The CW and Roku are moving ahead with a first-of-its-kind collaboration thanks to the the survivalist competition series “Fight to Survive.”
The series will follow 17 contestants, which include former “Survivor,” “Alone,” “Naked and Afraid” and “American Ninja Warrior” stars, as they try to survive 25 days on a remote tropical island with a grand prize of $250,000. The eight-episode series will be hosted by former football player Akbar Gbaja-Biamila.
“By bringing together the best of The CW and the best of The Roku Channel, ‘Fight to Survive’ will be able to reach the largest audience possible across both broadcast and streaming,” The CW’s president of entertainment Brad Schwartz said along with Roku head of originals Brian Tannenbaum. “By working together in all aspects of distribution, marketing, press and advertising, we will expose this edge-of-your-seat series to millions of fans in brand new ways.”
“With its dynamic cast of reality personalities and an original unscripted format that ratchets up the intensity of the traditional competition series, ‘Fight to Survive’ is an addicting summer series that we are thrilled to bring to The CW,” The CW network’s head of unscripted content Heather Olander said alongside Roku’s head of adventure and exploration programming Sean Boyle. “We cannot wait for viewers to join the fight!”
“Fight to Survive” will premiere on Thursday, August 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW. All episodes will then be available to stream on The Roku Channel and The CW App starting on Sept. 29, the day after the broadcast finale.
The 17 contestants will include:
- Survivalist chef influencer Yuda Abitbol (30)
- Survival enthusiast Nathaniel Allenby (38)
- “Naked and Afraid” Season 9 contestant Amal Alyassiri (38)
- “Naked and Afraid” Seasons 4 and 14 as well as “Naked and Afraid XL” Season 1 contestant Dani Beau (33)
- “Survivor” Season 39 contestant Missy Byrd (27)
- Survivalist Robby Canton (25)
- YouTube survivalist influencer Matthew Clarke (31)
- “Naked and Afraid,” “Naked and Afraid: Lost at Sea,” “Naked and Afraid XL” and “Naked and Ghosted” contestant Sarah Danser (31)
- “Naked and Afraid” Season 4 contestant Afften DeShazer (35)
- “Survivor” Season 36 Stephanie Gonzalez (31)
- “Called to the Wild” contestant Keali’i “K” Ka’apana (41)
- “ALONE: The Beast” contestant Zane Kraetsch (33)
- “Naked and Afraid” Season 4 and “Naked and Afraid XL” Season 5 contestant Christina McQueen (45)
- “Naked and Afraid” Season 7 contestant Jonathan Monroe (31)
- “Stranded With a Million Dollars,” “Naked and Afraid” Season 10 and “Naked and Afraid XL” Season 6 contestant Makani Nalu (27)
- “American Ninja Warrior” and “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge” contestant J Ruiz (37)
- “Survivor” Season 36 contestant Libby Vincek (29)
The series was executive produced and created by Kevin Lee for Tollbooth Television.
