A documentary series about MTV’s competition series, The Challenge, recently premiered on the network with numbers revealing low ratings and viewership.
The Challenge: Untold History features interviews and highlights from past and present cast members as well as other individuals associated with the show.
Among them are popular cast members such as Johnny Bananas, Mark Long, Darrell Taylor, Veronica Portillo, Amanda Garcia, and host TJ Lavin.
Celebrities are also included throughout the documentary series, with Kim Kardashian’s appearance surprising fans when they saw her in a teaser trailer.
While the docu-series brings fans an inside look at the creation and evolution of the popular franchise, it seems not many individuals were checking it out when it arrived live on MTV.
It arrived on the heels of CBS’ spinoff, The Challenge: USA, which did well, albeit on network television. The docu-series also comes just ahead of the newest season of MTV’s show called The Challenge: Ride or Dies.
The Challenge documentary records low viewership
The Challenge: Untold History, a three-part documentary series, officially premiered on Wednesday, September 21. The premiere arrived at 8/7c on MTV and included the first two episodes.
Based on data from Showbuzz Daily, the docu-series premiere recorded a disappointing 0.11 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, and only 218,000 viewers were watching.
It ranked at No. 30 amongst Wednesday’s cable telecasts, getting edged out by offerings from CNN, Lifetime, and MSNBC in the same time slot.
Taking the top spot amongst cable programs was All Elite Wrestling, with their Wednesday presentation of AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam, an event held at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York City.
Bravo’s reality TV show, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, finished second with a strong 0.45 rating and over 1.12 million viewers.
The disappointing numbers arrive just a week after The Challenge wrapped up the first season of a CBS spinoff show called The Challenge: All Stars, which featured only competitors from CBS reality TV shows.
The CBS spinoff’s finale had a 0.36 rating and over 1.76 million viewers watching. Most episodes during the 11-episode season had at least 2 million viewers.
The Challenge to premiere 38th MTV season
MTV’s documentary series, The Challenge: Untold History, will feature four more episodes. The first two air on Wednesday, September 28, starting at 8/7c. The final two episodes in the series arrive on Wednesday, October 5, beginning at 8/7c on MTV.
On October 12, MTV will premiere its newest season of the competition series, called The Challenge: Ride or Dies, at 8/7c. The show will feature rookies and season vets in the cast, including Nurys Mateo, Nelson Thomas, Bananas, Nany Gonzalez, Devin Walker, Tori Deal, Laurel Stucky, and Chauncey Palmer.
The Ride or Dies theme features partners who share a strong bond, whether they’re husband and wife, boyfriend and girlfriend, friends, or family members. A few exes might also be involved in the show, making things extra interesting.
MTV’s hoping for Season 38 to be more successful than its predecessor. Season 37, known as Spies, Lies & Allies, generally had disappointing ratings and viewership numbers. According to The Challenge Fandom Wiki, the top episode was the show’s finale, which recorded 720,000 viewers.
The Challenge: Untold History is available on Paramount Plus. The Challenge: Ride or Dies premieres Wednesday, October 12 at 8/7c on MTV.
Episodes of The Challenge are now streaming on Paramount+. Try it FREE!
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