Discovery Pairs Up Survivalist Series 'Naked and Afraid' and 'Darkness' Aug. 2 and 3

Discovery has a new season of Naked and Afraid starting July 30. In a Shark Week premiere, two survivalists find themselves stuck in the middle of the ocean, on a raft, where their challenges include sharks and jellyfish. Shark Week starts July 23.

The Naked and Afraid season finale will see YouTube star Cory Williams and pro surfer Anastasia Ashley doing their best to survive.  

The series then moves on to what Discovery calls “a special two-night event” on Wednesday, Aug. 2, and Thursday, Aug. 3, with new episodes of Naked and Afraid leading in to new survival show Darkness at 10 p.m. Inspired by sensory-deprivation training by NASA and Special Forces, Darkness is “a groundbreaking next-generation challenge of mental and physical survival,” says Discovery. It sees three survivalists trapped inside caves, abandoned mines and underground labyrinths for up to six days as they work to survive.  

Darkness is produced by Electus. For Electus, executive producers are Christopher Grant, Drew Buckley, Rob Buchta and Max Levenson. For Discovery Channel, Joseph Boyle is executive producer.

Naked and Afraid is produced by Renegade 83. David Garfinkle, Jay Renfroe, Steve Rankin and Mathilde Bittner are executive producers, along with Discovery’s Boyle and Denise Contis.

Michael Malone

Michael Malone, senior content producer at B+C/Multichannel News, covers network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television. He hosts the podcasts Busted Pilot, about what’s new in television, and Series Business, a chat with the creator of a new program, and writes the column “The Watchman.” He joined B+C in 2005. His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy and New York magazine.