Their names are Nick Radner, Justin Court, Corey Johnon, Jordan Williams, Seth Lueker, Amber Asay, Jill Ashock, Paul Preece, Andrea Hilderbrand, Dawn Nelson, Javier Colon, Joel Hungate, Angie Esparza, Lee Ettinger, Timothy Spears and Brian Kahrs.
These
"sixteen lone survival wolves"
aged 25 to 59 were challenged to survive as long as possible in the freezing cold of Chichagot Island, on the east coast of Alaska, with only the obligation to be part of of a team of at least two people.
"To win and to survive, each candidate is ready for anything, whatever the cost
," announces the voiceover in the introduction.
At the end of the day, a gain of one million dollars to share for the winning team.
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The creators of
"Outlast: at the end of ourselves"
started from the principle that, since time immemorial, humans owe their evolution and their existence to their ability to live well in community.
By bringing together candidates accustomed to advancing alone and being their own boss, the production forced them to do violence to advance in a game with minimalist rules.
Initially, four teams of four adventurers were formed (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta) with, for each, a kit of equipment (a fire stone, an axe, a knife, a tarp, a woolen blanket, a flashlight, two iron mugs, a bow with eight arrows, a map of the area, bear spray, and a medical kit) and four separate geographical areas to occupy around the Neka River.
The sixteen candidates of “Outlast: at the end of ourselves” Netflix
Filming took place during the fall of 2021 on the edge of this capricious and icy arm of water whose level is constantly changing according to the tides.
During the 36 days of adventure, told in eight episodes, the temperatures fluctuated between 5 and minus 5°C with omnipresent humidity and numerous bad weather conditions of rain and then snow.
To feed, the candidates mainly drew their resources from the Neka River, from small shells collected at low tide to giant crabs trapped in traps later made available to them.
And for the most skilled at archery, small rodents could be captured.
To drink, they had to find the safest possible tapping point before boiling their water to make it drinkable.
The first episodes showing the
“If they had the chance, they would slit our throats”
Vomiting, exhaustion, fever or even malaise got the better of the first candidates of “Outlast”.
The game took a very bad turn after 15 days of survival when participants made the decision to weaken their opponents to cause them to abandon.
In a particularly diabolical way, the members of the Alpha team agreed to go and loot the camp of the Delta team by stealing their sleeping bags, essential to protect themselves from the cold at night.
A totally immoral act that the production will let happen, exposing two candidates to the risk of serious hypothermia.
"I don't want to be part of this circus and this ambient cruelty.
It's an act of protest."
, announces a candidate before giving up.
Two others will make the same decision seeing the disruptive team continue their abuses.
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“If they had the chance, they would slit our throats,
” testified at the time Javier Colon, one of the most successful adventurers, forced to give up in the face of threats and acts of looting from the Alpha trio.
The 42-year-old compared the Netflix game to
William Golding's novel
Her Majesty of the Flies where children abandoned on a desert island create a new social order disrupted by violence.
"It wasn't some fantasy land where all the rules go away, robbery and mugging are illegal
," he told
TV
Guide
.
Javier Colon in “Outlast: At the End of Ourselves” Netflix
Surprised by the turn of events, the producers preferred to let things happen rather than intervene.
The mastermind of the Alpha Team gang, Jill Ashock, assures on her social networks that no one has ever been endangered during the game and that the show only shows a tiny part of what they have. lived.
She states that the idea to steal the Delta team's sleeping bags came from teammate Justin Court.
In the momentum of this theft, she says she took the same initiative with her friend Amber Asay to go and loot the camp of Javier Colon.
“Jill is a pathological liar and the most dangerous person on the show
, testifies the latter.
Justin was manipulated and Amber was just a follower.
»
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After these events which completely distorted the course of the adventure and which could have turned into a tragedy, the result and the outcome of the game no longer had much interest.
Listening to viewers' feedback, the producers have promised to make changes to their rules if Netflix bothers to order a second season.
