Grylls series ‘to be transparent’ — because it hasn’t been so far:
The US Discovery Channel is to ensure a survival show is “100% transparent” in future after conceding parts could have misled viewers, according to reports.Man vs Wild — called Born Survivor on Channel 4 in the UK — saw Bear Grylls supposedly abandoned in the wild.
But a consultant said Grylls stayed in a motel and had scenes set up for him.
“Isolated elements” were not “natural to the environment”, Discovery said in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter, and promised greater clarity in future.
“For health and safety concerns, the crew and host received some survival assistance while in the field,” the channel told the publication.
“Moving forward, the programme will be 100% transparent, and all elements of the filming will be explained upfront to our viewers.”
Discovery also promised that any repeats of the series would be “edited appropriately”.
Some specifics:
The issue of scenes being manipulated was raised by Mark Weinert, a US survival consultant.He told the UK’s Sunday Times that Grylls spent nights in a motel in Hawaii when he was claiming to be stranded on a desert island.
Mr Weinert also alleged that a raft was put together by team members before being taken apart so Grylls could be filmed building it.
Ouch. This is not how to handle the situation:
Channel 4 said the programme never specifically claimed Grylls was coping “unaided”.