‘Skyscraper Live’: Everything You Need to Know About Alex Honnold’s Taipei 101 Climb on Netflix

Famed climber Alex Honnold is taking on an all-new challenge and doing it live on Netflix for the special, Skyscraper Live, which will see him ascend Taipei 101, one of the world’s tallest buildings.

Needless to say, it’s can’t-miss TV. So, we’re breaking down everything you need to know about the special, ranging from the odds of Honnold reaching the top, facts about the skyscraper itself, and the challenges it poses to climbers, and much more. Scroll down for a closer look and don’t miss Alex Honnold climb Taipei 101 for Netflix’s Skyscraper Live when it streams.

When is Skyscraper Live airing?

Skyscraper Live will stream live on Netflix beginning at 8/7c on Friday, January 23. It’s unclear how long the presentation will last as Honnold’s climb unfolds in real time.

Who is Alex Honnold?

Skyscraper Live will see Alex Honnold take center stage, but for those less acquainted with the famous climber, he’s a 40-year-old American rock climber from California who is best known for free solo climbing, which is ascending cliff faces without ropes or harness gear. Honnold was famously featured as the subject in the Oscar-winning documentary film Free Solo in 2018, in which he climbed the 3,000-foot granite walls of Yosemite’s El Capitan.

Corey Rich for Netflix

What should you know about Taipei 101?

Hailed as one of the world’s tallest buildings, Taipei 101, located in Taipei, Taiwan, is 101 floors high, and its facade is seriously smooth compared to Honnold’s typical terrain. The architecture of the building resembles stacked boxes mimicking bamboo stalks, offering a unique challenge to Honnold as he attempts to travel up the building.

What has been said about Skyscraper Live‘s climb?

Honnold told Netflix’s Tudum, “There’s a balcony every eight floors, so in a lot of ways it feels like a climbing pitch, which is the way most climbers differentiate [the] segments of a climb. This means hard effort for almost 100 feet, then there’s a balcony. Hard effort for almost 100 feet, then [another] balcony. In a lot of ways, that’s what rock climbing feels like. Climb for a certain rope length, then stop.”

Honnold added, “One of the big differences between climbing a building and rock climbing is that there really isn’t a hardest single move. In some ways, it’s less intimidating than the big free solos [on rocks] that I’ve done. The challenge comes from the overall physicality of it. The fatigue that [sets in] over the course of the building is slightly harder to anticipate. I don’t know how it’s gonna feel.”

How will he fare? Tune in to find out, and let us know if you plan to stream the event live in the comments section.

Skyscraper Live, Friday, January 23, 8/7c, Netflix