PASADENA, Calif. — With the Mister Rogers documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” failing to secure an Oscar nomination, the odds of the gripping “Free Solo” winning at the Academy Awards on Feb. 24 have likely increased (its competition includes “RBG,” a biography of Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg).
Thriller “Free Solo,” chronicling rock climber Alex Honnold’s ascent of Yosemite’s 3,200-foot El Capitan without a rope, will premiere commercial-free on National Geographic at 9 p.m. March 3 (it’s available via digital streaming platforms iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video and Vudu on Feb. 12).
The film chronicles Mr. Honnold’s two years of training for the climb, his relationship with girlfriend Sanni McCandless and the effect of his quest on the filmmakers documenting his ascent.
“It was really hard on me,” said cinematographer Mikey Schaefer. “I don’t think I was back to my normal state until months afterward. Just being so close to [Alex] and knowing he could perish in front of your eyes and having to be mentally prepared for that moment, it’s mentally draining.”
Mr. Honnold said his free solo climb of El Capitan was not on a bucket list. The rock just grabbed his imagination. As he was preparing, he figured odds were highest that he would either choose not to do the climb or he would succeed.
Falling to his death seemed “extremely low,” but he did consider it.
“I have a healthy relationship with mortality,” he said. “I accept that we’re all going to die at some point. I’d like to die on my own terms doing the thing I care about. But I don’t look at this as rolling the dice. If I did I wouldn’t take two years to practice and prepare. … That said, I was willing to take certain risks because it meant enough to me.”
Mr. Honnold, who currently has no future extremely risky climbs planned, said he hopes those who see the film take away a simple message: “Make intentional choices … about what they want to do and how they want to spend their time.
“What’s of value. I think that’s at the heart of the film, choosing the way you want to live your life.”
Fox’s startup mentality
The Fox network is probably just weeks away from its de-coupling from its sister-studio, 20th Century Fox, which is being purchased by Walt Disney Co. along with FX and National Geographic. And with that sale a new era for the broadcaster will begin.
The resulting “New Fox,” as it has been called since the Disney deal was announced, will be re-christened Fox Entertainment, which recently appointed Charlie Collier, formerly of AMC, as its CEO.
After the Disney deal was announced in late 2017, the image of the new Fox was one with limited scripted programming and more sports. And while Fox did scoop up Thursday night NFL rights and will bring a live WWE telecast to Fridays in the fall, Fox executives continue to develop new scripted programming.
Mr. Collier mostly dodged reporters’ questions, offering no word on renewals for “Empire” or “The Orville,” which was renewed in November 2017 for its current second season due to the special effects work required. Mr. Collier declined to offer updates on the possible revival of “24.”
Channel surfing
Bentley Weiner, a Squirrel Hill native and HBO Sports vice president of production, directed HBO’s feature-length documentary “The Many Lives of Nick Buconiconti” (10 p.m. Tuesday), the life story of the 78-year-old NFL Hall of Famer who has also been a lawyer, sports agent and philanthropist and is now nearly immobile due to neurological problems, including warning signs of CTE.
Post-Gazette TV writer Rob Owen is attending the Television Critics Association winter press tour. Follow RobOwenTV at Twitter or Facebook. You can reach him at 412-263-2582 or rowen@post-gazette.com.
First Published: February 8, 2019, 7:17 p.m.
