How Fox's reboot of 'Fear Factor' became a surprise hit

Some of the contestants were covered successful liquid concrete. Others carried dormant rats successful their mouths and were locked successful h2o tanks alongside alligator gars.

“Fear Factor” is backmost — with a vengeance.

The amusement that helped specify the world TV epoch successful the aboriginal 2000s staged a amazingly beardown comeback this twelvemonth with a reboot and a caller format.

The reboot was the network’s apical caller unscripted bid among adults aged 18 to 49 and crossed each broadcast TV. The show, which is re-aired connected Hulu, delivered 16.5 cardinal viewers crossed each platforms during its January premiere. And it’s already been renewed for a 2nd season.

The occurrence was each the much notable due to the fact that it came during a play erstwhile the unscripted TV genre appears to beryllium fading successful popularity.

The makers of “Fear Factor: House of Fear” constituent to respective reasons, including the popularity of the big Johnny Knoxville (best known for his relation successful MTV bid “Jackass” and its movie spinoffs) and a caller format that sets the bid wrong a house.

“House world is having different infinitesimal again,” said Fox TV President Michael Thorn, referring to the conception of grouping contestants nether 1 extortion for the season. “The format of the amusement [being] location world alone, doesn’t mean it’s going to beryllium a success, but erstwhile there’s a unsocial format that dramatizes the quality arcs and the competitions, you’ll spot immoderate shows that are truly popping successful a large way.”

Contestants enactment successful an occurrence of “Fear Factor.”

(Shane Harvey / FOX)

Once hosted by Joe Rogan

The archetypal “Fear Factor,” hosted by now-podcaster Joe Rogan, ran from 2001 to 2006. It arrived astatine the highest of unscripted television’s popularity — a play erstwhile audiences devoured shows similar “Survivor” and “American Idol” astatine their regularly scheduled times connected television.

After its archetypal six-season run, MTV revived the amusement successful 2017 with rapper Ludacris arsenic its big for a abbreviated stint.

Since then, the vibe has shifted. The world genre has faded from its peak, and streaming has erased the thought of assignment TV.

So, erstwhile Fox decided to reboot the bequest series, the network’s executives knew that changes were needed.

To that end, the 10-episode season, which aired its finale past month, introduced a caller communicative element, wherever each the contestants lived together, creating a bigger spectacle — some wrong and extracurricular — of the fearfulness challenges.

“People’s viewing habits amusement that they privation to get invested successful characters, successful the communicative and longer narratives,” said Sharon Levy, the main enforcement astatine Endemol Shine North America, the accumulation institution down the “Fear Factor” franchise.

Despite less scripted and world TV programs being made successful caller years, rebooting “Fear Factor” was a “no-brainer,” said Thorn, Fox’s TV president. The revised format, helium said, amped up the play by infusing onscreen interpersonal relationships into the already high-stakes competition.

“People privation visceral, breathtaking storytelling that demands attention. I deliberation ‘Fear Factor’ does that successful a mode that stands retired from each the different shows successful the marketplace,” said Thorn, who besides points retired shows similar “Squid Game: The Challenge” and “The Traitors” arsenic different notable series. “It’s conscionable inherently addictive and truthful bingeable.”

Contestants Rob, left, and Ethan successful a play finale.

(Serguei Bachlakov / FOX)

Strategic marketing, similar premiering the amusement aft the NFL Wild Card Game, allowed the reboot to physique an assemblage of regular viewers, said Jennifer Hessler, a prof of cinematic arts astatine USC.

“‘Fear Factor’ already brings successful radical who privation to spot precocious adrenaline content, but besides allows for the societal constituent wherever radical tin physique alliances, find romanticist connections and person conflicts with chap contestants,” Hessler said. “These kinds of much social-oriented world TV bid get radical invested successful the quality relationships successful a mode that encourages speech connected societal media.”

In fact, Fox says it created implicit 3,000 “Fear Factor” societal media posts, which drove implicit 120 cardinal views and implicit 3 cardinal interactions crossed assorted platforms.

“Fear Factor: House of Fear” is conscionable the latest bid to capitalize connected the popularity of house-based contention shows.

A contestant connected an occurrence titled “Pain Auction.”

(Serguei Bachlakov / FOX)

Another deed amusement that dominated the net past summertime was “Love Island USA,” which was the astir fashionable world streaming amusement for U.S. audiences successful 2025, according to Nielsen data. It was among six retired of 2025’s apical 10 world shows connected streaming services that featured contestants surviving successful a location together, similar successful “Million Dollar Secret” and “Beast Games.”

Rachel Smith, the enforcement vice president of unscripted contented astatine NBCUniversal, likens the improvement to a “new virtual stadium sport.”

“You’re creating this playscape phantasy that radical are truly compelled by,” Smith said. “People [at home] are watching it for the cosmopolitan themes of love, betrayal and friendship.”

This existent roar of location world mirrors immoderate of the astir fashionable world TV of the ’90s and aboriginal 2000s, erstwhile the subgenre archetypal recovered its audience.

Tom Nunan, a lecturer astatine UCLA’s movie schoolhouse and a erstwhile president astatine TV web UPN, credits MTV’s “The Real World” arsenic a pioneer for this benignant of TV.

“If you instrumentality ‘The Real World,’ and the intimacy and the relatability of it, and past wed that to contention shows, past you person a winning formula,” Nunan said.

He added, “It’s bully old-fashioned showbiz ... When they formed a amusement correctly, oregon erstwhile they travel up with a juicy capable concept, there’s ever an assemblage for these shows.”