Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman are back on bikes for the fourth series in their epic motorcycle saga around the world. Over twenty years ago they filmed their first series, Long Way Round (2004), which followed the duo, still in their thirties, riding from London to New York鈥攚hat McGregor calls 鈥渙ne of the highlights of my life.鈥�

From his breakthrough role in Trainspotting to playing Star Wars鈥� legendary Obi-Wan Kenobi, McGregor鈥檚 star factor surely has skyrocketed since that first series. But in Long Way Home he鈥檚 still playing himself, riding along with his best friend Boorman as they film each other from cameras mounted on their crash helmets.

鈥淏ecause of the shared experience of doing these journeys together there鈥檚 this bond that we have that I don鈥檛 share with anyone else,鈥� shares the Scottish actor. In Long Way Down (2007), the two rode from Scotland through 18 countries down to Cape Town, South Africa. And in the last installment, Long Way Up (2020), McGregor and Boorman rode on prototype electric Harleys from the southernmost tip of South America through Central America to McGregor鈥檚 home in L.A.

A lot has changed since filming their first Long Way series two decades ago, but you wouldn鈥檛 know it from their bikes: McGregor rides a 1974 Moto Guzzi Eldorado while Boorman chooses a rusty BMW R75/5. After riding into the future on electric bikes that they had to plug-in along remote stretches of Patagonia, McGregor said “the only way to go this time was back.”

In addition to riding vintage bikes, this time the two also are adventuring closer to home, from the rolling hills around McGregor鈥檚 childhood home in Scotland to Boorman鈥檚 home in England. But as always, they’re taking the scenic route. Zipping along a 17-hairpin pass in Norway up to the Arctic Circle, and then down to the Baltics and through the Alps they clock 7500 miles through 17 countries in 63 days. But they still manage to dive into different cultures and take on challenges along the way, including picking themselves up after a few hairy stretches and falling off the bike.

OUTSIDE: So why Long Way Home now? It鈥檚 been 20 years since your first Long Way motorcycle road trip.听

Ewan McGregor: We did our last trip, Long Way Up, just before the world was locked down with the terrible pandemic. It was in sort of a lucky accident that it happened, when it happened.

It had been a long time since we did Long Way Down. We got this very strong sense that it had meant a lot, to a lot of people who had been stuck inside, who hadn’t been able to travel for two years. And just by sheer luck or whatever Long Way Up came out when people were still sort of struggling to get back into coming out of their homes. It meant a lot to people, and it meant a lot to us doing it.

Long Way Up had its own complications鈥攚e did the trip on electric bikes which were quite difficult to find a plug for in Patagonia and such places [a fast charger would have been nice too, laughs Boorman]. But we did it, and we just love being back on the road together basically.

On that trip, when we were in Bolivia, we started daydreaming about another one. We came up with the Scandinavian idea; 鈥淟ong Way Scandi鈥澨齱e used to call it in our helmets as we were chatting to each other. I suppose after we’d been on the cutting-edge-of-technology motorcycles, the only way to go was to go back the other way.

Last time you were riding on super fast electric Harleys, now you鈥檙e riding a bit slower on old temperamental bikes. Why old bikes this time around?听

McGregor: Oh, I’ve always loved old bikes, and I always fancy doing a trip in old classic bikes. We just wanted to do one that was less stressful, more fun. More chance for us just to f***听around and have a laugh. And this sort of loop came out of that idea where we weren’t going to be. We’re not going to have to rush to get a boat from Egypt to Sudan on this one day, or else we wouldn’t be able to do it for another week. So we took the stress out of it, and we just had such a great time.

There were some intense moments when the power went out in Long Way Up and you needed to charge your bikes in the middle of Patagonia. What were the challenges this time?听

Charley Boorman: I don’t want to point any fingers [points to Ewan in the chair beside him]. With the high-tech bikes you can’t really fix them if they go wrong. But old bikes you can. There’s always somebody somewhere that you bump into who can help you, who has a little workshop in the garage. So the breakdown becomes part of the adventure. The times you get stressed because your bike is broken, you end up meeting all these extraordinary people that can help you, and then that becomes one of the highlights of the journey meeting these interesting, like-minded people. That bumping into strangers is part of it.

McGregor: No computers involved. There’s no chip. There’s not a chip on that bike, except for the occasional french fry that’s falling out of my pannier. They鈥檙e mechanical and therefore fixable, and on an adventure that’s quite a good idea. You don’t want something that can catastrophically fail.

So Ewan, you’re in all these films now, what do you like about working on something were it鈥檚 unscripted; you’re yourself?听

McGregor: I’ve always made documentaries. I did one about polar bears a long, long time ago up in Churchill, Canada.听I’ve made three different movies with my brother about the Royal Air Force because he was a pilot in the Royal Air Force. I’ve always enjoyed them because I don’t have the pressure of playing somebody. It’s just me.

I suppose it鈥檚 like a busman’s holiday in a way. We are filming, and we are filmmakers. Charley and I were thinking about getting things across for an audience while we’re doing these trips, but also at the same time, we’ve got an amazing, talented cameraman, Claudio von Planta, and Max Curtis who we picked up in Chile as our fixer there. And he’s such a great addition to the filming team that we had him come on all of this trip. So Claudio and Max sit on the same motorbike, and it’s just the three bikes for most of the time.

And because they’re so skilled we don’t really have to worry too much, just about being ourselves and meeting people and appreciating what we see, recording it, talking about it, and then hopefully inspiring people to look at this world that we鈥檙e lucky to live on. And if we can inspire some people to get out there and travel and experience the world, then we’d be very proud.

Charley, you’ve been in some serious motorcycle accidents over the years…What keeps you getting back on the bike鈥攅specially with the camera on you?

Boorman: Ah, there鈥檚 been a lot of crashes, and 2016 was a bad one, lots of operations to get back together. And then 2018 [crash] was much worse. But all my life, I’ve ridden motorcycles, I’ve ridden horses and stuff like that, and you tend to fall off, and you get back on again. The first one with the broken legs I woke up the next morning having gone through a lot of surgery. I’d broken three limbs, and I’d broken my left hand as well as my right hand.听 I was starting to go down into a into a very deep, dark hole.听

Then I realized there was someone in the room with me, and I looked over and there was a guy in the other bed, and he was in a much, much worse place than I was. And I remember looking at him, and I remember looking down at myself, and I remember thinking it’s not that bad actually. So from then on I was lucky enough to be able to sort of jump out of that hole and start to look at wanting to ride a bike again and wanting to have more adventures.

Somehow the motorbike was my therapy to get back on it. It鈥檚 very easy to get stuck in a trauma and let that trauma dictate your life and it’s a real rabbit hole. There is nothing you can do about what’s happened, so you may as well look forward.

And having friends like Ewan and knowing that people are around you to help but it’s taken a long time, 30 odd operations to get back and be walking again properly.

So I’m happy to be here with Ewan.

So what鈥檚 next? Will there be any more Long Way adventures?

McGregor: Well, you just have to wait and see. Who knows? We’re planning a big luxury RV trip.

Boorman: With helicopters.

Long Way Home premieres on May 9, exclusively on Apple TV+.

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The Forrest Fenn treasure hunt is back on, and if you want to find the loot, you’re going to have to binge-watch Netflix.

That’s the big takeaway from Netflix鈥檚 three-part docuseries Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure,听which went live on Thursday, March 27. The series chronicles the decade-long hunt to find the chest that Fenn buried in the western United States鈥攁nd the lives of the people who became swept up in the frenzy to find it. Over the three 50-minute episodes, the series dives into the good, the bad, and the ugly moments of the Fenn hunt, including the that occurred during it.

(Spoilers ahead)听But the series’ headline-grabbing moment comes in Gold & Greed’s final few minutes. One of the treasure hunters profiled in the series, a software engineer named Justin Posey, reveals that he purchased some of the 476 items from the Fenn treasure after it went up for auction in 2022. And now, he’s put the goodies鈥攁long with additional gold, rubies, and even a meteorite鈥攊n a chest and buried it somewhere out there. To find the trove, you must decipher clues that are hidden in the three-part series.

“I managed to sneak in some hints during the filming of this series鈥攏o one knows what the hints are besides me, not even the producers,” Posey says in the series’ final scene. “So it’s worth your time to watch and listen closely.”

To be honest, the revelation helps explain some of Posey’s curious quirks throughout the docuseries. He drives a truck that’s wrapped in a topographic map, he sits for interviews in front of computer screens showing mountains, creeks, and lakes, and he lives in a house filled with strange artifacts from his own collection.

“Most of my family and friends would categorize me as eccentric,” Posey says in episode one.

So yeah, anyone who wants to find Fenn’s鈥攅r Posey’s鈥攖reasure is going to have to watch Gold & Greed again and again, until they have committed the entire program to memory.

I suppose that’s one way to market a documentary film.

Is听Gold & Greed Worth Watching?

You bet. Aside from serving as a launchpad for Posey’s new treasure hunt, Gold & Greed does an adequate job of capturing the fervor (or, dare I say, psychosis) that prompted thousands of people to tromp into the wilderness searching for Fenn’s riches. 国产吃瓜黑料 covered the Fenn treasure hunt between 2015 and 2023 with a series of longform features, news stories, analytical stories, and podcast episodes. But for anyone who isn’t familiar with the ordeal, Gold & Greed听serves as an ideal explainer.

The opening episode devotes substantial time to profiling Fenn, the retired pilot and art dealer from Santa Fe, New Mexico, and to understanding why he launched the hunt back in 2010.

Fenn, who died in 2020 at age 90, famously kicked off the hunt with a poem he included in his memoir, titled听Thrill of the Chase.听The poem included extremely vague clues (Begin it where warm waters halt, and take it in the canyon down, not far, but too far to walk, put in below the home of Brown) about the location of the treasure, and these confusing directions were open to extreme interpretation.

Gold & Greed strongest contribution to the trove of Forrest Fenn coverage is showing how people become convinced that their interpretation of the poem is the right one.

One group, a family of self-proclaimed Wyoming rednecks named the Hurst family, believes that clues describe topography in the backwoods near their trailer. Over the course of a decade, the Hursts embark on one Sisyphean mission after another, and at one point spend two years attempting to excavate a massive boulder because they think the treasure chest is underneath it.

Another hunter, a California airline pilot named Lou Boyer, goes on one extreme Internet deep-dive after another until he’s convinced that the treasure is buried on a swath of private property along the Colorado-New Mexico border. Boyer takes his family on various vacations to the area, but is repeatedly thwarted by closed gates, flat tires, and other calamities.

Cynthia Meachum, a retiree, believes the key to finding the treasure is building a personal relationship with Fenn himself, and over the years she soaks up clues from Fenn that convince her it’s buried in Yellowstone National Park.

And then there’s Posey, who approaches the hunt with an analytical fanaticism that is equally impressive and concerning. He builds his own facial recognition software to analyze Fenn’s television interviews, hoping to decipher clues from the 85-year-old man’s mannerisms. He also trains his dog to sniff out buried gold and bronze.

Like Meachum, Posey becomes convinced that the treasure is somewhere in Yellowstone, and during one trip he searches the exact area where the box was eventually discovered in 2020 by a medical student named Jack Steuf.

As I watched听Gold & Greed,听I often thought about my teenaged fascination with playing Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon while watching听The Wizard of Oz听and watching the music create a perfect soundtrack for the film. It took me years to realize that this dynamic was simply caused by my brain instinctively making connections between the film and the album. Well, that and the pot smoke.

This psychological quirk, likely the remnant of some evolutionary trait, adds fuel to the hunters searching for Fenn’s treasure. They see patterns everywhere, and don’t require a bong rip to drop what they’re doing and hike off into the woods.听But there are also very human dynamics propelling them. 听Posey’s brother, who also hunts the treasure, dies by suicide, and the tragedy convinces Posey that he must locate it. The Hurst family seeks the gold as a way to escape poverty and provide a better life for their disabled sister.

And all of the groups admit that the spirit of outdoor adventure is also driving them to walk into the backcountry searching for gold. Despite the rather unseemly elements of the Fenn hunt鈥攎ore than a few weirdos stalked Fenn and his family, and one even broke into his house鈥�Gold & Greed argues that this spirit of outdoor exploration made the ordeal worth it. Whether or not you believe this conclusion is entirely up to you.

What Gold & Greed鈥檚 Director Has to Say

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing听Gold & Greed’s听director and executive producer, Jared McGilliard, who gave me the backstory on how the film came together.

OUTSIDE: Did you have any misgivings about having the documentary also serve as the launchpad for Justin Posey’s new treasure hunt?

McGilliard: Justin announcing that he’s hid a treasure in this series might be the first page of his new treasure hunt, but in my mind, it’s also the final page of his story searching for Forrest Fenn’s treasure. My focus was telling Justin’s story intimately and truthfully from beginning to end. To not include his new treasure hunt at the end of this series would have been not fully embracing the true arc of his story…and the impact Forrest and his treasure had on Justin’s life.

You chose four different groups of Fenn hunters to profile. What led you to each one?

The common ingredient was that they were all deeply obsessed. They had searched for years, and they all had highs and lows within their experiences. With all of them, they had this first chapter where they go out there, and over time they get deeper into it, and the hunt takes on more meaning鈥�I’m going to solve the poem.听I didn’t want to tell surface-level stories, I wanted to find stories where there were stakes and high ranges of emotion. Tragedy, beauty, adventure. I was also looking for a broad range of socioeconomic points of view, so I could show what finding the treasure really meant to them. And finally I wanted people with different strategies. Since this is Netflix it has to be a fun ride. You want the audience to grasp onto different subjects and root for them.

What did you learn about the human condition from following these groups?

One thing that’s top of mind is that we all create our different versions of truth, and that trumps everything else. People had these ideas about the poem that oh, this can’t be just a coincidence, even though the poem is so vague that it could literally fit anywhere. I could walk out of my own backdoor and find connections in the woods behind my house. The wonderful thing is that people made these amazing memories, but letting go of the thing was nearly impossible.

I have to imagine that other filmmakers were chasing this project. How did you get it?

I would say relationships helped me. I spent a year creating deep relationships with these subjects. So, when the Fenn family got in touch with us, and I flew to Santa Fe, they wanted to know what about the story was important to me, and I could tell them. I can tell a story that is not disposable, and one that the general audience will understand. I have that level of trust and depth with the subjects, and I can handle the story with care. I know that when were pitching our film there were other companies pitching it too. But we had invested in these subjects.

What do you hope the audience learns from the film?

We often just think about the outcome: whether it’s a win or a loss. I got the treasure or I didn’t. But these people have so many wins and losses throughout their journey, and it brings them together. The Hurst family alone鈥攖he wife almost leaves the family because of this. They mortgage their house, and when they get to the end and don’t find the treasure, they say it saved their lives because it gave them purpose. Cynthia Meechum has no regrets. Each one of these people went out there, and none of them came back holding a box of treasure, but their lives were changed for the better. When I think about why Forrest did this, it was so people would dream and have adventures and find a new side of themselves.

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Things are not going well for Woody.

The 50-year-old retired cop is thirsty and exhausted, and his attempts to spark a campfire using a ferro rod have failed miserably. Now, Woody can’t boil his drinking water. He stands in his barren campsite and raises a canteen filled with untreated pond water to his lips. “Lord, please don’t let me get sick,” he says into a camera.

The shot cuts to the cozy confines of a television studio. Woody’s son, Blake, and his nephew, Colin watch him gulp down the nasty beverage on a massive television screen. Colin shakes his head and buries his face in his palms.

And, cut!

This scene is the climax of episode 1 of Extracted,听a new outdoor survival show that debuted on Fox this past Monday. I recently watched the opening episode, as well as advanced screeners for episodes two and three, with my mouth agape. As a longtime fan of wilderness survival shows鈥攜ou know, programs like Alone, Naked and Afraid, and Man vs. Wild鈥�Extracted marks a stark turning point for the genre. Apparently, TV producers are now shipping everyday schmoes with zero wilderness training into the backwoods and filming them as they contract Giardia. And they’re doing this for our entertainment.

This element isn’t even the weirdest part of Extraction鈥攏ot by a long shot. The show’s central premise is like an psychological experiment.

Twelve “survivalists”鈥攜es I use this term lightly鈥攁re plucked from small-town American and shipped off to a forested lake somewhere in British Columbia. They must stay there as long as possible, and the last one to remain wins $250,000. Producers have affixed dozens of surveillance cameras to the trees, rocks, and stumps in the area so we can spy on the 12 as they go about their business of building shelter, procuring food, going to the bathroom, and screaming into the void.

But here’s the real twist. A short distance away, producers have erected a TV studio, and each survivalist’s family members are stationed there, where they watch the action unfold 24 hours a day. At random points throughout the show, the family members are able to pack up survival gear鈥攌nives, cans of beans, bear spray鈥攚hich are then delivered via flying drone to their loved one.

The survivalists themselves cannot tap out. That job can only be done by the family members in the studio. A family member must march to the center of the studio and push a big and ridiculous red button that says EXTRACT.

I won’t spoil the show, other than to say that this single rule creates the tension at the heart of听Extracted.听Contestants beg to be removed, but their loved ones don’t always comply.

While watching听Extracted I often thought about Blair Braverman’s recent column about our collective affection for survival TV. Braverman, herself a former contestant on听Naked and Afraid,听makes more than a few pointed conclusions about why the TV genre is so beloved: watching people in nature is relaxing; survival connects us to our hunter-gatherer roots; we love cheering for and against characters; watching the battle to survive is inherently relatable to everyday people.

“Negotiating jobs, health insurance, child and elder care, housing? That鈥檚 all survival, viscerally so,” Braverman wrote.

Alas, I fear that the survival genre is quickly moving away from the themes Braverman adores. Extracted comes on the heels of Netflix releasing its first two seasons of its own survival game show Outlast.听Both shows tap into emotions that are more sinister, and psychological reflexes inside us that are more ominous.

In听Outlast, the survivalists wage psychological war on each other throughout the season by switching teams, stealing gear, and destroying shelters, all for a chance at cash. The cameras focus on this drama, and it triggers some lobe inside our lizard brains.

Extracted isn’t quite as extreme, but the format of the show makes it feel dramatically different from Alone or听Naked and Afraid. In听Extracted,听the audience views everyday people as they watch their loved ones suffer in nature. The tension created by these relationship drives our intrigue. We see caring mothers and fathers fail to deliver the survival goods that their cold and hungry son requires. We watch a divorced couple argue and question their parenting decisions as their teenage听son acts like a toddler in the woods.

Sure, there are moments of joy and triumph as well. But Extracted is still a voyeuristic look into a person watching a loved one in peril. As I watched it, I felt as though I was the scientist staring through reflective glass at a psychological experiment. It’s no wonder that the frames linger on the black surveillance cameras dotting the forest.

That said,听Extracted has something that Outlast lacks鈥攁t least through its first three episodes. By choosing novice (or downright inept) survivalists, the show is legitimately funny, and more relatable than other survival shows. In episode one, we meet the contestants, and quickly learn that all of them will be fish out of water in the Canadian wilderness.

One woman, Davina, 41, is described as a hairdresser and a professional clown. “I think she’s lost her mind,” her sister, Devin, says into the camera.”She’s been given everything her entire life by my parents and now her husband. He probably wipes her ass.” A few scenes later we see Davina sitting by the lake, bemoaning her experience outdoors. By this point, she’s been in the woods for a little more than a day. “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” she wails.

I’ll admit,听Extracted听made me laugh more than a few times, and that’s why I plan to complete the series. I have no clue whether watching it will change my relationship with the outdoors, or with my loved ones.

The post Fox鈥檚 New Survival Show 鈥楨xtracted鈥� Has a Sinister Twist appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Leslie Gaynor, 68, loves survival shows. After she finishes her day鈥檚 work as a therapist, she makes herself some tea and puts on an episode of Naked and Afraid. By the time the show鈥檚 over, it鈥檚 dark out. Her dog has to pee, but she doesn鈥檛 like to go outside at night. What if there are wild animals in the yard? One time last year, her dog ran out and saw a possum, and the possum flopped over dead, and when she went out a few minutes later it was gone. So it wasn鈥檛 really dead, but the whole thing was traumatic anyway. Not for the possum. But for her.

Leslie鈥檚 my aunt, and my husband and I were both on Naked and Afraid; we鈥檙e outdoor folk by trade, and when we were invited to apply for the show, we couldn鈥檛 resist the opportunity to step into a ready-made adventure. That鈥檚 not why my aunt watches it, though. She was a fan first. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 really explain it,鈥� she told me after we watched a scene together of a proud, hungry woman plucking a grouse for stew. 鈥淚 just think it鈥檚 relaxing!鈥�

Leslie鈥檚 not the only one who finds survival shows addictive. Ever since Survivor premiered in 2000, and promptly became one of the highest-rated shows on network television, survival-themed reality shows and their spinoffs have reproduced like rabbits. In addition to Naked and Afraid, there鈥檚 Alone, Survivor, Dual Survival, Survivorman, Ultimate Survival, Man vs. Wild,, Race to Survive, Outlast, and Celebrity Bear Hunt, not to mention numerous spinoffs and international versions. (My personal favorite title? Naked and Afraid鈥檚 Shark Week special, Naked and Afraid of Sharks.) Sure, some of their viewers are outdoorsy, but the shows aren鈥檛 just made for survivalists any more than shows about serial killers are made for, well, other serial killers. No: what makes survival shows so popular is that, while they depict extreme situations, the feelings they tap into are damn near universal.

There鈥檚 pleasure in seeing someone succeed despite hardship鈥�and there鈥檚 also pleasure (maybe more) in watching someone fail spectacularly, particularly if they went in cocky. Whenever a survivalist鈥檚 intro includes them sayingany version of the phrase 鈥渕aking nature my bitch,鈥� you know they鈥檙e gonna get their ass handed to them. It鈥檚 just a matter of when and how.

鈥淪ome guy鈥檚 hungry, or cut himself with his knife, and it鈥檚 time to tap,鈥� says my husband, Quince Mountain, who survived 21 days鈥攎ostly alone鈥攊n the Honduran jungle. (We were on the show at the same time, but were sent to different locations.) 鈥淗e鈥檚 crying because he misses his wife and kids too much, but he says it like, 鈥業t鈥檚 really unfair to them, me being out here鈥︹�� Is that his epiphany about how his wife does massive amounts of invisible labor to keep his life comfortable, and now he鈥檚 going home a changed man, a grateful, devoted, humble partner鈥攐r is it his excuse because he鈥檚 hungry and lonely and doesn鈥檛 know how to take care of himself? You decide!鈥�

In one of the most popular survival shows, Alone, participants film themselves in complete isolation without knowing how many of the other contestants are still out there. The show premiered in 2015, but viewership soared in 2020 when select seasons became available on Netflix and Hulu. 鈥淲ith COVID, there was a lot of interest because of the isolation aspect,鈥� recalls Juan Pablo Qui帽onez, author of the survival book , who won Alone鈥檚 season 9 after surviving 78 days in Labrador with a strategy of fasting, drinking unboiled water, and hunkering down to rest. 鈥淭here aren鈥檛 many shows that are really truly unscripted, and where you can see real emotions, like craving for fish, or craving to be with a loved one. How often do we get to see someone catch a fish after five days without food? These moments are super powerful.鈥�

He believes that we鈥檙e all hunter-gatherers at heart, and that survival shows鈥攁nd wilderness survival in general鈥攃onnect us to an ancestral legacy that feels both vital and familiar. 鈥淭here might be strong feelings on The Bachelor, but it鈥檚 definitely not as real.鈥�

As much as skeptics in online forums might debate the authenticity of their favorite shows (a common theory centers around the idea that when people are getting too weak, production will leave a dead animal in one of their traps), it鈥檚 hard for viewers to dismiss the fact that at least something real is happening onscreen. People don鈥檛 lose 20 pounds in three weeks without going awfully hungry, and a lot of the effects of survival鈥攕unburn, frostbite, open wounds鈥攁re physically undeniable. There are even ways that being on a show can be harder than plain old survival. Camera crews inadvertantly scare away game, and interrupt survivors for interviews, even when they鈥檙e beyond exhausted. Plus, the survivors are usually limited by geographic barriers that have little to do with what鈥檚 actually practical or effective. You鈥檙e ravenous, searching for any darn calories, and finally spot some berries in a clearing that鈥檚 off-limits? Too bad, so sad. This isn鈥檛 just survival, it鈥檚 a show, and you gotta perform for both.

Another factor in their proliferation is that survival shows鈥攁nd reality shows in general鈥攁re economical to produce. 鈥淭he reason that unscripted TV came out of the gate so strongly is that it鈥檚 cheaper,鈥� says Rachel Maguire, who鈥檚 been an international showrunner and executive producer for Naked and Afraid and Dual Survival. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have high-paid actors. There are no writers. The cast is generally not union.鈥� Although, she adds upon reflection, Naked and Afraid does have awfully pricey accidental death and dismemberment insurance.

Her theory as to why the genre鈥檚 so popular? People are increasingly aware of instability in the world鈥攊ncluding a steep increase in natural disasters due to climate change鈥攁nd watching survival shows helps them feel prepared.

I agree with Qui帽onez and Maguire, but I also think there鈥檚 another instinctive appeal. We worry about extraordinary disasters, but we worry about problems in our lives just as much, and usually more. Survival shows are addictive because much of our daily life is also about struggling to meet our basic needs, and we feel that stress even when we can鈥檛 name it. Negotiating jobs, health insurance, child and elder care, housing? That鈥檚 all survival, viscerally so. And so watching people get shelter by building it from scratch, and food by catching it in a handmade trap, isn鈥檛 about watching them go through challenges that are completely disconnected from our own. It鈥檚 about watching our everyday adversity reflected back to us, but distilled into a pure form. We empathize when TV survivalists want to tap out; we cheer when they succeed. It鈥檚 relatable. It鈥檚 therapeutic. We know鈥攄eep down鈥攖hat we鈥檙e all just trying to survive.

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Within the last few weeks, I would bet my last that someone has asked you, 鈥淒o you watch Severance?鈥� And if you said no or blinked back in confusion, I鈥檓 sure I鈥檓 not the first one to tell you that it鈥檚 incredible.

For the un-aquainted, , which first aired in 2022, is set in a futuristic era where a company called Lumon Industries has developed the biotechnology that allows its employees to 鈥榮ever鈥� their brains into two personalities: your working self and your personal self. Severed people undergo a medical procedure that implants a device in their brain, which causes employees to forget everything about the outside world once they step foot into their work building. Likewise, once they leave, all the memories of what happened during the workday or gone. So in theory, there are 鈥渢wo鈥� versions of yourself, one who works, and one who doesn鈥檛.

After years of anticipation, season two episode one premiered on January 17. And in truth, it鈥檚 all I鈥檝e been thinking about lately.

The brilliance of the show is that it touches on themes of work-life balance, workplace culture, political expression, and the meaning of memory and community. It makes you think about what life would be like if you had the option to be severed. You鈥檇 never have to feel the stress or exhaustion of work ever again, and focus solely on your personal life. On the other hand, you technically create this whole other 鈥測ou鈥� that knows nothing about yourself or the outside world鈥攋ust the four walls of your cubicle. As I watch season two as a new episode is released week by week, I start to wonder how being severed would apply to other areas of my life鈥攍ike running.

RELATED:

Would You Sever Your Running Self?

What if, as soon as I slipped on my running shoes, my severed self stepped in and took on all the grunt work? Say one day I鈥檓 not looking forward to a tough workout in the cold. If I had a severed running side, I wouldn鈥檛 have to feel the bitter chill, climb tortuous hill repeats, or endure huffing through race pace miles. I鈥檇 step outside in my shoes, and in the blink of an eye, be done and back inside for a post-run snack. I鈥檇 reap the rewards of building my endurance and athleticism for fun races and routes without needing to suffer through the not-so-fun parts of a training block.

The fictional scenario sounds tempting. 鈥淏ut running is supposed to be fun!鈥� You might say. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 love it, don鈥檛 do it!鈥� Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree. But if you鈥檝e ever trained for a race, you know there are days when you wish you鈥檇 picked an easier hobby. Here are some instances in which I wish I was severed:

1. When my alarm goes off at 5 A.M. for my early run and I鈥檓 snuggled in bed, sleeping on the cool side of the pillow.
2. When I鈥檓 running through pouring-down rain so heavy I鈥檓 open-mouth breathing like a carp.
3. When I have to run up a hill that forces me into near slow-motion pace.
4. When I run out of water during a blistering hot run.
5. When the run is so sticky and muggy that I have to peel off the gnats that got stuck to my face one by one.

Turns out the reason why people endure tough, less-than-enjoyable things can be explained by the a theory conceptualized by psychologist Michael Inzlicht from the University of Toronto. The paradox suggests that effort can be both costly and valuable, that, although our genetic makeup pushes us to choose survival above all else (which often does not require climbing high mountains or running long distances), humans have evolved to sometimes choose difficulty over ease.

I asked Inzlicht what the repercussions would be of severing yourself for say, marathon training.

鈥淲hile it might seem appealing to skip the grueling training and just enjoy being race-ready, our research suggests this would likely diminish the overall experience,鈥� Inzlicht says. 鈥淲e鈥檝e found that effort, despite being aversive in the moment, serves as a crucial source of meaning and satisfaction.鈥�

He says that behavioral studies show that people value achievements more when they require significant effort. That rush of emotion you get after a race might not feel as powerful if you didn鈥檛 spend months of a training block working for it.

鈥淏y removing the experience of effort, we might be removing what makes achievements feel truly significant,鈥� Inzlicht says. 鈥淭he struggle itself becomes part of the story and identity. 鈥�

It reminds me of the famous , a study conducted by a psychologist named Walter Mischel in 1970. Mischel would place a marshmallow in front of a child (of preschool age) and tell them that if they waited to eat it, they would be rewarded with a second marshmallow later. The results found that more children were willing to wait longer (the more difficult option) in order to reap the higher reward. Similarly, runners are willing to experience the lows of training because the feeling of crossing the finish line is so powerful.

The study also found that the children who resisted the marshmallow were more likely to be patient in the future and better prepared for 鈥渄ifficult鈥� aspects of life. The same could be said for enduring those tough parts of running. shows that runners, (especially ultramarathoners) have higher levels of self-efficacy compared to those who don鈥檛 run, which significantly impacts motivation, commitment, and self-control. also report that, because these kinds of runners have strong mental fortitude, they have more efficient emotion regulation strategies, stress-coping mechanisms, and experience less anxiety.

To me, the most glaring part of this research is that most of the time, runners aren鈥檛 born with this extra mental fortitude, but it鈥檚 developed through the constant repeated action of enduring hard things like waking up at the crack of dawn, running through the sleet and snow, and tackling scary steep hills.

So if I severed myself, I might not have the same mental toughness that I have today. The same mindset that has helped me tackle problems outside of running, helped me navigate the daily stressors of life, and grow confident enough to seek bigger goals and challenges. In fact, counterintuitively, not suffering through those days when I hate running may ultimately make me love running less.

Of course, the whole scenario is fictional, and so coming to this conclusion might seem sort of inconsequential. But this thought exercise reminds me that it鈥檚 important to understand why we invest so much time and energy into this silly hobby of ours. It helps us appreciate running even on those crappy days, and it鈥檚 what gets us through the inevitable lows that come during that race that we train for all year.

Plus, who knows how far biotechnology advancements will go? Maybe severing will one day be a real option. At least now, I鈥檝e made my decision far in advance.

RELATED: Versatile Running Gear You Can Wear All Day, Anywhere

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Earlier this year, a PR rep from Fox News asked if I’d want to review the conservative network’s upcoming docuseries on the history of Yosemite National Park. Called Yellowstone to Yosemite with Kevin Costner, the three-part series is the brainchild of the Academy Award-winning actor, and the follow up to his 2022 series . As I stared at the email, I wondered: What can Fox News teach me about the importance of the national parks? As it turns out, a lot. But their approach delivered a few surprises.

Yellowstone to Yosemite, which airs Saturday, February 8 on Fox’s streaming service, Fox Nation, tells the often-repeated story of a 1903 camping trip that then-U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt took with naturalist John Muir through Yosemite. Over four days and three nights, the听two men yukked it up around the campfire, admired the soaring monoliths and waterfalls, and became friends. Similarly, Costner, now 70, embarks on his own camping trip within Yosemite as he narrates the story.

In the first episode, Costner quickly establishes the significance of Roosevelt and Muir’s campout. It’s May, 1903, more than 30 years since Yellowstone was established as the first national park. Five other parcels of land have become national parks, but the designation has done little to actually protect their ecosystems. Loggers are plundering giant sequoias in Yosemite and poachers are decimating bison herds in Yellowstone. The federal government, meanwhile, lacks the teeth to stop them. “Congress saw the national parks as a zero-cost initiative. Each park has an unpaid superintendent responsible for enforcing regulations,” Costner says. “It’s not working at all.”

Muir, the famed naturalist, believes the only way to save America’s parklands is by harnessing the power of the president. He invites Roosevelt to Yosemite to show him the wonders of the park up-close, before pitching him on the bold idea of actually protecting the six natural wonders.

And we’re off鈥攐ver three 45-minute episodes Costner tells the story of the camping trip while weaving in other historic anecdotes and ecological tidbits about Yosemite National Park. Yep, there’s a heroic mini-biography of Teddy Roosevelt. There are Nature Channel-worthy segments about the lifecycle of a Sequoia and the geologic forces that carved the valley. Costner name drops Lynn Hill as the first rock climber to free climb the Nose of El Capitan. There’s even a reenactment of the massacre of Miwok tribespeople that preempted their forced removal from Yosemite in 1851.

But as the docuseries unfolds, Costner also performs some rhetorical jiujitsu that muddies the current political divide around a few topics. He frames the conservation movement as inherently patriotic, and funding the national parks as part of our American heritage. He presents the corporate interests of industry as evil, and the seizing of land from Tribes as cruel. He even tells the viewer that the reintroduction of grey wolves鈥�a wedge issue in many Western states鈥攊s something that Roosevelt, a Republican icon, would have supported.

Costner presents these perspectives with a sincere tone that lacks any hint of cynicism or moral superiority. After praising John Muir for advocating on behalf of Yosemite’s trees and rivers, Costner lays down in his sleeping bag as the temperature plummets. “God I love this country,” he says. “Everything about it. Even the cold.”

Costner’s melding of these concepts鈥攑atriotism, conservation, American heritage, and honoring Indigenous tribes鈥攈elps him sell a contemporary vision to his audience: national parks are worthy of our protection and our tax dollars.

Sure, Costner’s sincerity and mythical retelling of a camping trip may inspire some eye rolls. Still,听I couldn’t help but admire his approach. Perhaps somewhere in Yellowstone to Yosemite is a playbook for bridging the political divide when we debate protecting National Monuments from drilling, or the reintroduction of apex predators, or why we should save endangered species. I don’t watch Fox News, but my parents do, and I firmly believe that they would love Yellowstone to Yosemite, even though it’s essentially a three-hour pitch for the environmental movement.

Costner’s story concludes on a high note. Roosevelt is inspired by Muir, and after he’s reelected he signs the Antiquities Act of 1906, which grants him the power to protect federal lands. He sends the U.S. military to defend the national parks, and he establishes a series of national monuments to honor the legacies of indigenous tribes.

I recently asked Costner about the balancing act in Yellowstone to Yosemite, and whether it was challenging to blend so many disparate socio-political themes in an hour-and-a-half program听 He brushed the question aside with a laugh. You can read my interview below.

Why Kevin Costner Wanted to Tell the Story of Yosemite National Park

OUTSIDE: Why did you want to tell this story in 2025?
Costner: I was not waiting for the right year to tell this story. I recently did the film Horizon and I thought of it back in 1988. With Yellowstone: One Fifty, I realized that we just don’t know our history and the intricacies of the routes we drive and the mountains we look at. With Yosemite, we all think we know the park. But I knew there was a story to tell about Roosevelt and Muir. In this 30-year span after the creation of Yellowstone, there was nobody who could actually protect the parks. Nobody took into account that it would would take manpower and a governmental body to actually protect them. I like these parts of history that seem obvious, but aren’t. And this story had plenty of these elements, so I had a sense that I wanted to share it. I wanted to start with the Native Americans鈥攅ven if we’re going to highlight Roosevelt and Muir, it was important for me to go that distance and to talk about original inhabitants. I wanted to tell viewers just how tragic things were for them. They’re always in our history and we somehow forget them. They are a part of Yosemite as much as any story we tell.

But I also wanted to show how these two men, of like minds, each had a level of poetry in them that helped them understand that saving the parks was the right thing. I wanted to tell this story without beating people on the the head. I wanted to educate them.

Your story navigates more than a few political topics that are still debated today, such as funding the NPS, reintroducing apex predators, and the constant tug-of-war between protecting federal lands and opening them to drilling or logging. How did you navigate these without seeming partisan?
Ha. I don’t care where the chips fall, and I’m honestly not that careful. I’m not looking to present a side here, I’m just looking to tell the story of who was doing what, who was saying what, and what actually happened. This project isn’t catered to any crowd. It had to get above my bar in terms of its intellectual literature. And I felt like we told the version of the story that I set out to tell. I don’t talk down to my audience or around them. I honestly don’t see the world as being dangerous when I’m telling historical truth. You have to tell the story with all of its warts. Other people might be worried about what I’m going to say. But I didn’t ever worry about it. I never had a single thought about this.

This is your second project around the U.S. National Parks. What about the Parks has attracted your interest in storytelling?
I’m really pleased that national parks are an American idea. Today there are like 1400 national parks around the world, but we set the tone. We came up with the idea that the land could have a higher economic use than just exploiting it鈥攖hat some day, people would come and visit. But when I think of environmentalism, it isn’t just about the fish in the streams, and the trees. It’s also about the connection to the past. That I can walk where other people walked 100 years ago. And also, to know that a place like Yosemite will be the same forever. And to know that these places aren’t just enjoyed by the wealthy, that everyone can enjoy them. Setting aside land for a national park is such a simple idea, but in reality it takes a fierce attitude to move an idea to being practical, especially when money is at stake.

You’ve spent several decades telling stories about the American West, from听Dances With Wolves to听Yellowstone.听What is it about the West that continually sparks your imagination?
I stumble on these stories, and I know that I’m only going to be able to tell so many of the in my lifetime. Right now I’m flirting with a very historical project that I’ll probably do, and it’s right in the vein of what you’re talking about, but I can’t discuss it here. As Americans, we think we know our history, but you never really know that much about it until you dig down. We read about the Native Americans somewhere in the fourth grade, like one chapter in one book, and that’s it. All of Yosemite was on the backs of people who were exterminated. This great park came on the heels of shipping them off to a river where they would die in anonymity. And they’re not even on a sign anywhere.

We rarely get down to what is human about them. I think that Yosemite gets down to what is human about John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt. People can be touched by the truth. They can be affected by lies, but they can be truly touched by the truth.

This interview was edited for space and clarity.听

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I started watching the hugely popular TV series Yellowstone in 2020, during the height of the COVID pandemic. By then, there were multiple seasons available, and my husband and I had nothing but time. We were hooked.

We鈥檙e not the only ones. The second half of Season 5, which came out on November 11, saw more than . Only NFL football had than Yellowstone last season. Character names like Rip and Dutton have seen exponential increases in their use for newborn babies. And, as the recently reported, Americans really want their own piece of the Yellowstone landscape, and the show may be partly to blame.

Which got me thinking: How much of the show is based in reality, and is it really affecting what’s happening in the West? The show is over-the-top melodrama, but writer and co-creator Taylor Sheridan obviously chose real-life conflicts in Montana and other western states to base the plot on. Here are four ways the show bears more resemblance to reality than a casual fan might realize.

1. The Series Suggests Big Developers Will Stop at Nothing to Broker Land 鈥淒eals鈥濃�擳hat May Be True.

In Yellowstone, the Duttons are constantly navigating nefarious plots to seize their ranch by out-of-state land development interests. Some, it seems, will stop at nothing to dispossess the family in order to capitalize on the value of their land, creating ridiculously violent scenes.

In real life, there is example after example of complicated land deals in Montana and the West in which developments for the wealthy take up premier land. The Yellowstone Club, which is just north of Yellowstone National Park in Big Sky, Montana, has been a bastion for the ultra-wealthy since it opened in the late nineties. Boasting 鈥減rivate powder鈥� and ruthlessly protected privacy for its members, among other features, the Club was created through swaps with the Forest Service, which turned a checkerboard of public and private land into consolidated acreage for the Club鈥檚 founder, Tim Blixseth.

While the Yellowstone Club is already controversial among Montanans (few of whom can afford the steep costs of membership, which involve a , annual club dues of $36,000, and annual property owners association dues of $10,000), it鈥檚 also trying to expand into a contentious area of the Crazy Mountains. As Ben Ryder Howe reported in New York magazine’s , a group of billionaires associated with the Club has been maneuvering to privatize contested swaths of land that yield access to the Crazies for some time. The Forest Service, ranchers, the Native Crow, the general public, and the Yellowstone Club all seem to have a stake in the outcome.

2. Places Like Bozeman, Montana, Really Are Becoming Overrun with Furs and Fancy Cars.

I know folks who live in Bozeman, and I鈥檝e read plenty of the reporting we鈥檝e done here at 国产吃瓜黑料 (and elsewhere) related to life in mountain towns like Bozeman, where affordable housing shortages, the aftermath of a global pandemic, remote work, and the glamorization of mountain lifestyles have created a rich broth of income inequality that is apparent as you navigate the city.

Writing in 2022 for 国产吃瓜黑料, Maggie Slepian, who has been based in Bozeman for more than a decade, noted the visual changes on the town and the landscape that were being wrought by the influx of new, wealthy, second-home residents. Watching Yellowstone, some of the fashions my beloved Beth Dutton opted for on her runs to town struck me as a bit much even for her unparalleled character. (Silky sheaths beneath a luxe full-length fur coat, anyone?)

Sartorial considerations aside, affordability remains a major issue, and Yellowstone focuses primarily on the more glamorous troubles a family that owns the largest ranch in the area would face, not on the person being priced out of their apartment or the family acknowledging that they鈥檒l never be able to swing it for a single family home.

3. The Duttons Struggle to Afford Their Ranch. So Do Many Real Families.

In the years since Yellowstone premiered, a number of outlets have interviewed real generational ranchers in Montana to get a sense of their view of the show. The dynamics among the family itself often get highlighted as one of the most believable elements. In an Variety from 2023, a third-generation rancher from Idaho, Jesse Jarvis, highlights the familial dysfunction as one of the most realistic elements of the show.

The Duttons鈥� interpersonal conflicts are largely driven by the struggle to afford their 700,000-acre ranch. In real life, the total number of farms and ranches in Montana is down 10.3 percent from 2017, from 2022. And with continued interest from developers to obtain large tracts of land in the area, it seems likely land and home prices will continue to rise. Recent data from the indicates a consistent increase of cropland value in Montana from 2012 on. And this is to say nothing of the capital needed to operate a large-scale ranch.

4. Indigenous Land Is Being Acquired and Compromised by Development.

Fans of Yellowstone see complex dynamics of power and history at play in the dealings of the Duttons and others with the fictional Broken Rock Indian Tribe. As the screw twists and turns, the Broken Rock, led on the show by the Chairman Thomas Rainwater, find themselves on both the dealing and receiving ends of bad land deals and villainous behavior from local and out-of-state actors. This contemporary dispossession of Indigenous people fits into the long and violent history in which legal and extralegal measures are taken by those in power to forcibly remove Indigenous inhabitants from their land.

To cite a recent real example, you can look again to the Crazy Mountains in Montana. The Crazies are filled with significant and sacred sites for the Native Crow. In the current proposal for there, private land prevents the Crow from visiting many of these sites without permission from the landowner. 翱耻迟蝉颈诲别鈥檚 reporting on the Yaak Valley offers another illustrative example of these dynamics.

There鈥檚 likely much more to say about the real power dynamics in the Mountain West and the fights for public lands that overlap with some of what you see on the small screen in Tyler Sheridan鈥檚 fantasy universe. As they say, truth can really be stranger than fiction.

Ryleigh Nucilli got a master’s degree and half of a PhD in literature and culture from the University of Oregon before leaving to pursue a career in digital media. She loves reading and writing about the intersection of popular media and culture.

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It鈥檚 time to flip the script on the experience of watching movies. Gone are the days when you鈥檇 need to stay at home to tee up a movie or bingeable series from your couch. Whether you鈥檙e in a remote campsite, a friend鈥檚 backyard, or your own living room, Samsung screens turn anywhere into the ultimate, immersive home theater. Now, you don鈥檛 need to go where the best setup is, because it can be wherever you are.

That鈥檚 why we鈥檙e sending a select group of friends on the road to watch iconic films in the epic outdoor locations that inspired them. Guess where they鈥檙e headed, and you could win a select Samsung screen to stage your own watch-anywhere party. Here鈥檚 how it works:

Geo-Guessing Challenge

This fall, three 国产吃瓜黑料 ambassadors are spreading out across the country, setting up shop in mystery locations connected to their favorite movies. They鈥檒l create an immersive movie viewing setup in unique locations (thanks to Samsung screens!), and share images and clues to help you guess where they are. After all, what鈥檚 more iconic than watching听The Goonies听in an Oregon cave, or Jaws on a beach in Martha鈥檚 Vineyard?

Not much, says James Fishler, Chief Executive of Samsung Home Entertainment, who’s logged dozens of van-based road trips from the Catskills to the Adirondacks and down to Assateague Island. “I love getting outdoors any chance I get, and I also love nothing more than setting up a movie night鈥攅specially if it鈥檚 an old classic like one my favorites, Harry and the Hendersons,” Fishler says. “With Samsung, there鈥檚 no reason I can鈥檛 do both!

“Whether I鈥檓 at home, on-the-go, or anywhere in between, our cutting-edge lineup of Samsung screens let you upscale every moment and deliver the ultimate viewing experience,” adds Fishler, pictured below. “The world becomes your theater, and your theater transforms into the world you鈥檙e watching.”

Here鈥檚 How It Works:

Starting on October 28, we鈥檒l launch the first in a series of听three challenges, dropping clues and photos to give everyone a chance to guess the locations. At the end of each challenge, ambassadors will post a reel revealing where they are. Guess correctly, and you鈥檒l be entered into a sweepstakes to win a cutting-edge Samsung screen (more below).

New to geo-guessing? No problem. We鈥檝e enlisted professional Google Maps player , the best in the biz, to help make this challenge fun and accessible for everyone.

Episode 1

First up, we鈥檒l tag along with Caziah 鈥淐az鈥� Franklin, the road-tripping renaissance man who seeks to capture the deeper essence of adventure. With his Ford Bronco, Caz is eager to spend nights under the stars between iconic national parks and wild campsites off the beaten path. Equipped with Samsung screens to join the adventure, he鈥檒l showcase a creative theater experience, no matter how rugged the road to get there. Check out 听(plus听听and听) on Oct. 28 for the first clues about his secret screening spot.

 

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“We had an incredible time filming with the Freestyle by Samsung,” notes Caz, impressed with the projector’s compact design and performance. “It’s the ultimate piece of gear for those who want to unite cinema and nature鈥攍iving up to its name, offering versatile, high-quality entertainment anywhere.”

Samsung Screens

The geo-guessing prize? One of these Samsung screens, all perfectly equipped to elevate your next active viewing experience.

: Pick a spot, any spot. This portable projector brings your favorite content to life anywhere you choose: from the walls, to the ceiling, to the side of your home. Weighing less than two pounds, it鈥檚 more compact and lightweight than a pair of hiking boots; easily take it with you for all of your travels, whether it鈥檚 across the country or just across the yard. Stream¹ must-watch shows and movies in Full HD on a screen that can project up to 100鈥�. Play thousands of the top gaming titles from partners like Xbox 鈥� no console required². It鈥檚 even compatible with external USB-connected battery banks³, so you can roam freely while staying connected.

: Turn every movie night (or day!) into an epic, open-air entertainment experience with this outdoor-optimized TV. Its screen is engineered to look vivid and bright, even in daylight⁴. Its Wide Viewing Angle and Anti-Glare screen makes it easy to watch what you love from any seat, eliminating distractions and ensuring a clear picture. It boasts an IP56 rating for durability so you can enjoy your favorite content outside throughout the seasons.

:听Experience all of your favorite movies and shows across both light听and dark rooms with nearly no glare, thanks to the Samsung S95D series. This TV鈥檚 screen is optimized with Glare-Free technology to bring every scene to life with the purest blacks, brightest whites, and Pantone庐-validated color.

: Life鈥檚 biggest adventures deserve the biggest screens. That鈥檚 why Samsung offers a super big lineup of 98-inch-class screens, designed to transform every movie night into the ultimate view. Not all big screens are created equal, though 鈥攂ut the Samsung lineup is built with advanced Supersize Picture Enhancer⁵, a feature that can help you clearly see every detail on screen without any distortion or blur, even at the 98-inch size (*available on 85鈥� Class TVs Q80D and above, and all 98鈥� Class TVs).

¹ Includes Samsung SmartHub by Wi-Fi; additional external content by Micro HDMI port (adapter/cables not included) and compatible devices with AirPlay 2, SmartThings鈥� Tap View.
² High speed internet connection, additional gaming service subscriptions and compatible controller required.
³ External battery sold separately, needs to support USB Power Delivery and 60W/20V output or above.
⁴ The Terrace Full Sun panel is protected up to 6 hours in sunlight at 700 watts and 104 degrees Fahrenheit; brightness may decrease to protect panel with other high temperature and sunlight conditions. The Terrace Partial Sun is designed for placement and use in outdoor shaded environments. The TV can be exposed to ambient or non-direct sunlight, but direct sunlight must be avoided.
⁵ Supersize Picture Enhancer is available on 85鈥� Class TVs Q80D and above, and all 98鈥� Class TVs.

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Do you believe in second chances?

When it comes to TV shows, I generally do not. I quit听Lost midway through its baffling sixth season, and flicked off Weeds when it jumped the shark in year four. Life is too short to watch bad entertainment.

So, when the communications department at Netflix asked if I’d watch advanced screeners for the second season of its survival-reality show , my initial reaction was “hard pass.” A year ago, I eagerly streamed Outlast鈥檚听inaugural season, excited to learn whether the program’s unique format鈥攕urvivalists band together in teams rather than go it alone鈥攚ould create a more enthralling watch than Alone or Naked and Afraid.

I was mortified when season one of Outlast devolved into a mean-spirited blend of Lord of the Flies and听The Hunger Games. The survivalists waged warfare on each other, raiding each others’ makeshift shelters, taunting each other, and screwing each other over whenever the opportunity arose. They contestants who received the most airtime were also the most sinister and caustic. By the final episode, I wondered if there would be a human sacrifice. Watching it was like eating week-old pizza鈥攗nhealthy and guaranteed to make you sick.

Blame boredom or morbid curiosity鈥攆or whatever reason I said yes to Outlast’s听second season and binge watched all eight episodes over the course of three evenings. I’m happy to report that my brain and digestive track are fine. Yep, somehow, someway,听Outlast听righted the ship in its second outing. And now, the program has become a must-watch for anyone who loves survival shows.

Spoilers Ahead

Season two opens in similar fashion: 16 survivalists are dropped in the remote Alaska wilderness, and one by one they tell the camera how badly they need the $1 million prize purse. Suddenly, a helicopter flies overhead and drops them the rules of the game.

They must split into teams of four, head in opposite directions to their respective campsites, and use the handful of survival tools to build shelter and catch food. Participants can change teams, but they cannot go solo. Anyone can tap out by simply shooting a pink flare into the sky. Whichever team survives the longest splits the cash.

After the truly cringe-worthy scene of choosing the teams (skip it), the opening episode immediately reveals a tonal difference from season one. A contestant sneaks into a different team’s campsite and steals their pots and pans. “I’m confiscating these,” he tells the bewildered victims. Aggressive activity like this was pretty standard in Outlast’s听opening season.

But then something unexpected occurs: the man’s teammates return the pilfered gear. Then, they huddle up and vote him out of the game. “I don’t believe you’re going to act in the best interest of the team,” a teammate tells him. The man appears dumbstruck by the decision as he fires his flare.

The series of events telegraphs the new philosophy of听Outlast in its second edition. Human beings aren’t the antagonists鈥攖hat role is squarely occupied by Mother Nature.

This battle, which is familiar to seasoned fans of survival TV, creates the central tension of season two. Teams thrive and flail amid the damp and frigid Alaskan autumn. Some find food while others go hungry. Some build fire, others freeze. Yes, this is a team competition, so contestants bicker, argue, and struggle to navigate personality conflicts. And a few contestants change teams midway through the game.

But by and large, everyone is chill. And at some point, a viewer can relate to each participant鈥檚 personal struggle.

Of course this is survival TV, so as the season goes along contestants flare out due to hunger, sickness, or injuries. But nobody stabs anybody else in the back鈥攆iguratively or literally. I felt myself drawn in by what Outlast can teach viewers about group survival: the delineation of labor, the importance or rest, and the power of positivity.

I recently interviewed Mike Odair, Outlast’ showrunner, and asked how the production team toned things down. Did they enact a new rule forbidding violence or threats of violence? Nope鈥擮dair said producers changed very little from season one. Odair said the casting department sought out a more diverse group from last year: more women, people of color, and participants of varying age. But otherwise, the show was the same.

Instead, Odair said the survivalists established the tone, irregardless of the production team.

“We didn’t go into season two thinking ‘how can we correct this?'” Odair said. “I think the luxury given to any second-season cast is that they’re going to see what their predecessors did.”

Odair added: “I think in season two people just decided how they wanted to play the game differently.” I’m glad they did.

I won’t spoil the finale.听But I will assure you that, much like听Alone,听after watching season two of听Outlast you may feel compelled to forage for mushrooms or build a lean-to in your backyard. You may learn something about the human condition, and the inherent challenges posed by teamwork. But you won’t want to puke.

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I love outdoor survival shows, and over the past decade have watched far too many episodes of听Alone, Naked and Afraid,听and of course听Survivor,听to count. In 2023, I was excited to see Netflix launch its own program, called Outlast.听The show added a few twists to the tried-and-true format, namely that contestants wage war on each other听through vandalism, theft, and psychological bullying. I wasn’t a huge fan of season one. But after the show aired, I was amazed by how much dialogue听Outlast .

Outlast returns for its second season on Wednesday, September 4. I recently spoke to the showrunner and executive producer Mike Odair about the show’s format, and how outdoor survival reality shows can stand out within the saturated genre.

OUTSIDE: Outdoor survival shows have been around for more than 20 years. Why do you think audiences still tune in?
Odair: These shows get us at our most primal core. Some people in the audience are weekend warriors, others are couch potatoes, and others are hardened survivalists. Everybody wonders “could I do this?” And if the answer is no, then you start to wonder “what can I do to get this knowledge and skills?” There’s another part of it鈥攏o matter if you’re in the woods or in a tower downtown in corporate America, the instincts of survival and the cutthroat way these games are played are not that different.

The genre has become pretty crowded in recent years. How can a show stand out among so much competition?听
Do I get concerned that we’re making a show that’s a little outside of the pack of other survival shows? I think that’s how we make a mark. The fact that audiences are responding to the show is proof that it’s working. I think it comes back to the show’s origin. The reason this idea was so interesting to [executive producer] Jason Bateman was because he became a huge fan of听Alone during the pandemic. That was his foray into the survival community.

Our idea had some of the same DNA that Jason liked about听Alone,听which is that survival is up to you. But our idea added a twist鈥攁ll you have to do is be on a team with at least one other person. The other survival game shows, dating back to听Survivor,听are games. Ours isn’t that. There’s just one rule. The rest of it鈥攜ou can do whatever you want to survive. But this model shows you the best of humans as well as pretty dark stuff.

That’s what is different about our show. Like any social experiment, I can initiate a variable and see how the participants engage with it. But it’s not like I’m giving them a challenge that they must finish. If they choose to engage with what I give them is up to them.

How do you measure the show鈥檚 success or failure?听
From a creative and showrunning standpoint, I gauge success based on audience engagement. Are they talking about it online? Even though people had conflicting opinions and feelings about season 1 of Outlast,听the fact that I saw so many people arguing about the show on Reddit and referencing the right way and wrong way to live in nature made me feel it was successful. And if it weren’t for engagement, we wouldn’t be here right now.

I’ve always loved听Alone for its emphasis on verit茅-style storytelling. How much prodding or scripting do you give contestants on Outlast?听
We are 100-percent organic. There’s no scripting this. We do prompt the contestants to discuss on camera what they’re doing or feeling, which is normal. I have friends who work on Alone and they’ll still prompt participants with questions about clarity and then marry the footage with the audio so that the audience can understand a process.

The only difference is we have someone standing across from the contestants asking them the questions, instead of sending them a list and having them film themselves. But I can assure you there is no script. What you see is what you get鈥攊t’s raw. Now, I can introduce variables like giving them tools, which they don’t do in Alone.听But that’s really it.

Really? There were episodes of season two where I saw a contestant act completely crazy, just totally against logic and reason, and I assumed it was because they were being steered by a producer.听
Ha. I read feedback on these Reddit threads and saw people saying “Well, they clearly scripted this part of the show,” and I’m like nope. I know that a lot of audiences have a hard time believing what they see during a reality TV show. But sometimes, what happens out there in the wilderness is too weird to be scripted. People are exhausted and hungry. It may seem too bizarre or too perfect to not be scripted. But that’s what went on. We don’t put our thumb on the scale.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.听

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