The popular series American Gladiators enthralled audiences from 1989 to 1996. On the show, amateur athletes competed against each other and professional “gladiators” for cash prizes and bragging rights. The show was so popular that many international spin-offs were created, and it was even rebooted in 2008.
The American Gladiators Documentary under ESPN’s "30 for 30" banner is exposing the dark side of this popular competition show. Many of the gladiators who frequently appeared on the show suffered from horrific injuries, with little regard from the executives in charge who should have been looking out for their safety and well-being.
Big Deron “Malibu” McBee got injured on his very first day on the job as a gladiator. He participated in a competition known as the “Human Cannonball.” He stood on a platform while an amateur contestant would try to swing from a rope and knock him off. Deron was protected only by minimal football pads. What could go wrong?
The force of the collision caused Deron’s head to split open. He suffered a horrible concussion and had to undergo surgery to realign his forehead. No one from the show seemed to think this was a big deal.
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“None of the producers or directors came up and talked to me about it. Nobody wanted to say what happened, and it was like they wanted to sweep it under the rug,” Deron explained. His doctor was very concerned about his participation in the series.
“My doctor said, 'Listen, you sustain one more hit like you got, you’re going to be in a wheelchair paralyzed because your brain is slowing,'” Deron recalled. But, “I begged him to let me go back to work.”
Michael “Gemini” Horton, another former gladiator, echoes Deron’s sentiments about the higher-ups not caring about their injuries. “They always wanted impact. ‘You gotta hit the guy.’ That’s what sells,” he said. “They were pushing for more. But the suits did not understand what they were asking for.”
Brian Gadinsky, a producer on the series, even admits to it outright. “Many of these games were not safe for humans to play,” he said. “There was no regulation, we didn’t have OSHA coming in and checking off the safety of the games. So the training room was like a MASH unit. It was like wartime.”
William “Thunder” Smith died shortly after filming this documentary in 2021. He was severely injured while competing in “Hang Tough.” This was when two gladiators hung from gymnastic rings and fought each other. William fell onto the inflatable safety mats below, but he claims they were not properly filled. This caused seven herniated disks in his back and set him on a course to become addicted to painkillers.
“Today, I’m in a lot of pain, and I will be forever,” William explained. “I have a lot of regrets.”
The documentary is broken up into two parts. Part one premiered on Tuesday, May 30, at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Part two premiered on Wednesday, May 31, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN. It is available to stream on ESPN +.
