Bear Grylls Signs On With Discovery Networks International

Bear Grylls is back on the Discovery Channel. Well, sort of. After leaving the network last year when contract talks broke down, he will appear in a six-episode miniseries, Bear Grylls: Ultimate Survivor, that will air in more than 200 markets outside of the U.S. as part of Discovery Networks International.

Bear Grylls: Ultimate Survivor will interview individuals who have experienced being stranded under extreme circumstances, and then in a typically entertaining Bear Grylls twist, the former Man vs. Wild star will put himself in those exact same positions and try to make it out in one piece.

“I am super-excited to be working with Discovery again — the channel where the Man vs. Wild journey began,” Grylls said in a statement. "Bear Grylls: Ultimate Survivors, and any future endeavors, will be intense — but that’s where the fun is! Man vs. Wild took me to some of the toughest climates and terrains out there, and this new series is an exciting evolution of that. The aim is to follow incredible real-life survival stories and demonstrate dynamic life-saving know-how along the way.”

When Man vs. Wild concluded after six seasons last August, Grylls reportedly did not agree to do subsequent projects despite being under contract by Discovery, and the two parted ways, THR reports. Now Grylls is back to being as busy as ever. He is even supposed to helm his own show similar to Survivor, Get Out Alive, for NBC.

—Hal Sundt