Floor Is Lava
Floor Is Lava is a 2020 game show created by Megan McGrath and Irad Eyal and hosted by Rutledge Wood. The series premiered on Netflix on June 19, 2020. The game show is based on the children's game of the same name. Contestants navigate an obstacle course in a room filled with 80,000 US gallons (66,614 gallons, 302,833 Litres) of bright red goop that simulates hot lava. Winners receive US$10,000 and a trophy in the form of a lava lamp. The series received renewed focus in December 2020 after being mentioned in the Netflix mockumentary  film "Death to 2020". In April 2021, the series was renewed for a second season. Production. The show is shot at an old disused IKEA in Burbank, California. Prior to finding the location, multiple Hollywood studios turned down the opportunity to host the show due to concern about its messiness. The actual formulation of the lava is a closely guarded secret which only a few crew members know. Showrunner Anthony Carbone has cited Panda Express's Orange chicken as a close approximation. At one point, a proposal to add chemicals to make the lava glow in the dark was scrapped  after the crew discovered that the formulation would render the lava toxic. In order not to break immersion, individual players do not use safety equipment. Instead, "every single object in the game is built and designed from scratch to be able to not only hold up to punishment but protect the contestants. Inspiration for the show includes the "Indiana Jones" and "Night at the Museum" film series. To the latter point, the setting was initially going to be a natural history museum before being changed to a mansion. Video games also were an influence in designing the levels, with the  crew specifically citing "Uncharted" as an example. As such, the courses are designed in a non-linear fashion with the second half of the season acting as a "level two" and upping the challenge of the first half. Release. "Floor Is Lava" was released on June 19, 2020, on Netflix. The show's release coincided with several similar shows such as ABC's "Don't" and Fox's "Ultimate Tag" in what "USA Today" dubbed the "summer of silliness" while "British GQ" compared its "silly sets and close awkwardness" to "the belly-laugh slapstick of Japanese game shows" such as  Takeshi's Castle. In April 2021, the series was renewed for a second season.