giving viewers an all-access pass to explore the world and its landscapes in my boots," Grylls said in a statement, according to Variety. "The stakes are high in this one!"
And the stakes do seem pretty high, at least for Grylls. The series will give the viewer control of the Man vs. Wild host's choices during his adventures, making sure he survives or, presumably, forcing him to almost fall to his death or nearly drown in a class five rapid or eat some poisonous bugs or whatever. It sounds way more like an actual choose-your-own-adventure book than Bandersnatch ever did.
Grylls is also executive producing the show, which is directed by Ben Simms. Get ready to take Bear Grylls's batshit life into your hands when the first eight episodes hit Netflix on April 10. Until then, answer the (FaceTime) call of adventure in the promo video above.
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