At last week’s premiere, Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test revealed the many challenges that will push the show’s new recruits to their limits.
Four of the 16 celebrity participants were left out, including TV host and celebrity addiction expert Dr. Drew Pinski. He joined singer Montell Jordan and reality star Kate Gosselin, who were both medically excluded from the show. Celebrity chef Tyler Florence has left the company voluntarily.
“I felt worse than crap in an hour or so,” Pinsky told The Military Times. They took me to the hospital and hours later I was in the ICU and I’m furious about it.”
Despite their short tenure on the new FOX reality show, recruits are forced to complete challenges from the Special Forces selection process playbook, but the ordeal faced by celebrities in the Jordanian desert is a testament to all those families. , said Pinsky.
“No matter how long we spent in camp, we were all tied together as equals,” he added. It was that friendship, that intimacy, that connection to each other that made…we were together.
In this episode, participants were ordered to run two miles (2 miles) in the Wadi Rum desert and jump from a helicopter into the sea.
“It can hurt you really easily,” Pinsky said. I found that watching the show can be a bit of a problem if you have a .
Olympic skier Gus Kenworthy, who still competes, said parts of the show were surprisingly difficult despite his career as a professional athlete.
“I’m used to pushing myself, pushing my body, dealing with injuries and setbacks, and digging deep.” , if you were in pain or hurt or irritated, you had to go back to your hotel room or home to shower, eat good food and make yourself comfortable in your bed. It seemed [with] wet clothes. ”
Both Pinksi and Kenworthy explained that the show differs from reality TV in that the experience does not feel filmed. For example, recruits were not typically followed by film crews while in tents or performing selected tasks. The environment provides a more authentic experience.
“When we were in the barracks, there were cameras all over the place, and we forgot we were even being filmed,” says Kenworthy. “It definitely allowed you to be in it and come to terms with it because it felt so real and you just couldn’t get out of it.”
At some point later in the season, Kenworthy caught fire and can be seen in previews of later episodes. Getting yelled at by the British special operator crew was the hardest part.
“I’ve never been yelled at like that in my life,” he said. “It makes me feel like a little kid again. And, of course, you can’t yell back.”
Kenworthy, like Pinsky, felt that the greatest takeaway from the show was the friendship. The pair also said they were most connected to former NFL wide receiver Danny Amendola among the 14 other recruits.
“I think the connection with Danny Amendola was probably the strongest,” Kenworthy joked. Winner—and I’m… gay. But he was the kindest man ever. ”
In keeping with military tradition, celebrities also had combat companions. For Kenworthy, that meant accompanying Amendola everywhere. He added that learning to be in close proximity to people while filming emphasized the need for that level of teamwork.
“When you have no privacy at all, you really bond and you really let your guard down,” he said.
“Special Forces: The World’s Toughest Test” has 12 “recruits” left. The second episode will air on his January 11th.
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Sarah Sicard is senior editor at Military Times. She was previously the digital editor of The Military Times and the editor of Army Times. Her other work can be found in National Defense Magazine, Task & Purpose, and Defense News.
