BELAY DELAY

Netflix Scraps Live Skyscraper Stunt at Last Minute

The streaming giant’s international spectacle has been delayed due to safety concerns.

Champion rock climber Alex Honnold has been told he will have to wait to climb one of the tallest skyscrapers in the world without any safety gear—due to safety concerns. The 40-year-old Californian was scheduled to ascend Asia’s tallest building, Taipei 101, without ropes or a harness, for Netflix’s Skyscraper Live event on Friday. However, 30 minutes before the live event was set to begin, it was postponed until Saturday, due to dangerously rainy conditions. “We’re confident we’re gonna have a great show here—we just need the weather to be kind,” said Grant Mansfield, CEO of Plimsoll Productions, who is producing the event. “That building is very climbable when it’s dry, but when it’s wet, it just becomes so slippery. Alex couldn’t possibly climb it wet—even with ropes.” Honnold starred in the Oscar-winning 2018 documentary Free Solo, which captured his journey to become the first person to free solo climb the 3,000-foot El Capitan wall in Yosemite National Park. Honnold has insisted that the 1,667-foot Taipei 101 skyscraper will be no different from his regular feats—but Netflix will be streaming the event with a 10-second delay, just in case.