Gladiators (television franchise)
| Gladiators | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sports entertainment |
| Created by | Dan Carr John Ferraro |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Running time | 40–50 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | Various |
| Original release | 9 September 1989 – present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Gladiators is a sports entertainment television show that was an international success during the 1990s and early 2000s with versions of the show being filmed for local broadcasters in America, the United Kingdom, Finland, Japan, Australia, South Africa, Sweden, Nigeria, and Denmark. However, Russia, Germany, and the Bahamas would also compete in international shows during the series, despite the fact that they did not have their own domestic series.
After a lengthy break, Gladiators was revived in 2008 in the UK, the US and Australia; in 2009 Lebanon created their own series featuring competitors from all over the Arab region and most recently Sweden has brought back their version which is proving more successful than any other revival and is the only version of the franchise currently on air (as of 2016).
The concept of the show is that athletic members of the public battle against the show's own Gladiators (often semi-professional or ex-athletes) to claim points in several events that require speed, strength and skill. In the final event of the show, "The Eliminator" the contenders race against each other (with starting times based on previous events), with the first to finish winning the episode and moving onto the next round.
A children's derivative of the concept was also made in the US, called Gladiators 2000 (1994–1996). A UK variant of this was aired starting in 1995, called Gladiators: Train 2 Win.
The initial concept for the show by Dan Carr and John C. Ferraro was held in Erie, Pennsylvania, in the USA before being sold to Samuel Goldwyn Productions/MGM where the format was adapted and televised as American Gladiators with the first series airing over 1989–90. As the show progressed, new events were introduced along with new Gladiators, sometimes retiring previous Gladiators.
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