One of the keys to Netflix’s long-term success has been that it offers a wide-ranging lineup of viewing options. However, that doesn’t mean that it is always a good thing when new content is added to the company’s media library. An upcoming special is such a risky move that it could do irreparable harm to Netflix’s brand if something goes wrong.
Netflix’s ‘Skyscraper Live’ Event Raises Alarming Questions About Risk and Responsibility
In 2026, Netflix will be making a long list of movies, TV shows, and specials available to its users. On January 23, one of those new additions will premiere when Netflix’s live event featuring Alex Honnold, Skyscraper Live, is broadcast on the streaming service. As an article on Netflix’s website states, the special will focus on the famous free solo climber, Honnold, 40, attempting to ascend Taipei 101, without any ropes or safety nets. The special’s titular skyscraper stands at 1,667 feet, features 101 floors, and is one of the tallest buildings in the world.
Honnold rose to international fame as a result of being the focus of the documentaryFree Solo, in which he was filmed climbing El Capitan by himself in the same fashion. Since he is such a skilled climber, it seems very likely that Skyscraper Live will end with a moment of triumph. However, the truth is that the climb could end horribly, and it is that possibility that will attract many viewers, even though they wouldn’t want to see that happen.
If things go wrong during the event, it is hard to imagine how Netflix could possibly walk away from that unscathed. After all, the company will have been responsible for airing footage of an event that became a catastrophe. Even though Skyscraper Live is promoted as airing in real time, there will almost certainly be some delay in case things go awry. Still, Netflix is risking forever being associated with broadcasting a tragedy to millions if disaster strikes.
In 1996, someone who appeared on The Jenny Jones Showkilled another one of that episode’s guests, as an In Magazine article chronicles. Even though the daytime talk show aired from 1991 to 2003, that incident is now the main thing that it and Jones are remembered for. Similarly, Skyscraper Live could become a scandal that defines Netflix in a way that could completely overshadow any of the implications that come with the potential Warner Bros. deal.
Alex Honnold Has a Fascinating Take on the Danger His ‘Skyscraper Live’ Special Will Put Him In
For someone to take the kinds of risks that Alex Honnold does when he climbs thousands of feet without any gear to keep him safe, it certainly seems like they must have a unique perspective. When the famed climber was interviewed about his upcoming Netflix special, his take on why people will watch would likely surprise many observers. In January 2026, Honnold told CNN that the danger he will be in during Skyscraper Live is the whole appeal of the special. “They’re like, ‘But how do we make it safe?’ And you’re like, ‘Well, the whole point is that it’s fundamentally not safe.’”
While he recognizes that people will watch because of the inherent peril, Honnold also stated that he believed everything will work out. “I feel like it’s going to be fine.” He also told the outlet that he thinks it will be a harmless event because of how prepared he is to succeed. “I feel that it is very safe, and it’s made safe through preparation and through training and through rehearsal. Basically, you just can’t make it safe in a way that, like, a network executive wants you to.”
While discussing how big of a risk the climb will be, Honnold claimed that he could survive even if he loses grip, though his statement makes it clear that he knows death is an option. “If something happens, I would die — though actually, on this particular building, that’s not even totally true because there are balconies every few floors. The geometry of the building, the shape of the building is such that you actually could fall in tons of places and not actually die, which makes it in some ways safer than a lot of rock-climbing objectives.”
In a light-hearted and joking exchange, Honnold told CNN that he didn’t think climbing the building would dominate his legacy, unless it leads to his untimely demise. “It’s not gonna be the one climb that I define myself by. I don’t think. Unless I fall off. You just can’t help but crack some jokes.”
