Nature shows like David Attenborough's Planet Earth and Nature on PBS are fantastic and eye-opening, helping people to see and appreciate the beauty all around them. But shows like this tend to focus on the most popular and beautiful animals and landscapes. That ends now.
National Geographic has announced a new show called "Underdogs" that focuses on nature's ugly, stupid, and "overlooked heroes," and none other than funnyman Ryan Reynolds is doing the narration.
The show will put a spotlight on "the good, the bad, and the frankly ugly" animals of this dear planet Earth. There are 10 episodes in all, and the series will debut in 2025. A silly teaser has been released--check it out below.
There’s a species of Canadian badger that subsists solely on Saskatoon berry pie. That is of course in no way true but if it were, we’d document them in Underdogs. @NatGeoTV 2025 pic.twitter.com/ZnJfcOes9p
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) January 13, 2023
The full description for Underdogs is delightful and makes me wish the show was coming out sooner than 2025.
"These overlooked superstars come in all sizes, shapes and smells. They're the outcasts and the troublemakers, brash, unsophisticated, flatulent, incontinent, and often unhinged," the description says. "But they're also warriors, team players, and evil geniuses. They're out there 24-7 giving it maximum effort, keeping the natural world in working order for all those showboating polar bears, sharks and gorillas.
"I love nature series and I love making things my kids can actually watch," Reynolds said in a statement (via Deadline). "We're already having a lot of fun trying to bring a new voice to animal docs. We'll deliver a show that is entertaining, surprising, and will do justice to animals usually stuck as supporting cast."
Executive producer Dan Rees added, "Underdogs will make you snort with laughter and possibly even spill your coffee on your lap, but ultimately it puts a new spotlight on some of the weirder and less explored denizens of our planet, and all underpinned by sound science and research."