Man vs. Beast

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Man vs. Beast is a series of sensationalistic television specials aired in the United States by the Fox television network. The shows were produced by Brian Richardson and directed by Bob Levy. They involve a variety of challenges in which people and animals compete against each other. Although the initial special, Man vs. Beast, was heavily panned by critics^[1] and animal rights groups^[2], Fox commissioned a sequel, Man vs. Beast 2, which aired on February 20, 2004.

The competitions included one that pitted professional eater Takeru Kobayashi in a hot dog-eating contest against a kodiak bear (Kobayashi's only loss in competitive eating), Scott Helvenston, a US Navy SEAL in a race against a chimpanzee through an obstacle course, an asian elephant racing against a group of 44 little people to see which could pull a commercial jet a certain distance first, and a world-class sprinter running 100 meters against animals of increasing speed, from giraffes to cheetahs. Scott Helvenston, the Navy SEAL, beat the chimpanzee in his race to be the only human to win his competition.

In 2003, ITV commissioned Granada Productions to re-create the American special for British audiences. A six-part series was filmed, hosted by John Fashanu. However, due to heavy lobbying by animal rights groups^[3], transmission of the series was postponed indefinitely.