''Fear Factor'' is an American stunt/
dare game show
A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...
that first aired on
NBC from 2001 to 2006 and was initially hosted by comedian and
UFC commentator
Joe Rogan. The show was adapted by
Endemol USA from the original Dutch series titled ''Now or Neverland''.
For the first five seasons, the contestants consisted regularly of three men and three women pitted against each other in a variety of three stunts for a grand prize, usually $50,000. In the sixth season, the show's format was modified to feature four competing teams of two people who have a pre-existing relationship with one another.
''Fear Factor'' was cancelled by NBC in 2006 after six seasons (142 episodes excluding specials with highlights); NBC would briefly revive the series for a nine-episode run in 2011. In 2017,
MTV revived the series with rapper and actor
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, spoken as "ludicrous" in American English), is an American rapper and songwriter. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved to Atlanta, Georgia, at age ...
assuming the host role; this incarnation ran two seasons (thirty-three episodes) before being cancelled in 2018. The show has since spawned many spin-offs, creating
its own media franchise.
On May 12, 2025, it was announced that ''Fear Factor'' would be revived by
Fox, titled ''Fear Factor: The Next Chapter''. The revival is expected to premiere in spring 2026.
Series overview
History
Original series (2001–2006)
As NBC's answer to the
CBS television series ''
Survivor,'' the show was initially a hit for the network in the summer of 2001 and built strong ratings and popularity in the following seasons.
Joe Rogan, then known for his role on the sitcom ''
NewsRadio
''NewsRadio'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from March 21, 1995, to May 4, 1999, focusing on the work lives of the staff of a New York City AM news radio station. It had an ensemble cast featuring Dave Foley, Stephen R ...
'' (1995–1999) and as a commentator for
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...
, was hired as the host. According to a 2015 interview with
Art Bell, Rogan expected ''Fear Factor'' to be cancelled after a few episodes due to objections to some of the content and further stated that he took the job mainly to obtain observations and anecdotes for his stand-up comedy career. The series had a runaway success during the first few seasons, but after the series' fourth season (2003–2004), the popularity and ratings began to decline. By the time the series was in its sixth season, the ratings were in steep decline as a result of content concerns and a growing loss of viewer interest, coupled with the series facing tough competition with other TV shows in the same time slot. As a result, the series was only averaging a 2.6 in the ratings. Later that year, ''Fear Factor'' faced tough competition with the TV ratings champion,
Fox's talent series ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
'' on Tuesday nights and the ratings declined even further and continued to trend further downward during this period. Despite much publicity concerning an improved format and better stunts for season six, the series' ratings continued to drop and consequently,
NBC put the struggling program on hiatus for the remainder of the season to make room for the sitcom ''
Joey,'' the ''
Friends
''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...
''
spin-off that was itself removed from the NBC lineup a few weeks later. After a continuous and steep drop in the series' ratings, it was officially cancelled by NBC in May 2006 after six seasons (''Joey'' was cancelled in April) and the network began airing the remainder of the season on June 13, 2006, with the remaining episodes to be aired throughout the summer, with its last episode airing on September 12, 2006. Over its six seasons, ''Fear Factor'' earned NBC a reported $600 million in advertising revenue. Currently only the first season has been released on DVD; in early 2009 a box set release containing the entire series on DVD was planned. The project was put on hold for an unknown reason in March 2010. On June 5, 2010, it was announced that the project was cancelled because of the low sales of the first season DVD.
Syndication
In 2004, ''Fear Factor'' became the first network reality show to be syndicated. In the fall of that year,
NBCUniversal Television Distribution put it into barter syndication and it aired on
Fox,
The WB
The WB Television Network (shortened to The WB, stylized as "THE WB", and nicknamed the "Frog Network" and/or "The Frog" for its former mascot Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network that ran from 1995 to 2006. It launched on ter ...
and
UPN affiliates and on the cable channel
FX. However, as of fall 2006, ''Fear Factor'' had left local syndication due to lack of sales of
NBCUniversal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC (abbreviated as NBCU and Trade name, doing business as NBCUniversal or Comcast NBCUniversal since 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Show business, entertainment conglomerate (comp ...
and was not renewed for another season next fall since NBC canceled ''Fear Factor'' after six seasons due to low ratings. In addition to FX, reruns of ''Fear Factor'' have aired in syndication on
Chiller
A chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid coolant via a vapor-compression refrigeration, vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigerator, absorption refrigeration cycles. This liquid can then be circulated th ...
,
MTV2 and
TBD, with TBD airing a ''Fear Factor'' marathon the weekend of May 15–16, 2021. The series also has a
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel, where previously unaired footage is shown.
Revived series (2011–2012)
With
Chiller
A chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid coolant via a vapor-compression refrigeration, vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigerator, absorption refrigeration cycles. This liquid can then be circulated th ...
airing reruns of ''Fear Factor'' every Sunday night, the ratings led to Comcast informing ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' in a May 31, 2011 report that ''Fear Factor'' would be revived for a seventh season. Eight episodes were ordered, including two two-hour episodes and Rogan returning to hosting duties. The revival was shot in high-definition and owing to concerns over the then-ongoing NFL Lockout and the loss of ''
NBC Sunday Night Football
''NBC Sunday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''SNF'') is an American weekly television broadcast of National Football League (NFL) games on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock in the United States. It began airing on August 6, 2006, w ...
'' episodes,
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media
In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...
reported in early July the show could be ready as early as September as lockout replacement programming (NBC eventually lost one episode, the season premiere Hall of Fame Game, because of the lockout that ended in late July). The series revival began airing on December 12, 2011; the two premiere episodes were viewed by 8.7 million and 8.5 million viewers, respectively. This makes the premiere the highest rated non-sports programming to air on NBC at 8:00 p.m. since February 2008. Following Rogan's verbal disclaimer, the narrator gives a statement and this is one most commonly used:
The revival featured four teams of two people with a preexisting relationship per episode, rather than the original versions' six people (three males and three females). The first five seasons had typically used the three male, three female grouping, but the sixth and final pre-revival season always utilized four teams of two people each. The stunts remained basically the same, with the "gross" one in between the two physical ones. NBC pulled a two-hour, five team, five stunt episode entitled "Leeches & Shaved Heads & Tear Gas, Oh My!" which featured a stunt where teams spun a wheel to determine whether they would have to shave their heads and eyebrows, get tattooed or be tear gassed. This episode was scheduled to air in two parts on January 23 and 30, 2012, but it was postponed after Part 1 was replaced by a GOP debate. Another episode, entitled "Hee Haw! Hee Haw!" and featuring a stunt where contestants drink the urine and semen of a donkey, was then scheduled to air January 30, 2012. Hesitant about airing the stunt, NBC eventually pulled the episode after pictures of the stunt appeared online. Video footage of the stunt appeared online after the episode aired on Danish TV in June 2012 and ''Fear Factor'' eventually posted short clips of all three stunts on their
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel in July 2014. The sixth episode, entitled "The Bees Are So Angry", was two hours instead of the usual one and included five teams, five stunts and a $100,000 prize instead of the usual four teams, three stunts and $50,000 prize. Following this episode, ''
The Voice'' replaced the series' slot on Monday nights. On May 13, 2012, NBC announced that ''Fear Factor'' was officially cancelled. NBC rescheduled the two hour "Leeches & Shaved Heads & Tear Gas, Oh My!" episode, which aired in two parts over the nights of July 9 and 16. The first part ended with the "To Be Continued" subtitle followed by a preview for the second part.
US Nielsen ratings
MTV reboot (2017–2018)
In April 2017,
MTV announced that it would be reviving ''Fear Factor'' a second time for a 12-episode season. The first season of MTV's ''Fear Factor'' premiered on May 30, 2017, and concluded on August 22, 2017. Just prior to the first-season finale, it was announced that MTV had renewed the series for a second season consisting of 20 episodes. The first half of Season 2, subtitled ''Season From Hell,'' began airing on February 25, 2018; the second half, subtitled ''Celebrity Fear Factor,'' premiered on July 17, 2018. The MTV revival was hosted by
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, spoken as "ludicrous" in American English), is an American rapper and songwriter. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved to Atlanta, Georgia, at age ...
and continued to use the format of four teams competing for a $50,000 prize. The stunts drew inspiration from elements of pop culture, such as horror movies, urban legends and viral videos.
Fox reboot (2026)
On May 12, 2025, it was announced that ''Fear Factor'' would be revived by
Fox, titled ''Fear Factor: The Next Chapter''. In addition to extreme stunts, this incarnation of the series will incorporate a social element, in which contestants live in a house together after being dropped in a remote location. The revival is expected to premiere in spring 2026.
Show format
Original format (2001–2012)
The show begins with an introduction from the narrator and this is one most commonly used:
Before the contestants are introduced (and at the half-way point of a two-hour special), Rogan presents a verbal disclaimer. The wording has changed with certain versions, but this is one most commonly used:
The normal format involves three men and three women—or four teams of two people with a pre-existing relationship—who have to complete three professional stunts to win
US$
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
50,000. Rogan noted that the stunts not only test any contestants/teams physically, but mentally as well. Any contestants or teams who were too scared to attempt a stunt, failed to complete a stunt or underperformed a stunt were eliminated from the competition. If only one contestant or team successfully completed the first or the second stunt, they automatically win $25,000 and the other contestants eliminated in the stunt along with the winner of the stunt return for the next stunt to compete for the remaining $25,000. If no one successfully completed the first or the second stunt, then all of the contestants and teams eliminated in the stunt would return to the next stunt to compete for a reduced $25,000. This rule did not apply for non-elimination stunts; in those cases, the prize would be carried over to the next stunt. The only exception to this was in season one, where if one person completed the stunt, the contestant won $10,000 and the $50,000 grand prize was not reduced. There were no instances during the first season where all contestants failed a stunt, so it was never revealed how this would have been handled (however Rogan did state 'as usual' in an early episode of the second season, when nobody completed the second stunt—even though it was the first time it had happened—that the prize would be reduced by 50%). In the final episode of season one, it was implied by Rogan during the second stunt that involved eating various
pig parts that if only one person won the stunt (after only one contestant, Martin Beech, successfully completed the previous stunt), then that person would get the $50,000 prize without the need to complete the final stunt. Only once in the history of ''Fear Factor'' did the $50,000 prize go unclaimed in an episode; On September 27, 2004, a "Best Friends" edition, none of the remaining teams were able to complete the final stunt. In the stunt, one member of each team had to drive a ramp car, while the other member had to drive a sports car. The one driving the sports car had to drive it onto the truck bed via the ramp car. If the sports car fell off of the truck bed at any time, the team was automatically eliminated. Had it been successfully completed, the team who did this the fastest would have won. However, the last remaining contestants walked away with two
Mazda
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima (town), Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima, Japan. The company was founded on January 30, 1920, as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. ...
vehicles for winning a previous stunt (see
Second stunt). After the acquisition of
Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to:
* Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate
** Universal Pictures, an American film studio
** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex
* Various theme parks operat ...
of
Vivendi by
NBC's parent company
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
in 2004, contestants could win vacations in order to promote the theme park division of
NBCUniversal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC (abbreviated as NBCU and Trade name, doing business as NBCUniversal or Comcast NBCUniversal since 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Show business, entertainment conglomerate (comp ...
at
Universal Orlando or win trips to Universal Studios in
Hollywood.
The order of the stunts on a typical episode of ''Fear Factor'' is as follows:
First stunt: The first stunt is designed to physically test each of the contestants or teams (for example, jumping from one building to the next or hanging from a helicopter and collecting flags on a ladder). Usually, the two men and the two women or the three teams, that gave the best performance (such as the fastest time, farthest distance or number of flags collected in under a certain time) will move on to the second stunt. The others are eliminated. In the sixth season, a sometimes-used rule was that the best-performing team won the ability to eliminate the team of their choice, meaning that teams who failed to complete the stunt or had the worst performance could still advance to the next round if the winning team did not choose to eliminate them.
Second stunt: The second stunt is meant to mentally challenge the contestants or teams. The three most common types of stunts in the second round are eating stunts, animal stunts and retrieval or transfer stunts. Eating stunts entail ingesting vile animal parts, live bugs or a blended concoction of multiple items; animal stunts entail immersing one's head or entire body in animals considered to be disgusting or intimidating (such as rats, spiders, snakes or worms); retrieval or transfer stunts involve retrieving items or gross objects (often by mouth) hidden in disgusting substances (for example, blood or lard) or live animals. On rare occasions, the 'mental' challenge would be of a completely different nature, and not be an objectively gross stunt (such as eating undesirable animal parts). Rather, it would be a test of pain endurance, for instance walking barefoot on broken glass or ingesting habanero peppers. Even less often still, the second stunt would be a test of the contestants' tolerance of (sometimes long-term) public humiliation, such as parading nude down a catwalk in front of an audience of photographers, getting a tattoo, or, in one episode of season 6, receiving a humiliating hair cut, such as a mohawk or "taco" style. At the time of broadcast, many fans commented that the latter stunt was amongst the most unreasonable stunts in the show's history.
With the exception of retrieval or transfer stunts, contestants are usually not eliminated after this stunt unless they fail to complete it or vomit before finishing. In the case of teams, one team may be eliminated for having the worst performance. In later episodes, a common (but not always used) rule was that no one would be eliminated after the second stunt; instead, the contestant or team that performed the best would receive a prize, such as a vehicle or a prize package similar in value. More often than not, the contestant or team with the best performance had the privilege of choosing the order that the contestants or teams had to go in to perform the next stunt
or the following day Extremely rarely during the show's original run, Rogan would participate in the second stunt, most often as a way of encouraging contestants to take part. However, during a stunt involving tear gas in the third season, the wind changed direction and tear gas blew in the direction of Rogan, the camera crew and the other contestants that were not taking part at that particular moment. On another occasion during the first series, though it was not aired, Rogan ate three sheep eyes exactly like the contestants had to, as it was the first 'gross' stunt to be taped in the series' run and he did not feel it fair that the contestants should go at it alone, while he sat cheering them on.
Third stunt: The third and final stunt is usually something from an extreme type of stunt seen in an
action film
The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
. Like the first stunt, it usually involves heights, water, vehicles, or some combination of the three. In order to avoid ties, this stunt is always competitive. The player or team with the best performance this round wins the grand prize, usually $50,000 and has the privilege of being informed by Rogan that "evidently, fear is not a factor for you." Naturally, on the one occasion that the $50,000 prize went unclaimed (the season 5 Best Friends episode), Rogan instead informed the contestants that "evidently, fear ''is'' a factor for you." However, Rogan would also do this when nobody completed one of the earlier stunts, even when the stunt in question was not an elimination round.
Special formats
=Four-Stunt Show
=
This was typically a 90-minute episode featuring four stunts instead of three. The first such episode aired in season 3 and was notable for a stunt involving
body piercing. In seasons 4–6, at least one of the four stunts was a non-elimination stunt in which contestants competed for a prize. The four-stunt format was sometimes used in conjunction with themed episodes, such as Family Fear Factor, Twins Fear Factor and Thanksgiving Fear Factor. In season 5, six contestants from other reality shows competed in a two-hour, four-stunt episode for $50,000.
=Extended competitions
=
Some ''Fear Factor'' competitions consisted of five or more stunts and featured an increased grand prize. These competitions were always presented as multi-part episodes or single two-hour episodes. The first such competitions were the Tournaments of Champions in seasons 2 and 3 (see below). Season 4 included a two-hour season premiere in which 12 contestants competed in six stunts for a grand prize of $1,000,000; and a two-part, six-stunt Las Vegas episode where the winner would have a chance to win up to $100,000 based on his or her performance in the final stunt (they would then have to bet half their winnings on a hand of blackjack). Season 6 featured two three-episode, six-stunt competitions ("Psycho Fear Factor" and "Reality Stars Fear Factor"). Season 7 included two five-stunt competitions in which five teams competed for a grand prize of $100,000; the first aired as a single two-hour episode, and the second aired in two parts.
Tournament of Champions: Seasons 2–3 concluded with a Tournament of Champions featuring the winners of each episode of those respective seasons and a $100,000 grand prize. In season two, the 13 non-celebrity winners were divided into groups of eight men and five women. For the first four stunts, men competed amongst men and women competed amongst women in two stunts each. The men had to release a flag from a locked box while hanging suspended in the air and eat three different items from a table. The women had to collect flags while on top of an aircraft and retrieve three poles from a tank with
alligator
An alligator, or colloquially gator, is a large reptile in the genus ''Alligator'' of the Family (biology), family Alligatoridae in the Order (biology), order Crocodilia. The two Extant taxon, extant species are the American alligator (''A. mis ...
s. The stunts narrowed the contestants down from eight men and five women to two men and two women who will, in the end, compete against each other for the grand prize by using a key to activate a horn while riding on a speeding truck. In season three, the 24 winners were divided into two groups of 12, each containing seven men and five women. In the first semifinal episode, the group was cut from 12 to six to three to two finalists. In the second semifinal episode, the group was cut from 12 to six in the first stunt, then the men competed amongst the men and the women competed amongst the women in the second stunt and then the final four contestants, two men and two women, were cut to two finalists. Each finalist won a 2004
Mazda RX-8
The Mazda RX-8 is a sports car manufactured by Japanese automobile manufacturer Mazda between 2003 and 2012. It was first shown in 2001 at the North American International Auto Show#2001, North American International Auto Show. It is the direct s ...
and a chance at the $100,000. In the finals, the four finalists competed in three stunts. Each stunt eliminated one contestant and the final stunt determined the winner.
Couples Fear Factor: Seasons 4–5 both included ''Couples Fear Factor'' competitions that played out over seven episodes and featured a grand prize of $1,000,000. Nine couples competed in 17 stunts in season 4 and eight couples competed in 14 stunts in season 5. In season 4, each episode contained two or three stunts, with at least one stunt being a non-elimination stunt. In season 5, each episode featured two stunts; the first was always a non-elimination stunt and the second usually eliminated the team with the worst performance. In contrast to the regular format, only one team was eliminated in each elimination stunt; if multiple teams failed the stunt, then the teams that succeeded would vote on which failing team to eliminate. Almost every stunt offered a prize (e.g.,
cars, vacations, pre-loaded
credit cards, a chance to steal a desired prize from another team) or a $10,000 incentive to the team with the best performance. ''Couples Fear Factor'' episodes had certain stylistic differences from the regular format, including a different opening sequence and onscreen interviews with the contestants (regular episodes usually presented interviews in voiceover format only).
Psycho Fear Factor: A three-episode series in which six couples competed in six stunts for various cash and prizes, including a grand prize of $250,000. The stunts were centered around the Bates Motel on the set of the original ''
Psycho'' horror movie from
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
. Unlike other ''Fear Factor'' episodes, contestants were required to sleep in the filthy Bates Motel between stunts and were subjected to Fear Factor pranks and mini-challenges while in the motel.
Reality Stars Fear Factor: A three-episode series in which five teams of Reality TV stars competed in six stunts for various cash and prizes, including a grand prize of $150,000. Featured the teams were
Jonny Fairplay and Twila Tanner from ''
Survivor,'' Jonathan Baker and
Victoria Fuller from ''
The Amazing Race
''The Amazing Race'' is an adventure reality competition franchise in which teams of two people race around the world in competition with other teams. ''The Amazing Race'' is split into legs, with teams tasked to deduce clues, navigate themselv ...
,'' Craig Williams and Tana Goertz from ''
The Apprentice,''
The Miz
Michael Gregory Mizanin (born October 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, actor, and television personality. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name The Miz.
Mizanin first gained fame a ...
and
Trishelle Cannatella from ''
The Real World'' and
Anthony Fedorov and
Carmen Rasmusen
Carmen Rasmusen Herbert (born March 25, 1985) is a Canadian-American country music artist who ranked sixth on the American Idol (season 2), second season of ''American Idol'' in 2003. Rasmusen also plays piano and guitar.
Early life
Rasmusen was ...
from ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
.'' The series was won by The Miz and Cannatella.
=Other formats
=
Celebrity special (seasons two, three and six):
In seasons 2–3, episodes with celebrity contestants were played in the normal format, except that contestants were playing for charity. The winning contestant's charity would receive $50,000 and other contestants' charities would receive a lesser amount ($10,000 or $25,000). In season 6, eight celebrity contestants paired up into teams of two for the first two stunts but competed individually in the final stunt.
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin (born May 12, 1966) is an American actor. He has appeared in the films ''Born on the Fourth of July (film), Born on the Fourth of July'' (1989), ''Posse (1993 film), Posse'' (1993), ''8 Seconds'' (1994), ''Threesome (1994 ...
,
Kevin Richardson and
Alan Thicke
Alan Willis Thicke (né Jeffrey; 1 March 1947 13 December 2016) was a Canadian-American actor, songwriter, and game/talk show host. He was the father of singer Robin Thicke. Thicke was best known for playing Dr. Jason Seaver on the 1980s sitco ...
are among the celebrities who have competed on ''Fear Factor.'' Season 2 included an episode featuring six WWF/E stars; it was won by
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore Hardy (born September 23, 1974) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he a former List of TNA World Tag Team Champions, three time TNA Wor ...
.
All-Gross Show (seasons 3–6):
All three stunts on this show followed the format of the second (gross) stunt as described above. The first such episode involved
bobbing for objects in a vat containing 50 gallons of cow
blood
Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells.
Blood is com ...
. In seasons 4–5, the all-gross format was used for Halloween-themed episodes. In season six, a "Farm Fear Factor" episode featured all gross stunts.
Mixed Team and Individual Stunts (seasons two, five and six):
In most episodes, contestants competed individually or in teams of two for the entire competition. However, there were three episodes in which contestants paired up into teams for the first and/or second stunt but competed individually in the final stunt. The first instance of this was a season 2 episode in which three pairs of
twins
Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...
competed as teams in the first stunt and competed individually in the other two stunts. In season 5's "New York vs. L.A." episode, the first stunt narrowed a pool of eight contestants down to four (one man and one woman from each city); contestants from the same city then teamed up in the second stunt and all contestants competed as individuals in the final stunt. A season 6 celebrity episode had contestants competing as teams in the first two stunts and individually in the final stunt. In the latter episode, contestants were allowed to attempt the stunts alone if their partner quit before the stunt started.
Holiday specials (seasons 3–5):
Over the course of the series, Fear Factor produced three Christmas episodes, two Halloween episodes and a Thanksgiving episode. The Christmas episodes featured Christmas-themed stunts but were otherwise played in the normal format. The Halloween episodes followed the all-gross format and the Thanksgiving episode followed the four-stunt format.
Las Vegas Show (seasons 3–5):
Stunts took place at various
hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
s and
casino
A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
s in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
. The show's winner was required to bet at least half of their winnings on one hand of
Blackjack
Blackjack (formerly black jack or ''vingt-un'') is a casino banking game. It is the most widely played casino banking game in the world. It uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as " twenty-one ...
, with the chance to continue gambling if successful.
Special Contestants (seasons 2–7):
Some episodes featured a specific type of contestant (notably models, all-female, twins, military members, reality television stars, freaks and geeks, young and old, returning contestants) or teams with a specific type of relationship (e.g., couples, newlyweds, siblings, best friends, parent/child teams, exes). Many of these episodes were played in the regular format, although some used a four-stunt or extended competition format.
Fear Factor
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
Halftime Show (season 2):
Played in the normal format with ''
Playboy
''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...
'' Playmates. The first stunt aired as counter programming to the Super Bowl halftime show and ended right before the third quarter of the game started. The remaining two stunts were shown immediately after the game as counter programming to the Super Bowl lead-out show.
Miss USA (seasons 3–5):
Played in the normal format with
Miss USA
Miss USA is an American beauty pageant that has been held annually since 1952 to select the entrant from United States in the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Organization operated both pageants, as well as Miss Teen USA, until 2020. ...
contestants, with the winning contestant keeping $25,000 and giving $25,000 to a charity of their choice. There was no Miss USA edition in the sixth season of ''Fear Factor,'' as
NBC produced a Miss USA edition of ''
Deal or No Deal
''Deal or No Deal'' is the name of several closely related television game shows, the first of which (launching the format) was the Dutch '' Miljoenenjacht'' (''Hunt/Chase for Millions'').
The centerpiece of this format is the final round (a ...
'' instead; the Miss USA contestants were the briefcase models for the entire episode. The next time that Miss USA delegates would be involved in a game show was in 2010 on ''
Minute to Win It.'' The Miss USA edition was not present in the show's final two seasons, as the current format had four teams of two people.
Blind Date (season 6):
Four single men were introduced to four single women and either the women (in the first episode) or the men (in the second episode) got to choose their partner among the available contestants of the opposite sex. The game was then played in the regular format, with the winning team dividing the prize.
Sleep Deprivation (season 4):
Five co-ed pairs of contestants competed as teams in the normal format, with one exception: contestants had to stay awake for the 48-hour duration of the competition. If a contestant fell asleep at any time before the final stunt was completed, his or her team would be eliminated. This was the only episode in the entire series (original or revived) in which contestants could be eliminated in the downtime between stunts.
Million Dollar Heist: (season 6): Played in the regular teams format, but instead of competing for the normal $50,000 prize, teams would race head-to-head to "steal" up to $1,000,000 worth of gold from an armored truck submerged in water for their final stunt. The team that "stole" the most money's worth of gold within the time limit would win the combined amount of money collected by both teams.
Home Invasion: This short segment was included at the end of each episode in season six. It involved Rogan going to different homes across America and challenging a family to compete in a stunt. Each stunt usually involved the contestants under a time limit (usually one minute) ingesting or bobbing in something foul or undesirable. If successful, the family would win up to $5,000 in the form of pre-loaded credit cards from
Capital One
Capital One Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company founded on July 21, 1994, and specializing in credit cards, auto loans, banking, and savings accounts, headquartered in Tysons, Virginia, with operations primarily in the ...
.
MTV format (2017–2018)
MTV's ''Fear Factor'' revival continued to use the format of four teams of two people competing in three challenges for a $50,000 grand prize, as in the last two seasons of the NBC series. As the show started, Ludacris gives a verbal disclaimer. The wording has changed with certain versions, but this is one commonly used:
However, the order of the stunts, as well as some of the rules, differ from the original format. Each episode in first season of the MTV version had three named rounds: Beat the Beast, Face Your Fear and The Final Fear.
Beat the Beast: This stunt challenges the contestants to conquer their fear of something creepy (usually live creatures considered gross or intimidating) and generally follows the same format as animal stunts from the second stunt of the original version. The team with the best performance in this round wins a "FearVantage", which is an advantage in the next round (such as picking the order).
Face Your Fear: This is a challenge tailored to a common fear shared by all of the contestants on a particular episode. The nature of this stunt varies widely depending on the fears of the contestants.
The Final Fear: This is an extreme physical stunt that follows the same format as the first and third stunts from the original version of the show. The team with the best performance wins the $50,000 grand prize.
The second season abandoned categorized rounds and FearVantages but continued to follow the general format of the first two rounds consisting of gross stunts and/or small-scale physical stunts, followed by an extreme physical stunt in the final round.
Controversy
''Fear Factor'' has received criticism from the general public mainly because of the show's second stunt, which intends to
disgust
Disgust (, from Latin , ) is an emotional response of rejection or revulsion to something potentially contagious or something considered offensive, distasteful or unpleasant. In ''The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals'', Charles D ...
its viewers. The
American Humane Association
The American Humane Society (previously American Humane), is an American animal welfare organization founded in 1877 that works to rescue, care for, and protect animals by taking action wherever and whenever they are in need. It was previously ...
expressed concerns for allowing various animals to get injured and even killing insects by eating them alive during the videotaping of the show. The association also revealed that professional
animal trainers
Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, have myocytes and are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and grow from a ho ...
have refused to work on the show because the producers of ''Fear Factor'' have demanded stunts that violate the association's guidelines. In January 2005, an episode featuring a stunt involving blended
rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include '' Neotoma'' (pack rats), '' Bandicota'' (bandicoo ...
s aired in its normal
prime time
Prime time, or peak time, is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for television shows. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
slot. Austin Aitken, a part-time
paralegal
A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant or paralegal specialist, is a legal professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with an admission to practice law. The market for p ...
from
Cleveland
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...
, sued
NBC for
US$
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
2.5 million for airing the show, claiming that he felt so disgusted from watching the stunt, his
blood pressure
Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure of Circulatory system, circulating blood against the walls of blood vessels. Most of this pressure results from the heart pumping blood through the circulatory system. When used without qualification, the term ...
rose to the point he felt dizzy and lightheaded and subsequently vomited. His disorientation was so severe that he ran into a doorway and seriously injured himself. Two months later, U.S. District Judge Lesley Wells threw out the lawsuit on the grounds of
First Amendment protection. ''Fear Factor'' was also criticized by major U.S. electrical utilities for an episode that required contestants to climb through a simulated
electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions. Between the generating station an ...
with "electrified wires" complete with simulated sparks and electrical sounds added in post-processing. The
Edison Electric Institute issued a warning regarding the episode, fearing that viewers might attempt to climb through a real substation with potentially fatal results. An episode originally scheduled for January 30, 2012, featuring contestants drinking
donkey
The donkey or ass is a domesticated equine. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a separate species, ''Equus asinus''. It was domes ...
semen
Semen, also known as seminal fluid, is a bodily fluid that contains spermatozoon, spermatozoa which is secreted by the male gonads (sexual glands) and other sexual organs of male or hermaphrodite, hermaphroditic animals. In humans and placen ...
and
urine
Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and many other animals. In placental mammals, urine flows from the Kidney (vertebrates), kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder and exits the urethra through the penile meatus (mal ...
was rejected by NBC, which instead aired a rerun.
On January 31, 2012, two of the contestants, twin sisters Claire and Brynne Odioso, appeared on ''The Cowhead Show'' on Tampa Bay radio station
WHPT
WHPT (102.5 FM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Sarasota, Florida, and serving the Tampa Bay area. Owned by Cox Media Group, it broadcasts a hot talk format. It is also the flagship station for Tampa Bay Lightning hockey and carrie ...
to talk about their experiences in that episode; however, according to
TMZ.com, producers of ''Fear Factor'' warned the Odioso sisters not to continue any discussion of the program, as doing so would put them in breach of their confidentiality agreements.
Spin-off products and theme park attraction
''Fear Factor'' has also resulted in various spin-off products:
* A game called ''
Fear Factor: Unleashed'' was published by Hip Interactive for the
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console, manufactured by Nintendo, which was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, and to international markets that June. It was later released in mainland China in 2004, under the name iQue Game Boy Advanc ...
.
* A ''Fear Factor'' board game was published by Master Pieces.
* There were several books based on ''Fear Factor'', such as ''The Fear Factor Cookbook'' and ''Fear Factor Mad Libs''.
* Brand New Candy made several novelty candies based on ''Fear Factor'', including eyeballs.
* The theme park stunt show attraction
Fear Factor Live opened in
World Expo
A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...
at
Universal Studios Florida
Universal Studios Florida is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida, that opened on June 7, 1990. Owned and operated by NBCUniversal, it features numerous rides, attractions, and live shows that are primarily themed to movies, television, and ...
in
Orlando, Florida
Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...
, and in
Upper Lot at
Universal Studios Hollywood
Universal Studios Hollywood is a film studio and Amusement park, theme park located in Universal City, California, near Hollywood, Los Angeles. It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood film studios still in use. Its official marketin ...
in
Hollywood, California, in the Spring of 2005. The Hollywood attraction has since been replaced by
Creature from the Black Lagoon: The Musical. The Orlando attraction later closed in March 2020 due to
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and did not return to the park following the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions.
* Eight champions from ''Fear Factor'' participated in a special edition of ''
Weakest Link'' that originally aired August 13, 2001. The episode was noteworthy in that only $22,500 was won; this stood as the lowest score on the NBC version of the show.
* A
free ad-supported streaming television
Free advertising-supported streaming television (FAST) is a category of streaming television services which offer traditional linear television programming ("live TV") and studio-produced movies without a paid subscription, funded exclusively by a ...
channel on various fast services sharing the same title as the show that only shows reruns of previously aired episodes from the original and revival NBC series.
See also
*
List of television shows set in Las Vegas
References
External links
Fear Factoron
NBC
Fear Factor (2011 version)on
NBC
Fear Factor (2017 version)on
MTV
Fear Factor Castingon
NBC – 2011 Announcement of Revival
*
*
*
* (article on the sanitary factors and health risks of the show)
{{Banijay Group
Fear Factor
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2010s American game shows
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American television series based on Dutch television series
Animal cruelty incidents in television
American English-language television shows
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Television series by Banijay
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