If you love obstacle courses and reality competition shows, but could do without all the backbiting drama that tends to come with them, Fox is premiering a new series this week you might want set your DVR for.
Dubbed "American Grit," the show pits 16 civilian competitors and four combat veteran coaches — two former Army soldiers, a Navy SEAL, and a Marine — across a series of military-grade and survival-themed challenges.
Filmed over six weeks in the Pacific Northwest, the show is hosted by professional wrestling star Jon Cena.
The civilian competitors are divided into four teams, hand-picked by the military mentors, known as "the cadre."
"There's no voting, there are no alliances, there's no backstabbing. It's the only show ever that the only way to leave is to quit," "American Grit" producer Jon Kroll tells Military Times.
The show borrows heavily from military-style training and obstacle courses. There's even a "drop on request"-style bell — familiar to anyone who's been through SEAL training — that contestants must ring in order to quit the competition.
Contestants in the "Ice Cubed" episode of "American Grit" airing Thursday, April 21, on FOX.
Photo Credit: Olugbenro Ogunsemore/FOX
That said, "There are no uniforms or saluting. There's no screaming drill sergeants. We didn't want civilians pretending to be soldiers," Kroll says.
Still, he adds, "the cadre do a great job of drawing parallels with their own experiences while deployed and the challenges faced by the competitors — everything from missing your loved ones to not quitting to a team only being as strong as their weakest link. The show is fueled by these inspirational mantras."
Those coaches are:
- class="prestoapp-ckeditor">Noah Galloway: Galloway lost an arm and a leg while serving with the Army’s 101st Airborne Division in Iraq, but that didn’t stop from getting named the first-ever "Ultimate Men's Health Guy" in 2014 and placing third on the 20th season of "Dancing With the Stars." He started the No Excuses Charitable Fund and works closely with Operation Enduring Warrior and Homes For Our Troops.
- class="prestoapp-ckeditor">Tawanda "Tee" Hanible: A recently retired Marine Corps gunnery sergeant, Hanible deployed to Iraq for the initial invasion in 2003. Her organization, Operation Heroes Connect, brings together at-risk youth with service members and veterans are mentors for the kids.
- class="prestoapp-ckeditor">Rorke Denver: Denver, a retired Navy SEAL officer, led special-operations missions around the world. He’s also led all phases of SEAL training and is the author of "Damn Few: Making the Modern SEAL Warrior."
- class="prestoapp-ckeditor">Nick "The Reaper" Irving: A veteran of the Army’s 3rd Ranger Battalion, Irving earned his nickname, "The Reaper," while deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan as a sniper. He now owns and operates HardShoot, a firearms training company.
Nick Irving in the "Ruck Up" series premiere episode of "American Grit" airing Thursday, April 14 on FOX.
Photo Credit: Olugbenro Ogunsemore/FOX
"This is the kind of show that America needs right now," Irving tells Military Times. "You don't see much real teamwork displayed in reality competition shows these days. It's mostly just a bunch of backstabbing and stuff like that."
Irving, who deployed half a dozen times to Iraq and Afghanistan before leaving the Army in 2010, said making the show was a little like being back in the military.
"It was almost like a deployment — we just hit the ground running. It was also a really good life-changing experience for me."
"American Grit" premieres April 14 at 9 p.m. Eastern Time on Fox.
