Fox Entertainment Global opens Malaysia hub to expand Extracted worldwide

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MUMBAI: Fox Entertainment Global is taking survival television into the wild and giving international producers a ready-made base to do the same. The company is launching its first international production hub in Malaysia to help take its survival competition format Extracted to audiences worldwide, with the facility offering permanent sets, local crews and access to tax incentives.

The announcement comes as sales executives prepare to pitch the format to buyers at MIPCOM in Cannes. Located in the wilderness of Lake Kenyir, the turnkey hub is designed to accommodate multiple international versions of the show, with Fox highlighting its extensive filming infrastructure including, as the company puts it, “more cameras than the Super Bowl”.

The setting brings its own dose of danger, with the surrounding wilderness home to jaguars and pythons. For producers looking to recreate the format, the facility offers a ready-to-use production base rather than requiring each version to build its operation from scratch.

Launched last year, Extracted has attracted 45 million viewers across its first two seasons and has already been commissioned for a third. Executive-produced by Sylvester Stallone and filmed in British Columbia, the series puts ordinary people in an unforgiving wilderness with no training, no supplies and no contact with the outside world.

While contestants battle the elements, their loved ones watch from a remote headquarters and decide whether they should continue or press the ever-present “EXTRACT” button. That decision ends the contestant’s journey and their family’s chance at the grand prize, turning survival into a test of both endurance and family resolve.

Season two concluded in April, with RJ Reynolds, a project manager from Texas, emerging as the winner. The format’s mix of wilderness challenges, family dynamics and high-stakes decisions is now the proposition Fox hopes to sell to international broadcasters and producers.

Fox Entertainment Global president Prentiss Fraser said the Malaysian facility was intended to make international adaptations easier to produce while retaining the scale and intensity of the original format.

“Extracted has all the ingredients of a universally resonant format: a powerful premise, stunning visuals, unforgettable family dynamics, and incredibly high stakes,” Fraser said. She added that the infrastructure would allow licensees to produce their own versions more efficiently, supported by local expertise and production facilities.

The Malaysia operation is Fox’s first international hub, although the company already has a dedicated Next Level Chef hub in Ireland for the Gordon Ramsay series. The new facility marks a further step in its strategy to make established formats easier to adapt for different markets.

With MIPCOM bringing international buyers to Cannes, Fox is putting Extracted forward as a format that can travel without every production having to start from the ground up. The company is also drawing attention to its Baywatch reboot during the market, as it looks to build interest in its wider slate.

For Extracted, the next test is whether its wilderness drama can thrive beyond its original setting with Malaysia offering the infrastructure to take the survival game global.