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Alex Honnold is set to free solo Taipei 101, one of the world’s tallest buildings, tonight. The famed climber, known for his gravity-defying ascent of el Capitan documented in the 2018 film Free Solo, will attempt the climb without any safety equipment-no ropes, no harness, no net.
A Death-Defying Feat,Streamed (With a Delay)
Netflix will broadcast Honnold’s climb in its first-ever live event outside the U.S., but with a 10-second delay for safety.
- Honnold will scale Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot skyscraper, without any safety gear.
- The climb will be broadcast live on Netflix as part of Skyscraper Live.
- A 10-second delay is built into the broadcast to address potential safety concerns.
- The event marks netflix’s first live broadcast outside of the United States.
Taipei 101, named for its 101 floors, stands as the tallest building in Taiwan and the 11th tallest globally, reaching a height of 1,667 feet. A free fall from that altitude would take approximately 10.2 seconds, factoring in minimal air resistance.
Honnold has harbored ambitions to climb Taipei 101 for over a decade, stating, “I’ve hoped to have the opportunity to climb it since then.”
Viewers on the U.S. East Coast will watch the climb Friday night,while Honnold will begin his ascent Saturday morning,due to Taipei’s 13-hour time difference. Skyscraper Live is scheduled as a two-hour special.
“Skyscraper Live will kick off 2026 as our latest global must-watch live event,” said Brandon Riegg, vp of nonfiction series and sports at Netflix. “Watching Alex Honnold free climb Taipei 101 will be an adrenaline-inducing spectacle that you can’t look away from. Everyone will be talking about it as it happens.”
Elle Duncan, a former ESPN personality, will host the event. the on-air panel will include climber Emily Harrington, NASA engineer and YouTuber Mark Rober (creator of Mark Rober’s CrunchLabs on Netflix!), climbing commentator Pete Woods, and WWE Superstar Seth “Freakin'” Rollins, who will be promoting another Netflix live event, Monday Night Raw. Netflix also broadcasts WWE’s premium live events internationally.
Skyscraper Live is a production of Plimsoll Productions Limited (part of ITV Studios). Al Berman serves as showrunner and executive producer, alongside Honnold, Grant Mansfield, James Smith, Alan Eyres, and jonathan Retseck. Joe DeMaio directs. Plimsoll Productions is recognized for its natural history and adventure documentaries, and has previously collaborated with Honnold on The Devil’s Climb and Arctic Ascent With Alex Honnold.
