Because when you think “Michael Bay” you naturally think “reality,” it was only a matter of time, money, and Bay getting bored of playing smash-‘em-ups with his action figures before the director entered the world of reality television. Bay is currently at work developing One Way Out, an action-adventure competition that sounds like some combination of The Amazing Race, The Mole, and the never-ending car chase sequence in Michael Bay’s head: Players will compete in a game that has “no rules” (but then, what will they break all of ?!) where they are forced to deal with “hostile environments” while uncovering the “secret pasts” of their fellow competitors, all on the way to a “climactic showdown.” Bay issued the following statement, which you should read accompanied by a totally ripping Steve Vai guitar solo:
“For my first television project I wanted to do something that had never been done before, and I believe that One Way Out accomplishes that. Combining unique twists, death-defying challenges, and stunning visuals, we are reinventing the genre, showing just how far people will go when they are stripped of their bare necessities and forced to do whatever it takes to survive.”
Bay is co-producing the show with Top Chef creators Magical Elves, who can hopefully find similarly creative ways to seamlessly integrate product placement—like say, “The Taco Bell Volcano Menu Obligatory Fireball Challenge.” The group is currently shopping the show to networks who aren’t total pussies.