Alex Honnold, one of the world’s most famous rock climbers, told The Jay Shetty Podcast he expects his next climb to sit “within my comfort zone,” and that his focus is less on the possibility of death than on preparation. The 40-year-old plans to free solo the façade of Taipei 101 on Saturday morning (January 24), local time — climbing alone and without any safety gear, weather permitting — and Netflix intends to stream the attempt live.
The trailer for the broadcast highlights Honnold’s relationship with fear. He reflects that fear has become an ever-present part of climbing and acknowledges there are limits to control: sometimes “things just happen,” and a fall can be fatal.
That bluntness has not calmed critics. Media ethicist Claudia Paganini of the University of Innsbruck told DW the live event shifts media coverage from documenting risk to actively producing a spectacle that leverages life-threatening danger for attention and revenue. She warned the broadcast risks normalizing dangerous behavior, encouraging imitation—especially among young viewers—and transfers some moral responsibility for the stunt from the athlete to the outlet airing it. Paganini also argued that live transmission removes editorial safeguards that can contextualize events or protect audiences if tragedy occurs.
Honnold’s résumé includes milestone achievements: in 2017 he became the first person to free solo the 900‑meter El Capitan “Freerider” route in Yosemite, completing the ascent in about four hours. That climb was featured in the 2019 documentary Free Solo, which presented a finished climb with a safe ending. A live stream, by contrast, offers no editorial distance or assurance of a positive outcome.
Responses from the climbing community have been muted. Alexander Huber told DW the Taipei 101 attempt is unlikely to advance understanding of the sport and is of limited relevance to climbers, even if Honnold has every right to attempt it. Since El Capitan, Honnold has become one of climbing’s top earners and donates roughly a third of his income to the Honnold Foundation, which supports private solar-energy projects worldwide. Netflix’s payment for this event has not been disclosed.
Taipei 101, completed in 2004 and standing 508 meters tall, is composed of repeated overhanging segments that evoke a pagoda; its exterior is largely glass and aluminum. French urban climber Alain Robert — the so‑called “French Spiderman” — climbed the tower in 2004 with a rope secured from above as part of a government-promoted stunt. Robert, who has scaled some 200 building facades (often without permission), says route memory, focus and using ledges to pause are key, and he expects Honnold to manage the climb easily.
Live-streamed climbing has real harms for audiences when things go wrong. In October, 23‑year‑old Balin Miller fell to his death on El Capitan during a live stream while rappelling; viewers described the experience as traumatic. Paganini stressed that live coverage forecloses opportunities to review and contextualize an incident and to protect grieving families and viewers.
Honnold, married with two young daughters, started climbing early and says risk management has always been central to his approach. He maintains parenthood has not changed his personal attitude toward risk and has spoken of a long-term vision of growing old with family around him.
This story was originally published in German. Edited by Jonathan Harding.