“Skyscraper Live” key art featuring Alex Honnold.
Netflix
Skyscraper Live, Netflix’s coverage of free solo climber Alex Honnold scaling the Taipei 101, is streaming live on the platform tonight.
At 1,667 feet tall, the Taipei 101 skyscraper is one of the tallest buildings in the world, and Honnold will be climbing it without the use of ropes or safety nets. The name of the skyscraper specifically refers to height of the building — which is made of steel, glass and concrete — because it contains 101 floors.
Built in Taipei, Taiwan, in 2004, the building, formerly known as Taipei World Financial Center, was the tallest building in the world from the time it opened until 2009.
Skyscraper Live, which is billed as a two-hour event, will begin streaming live on Netflix at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Friday.
For viewers who don’t subscribe to Netflix, the streaming platform has two packages where the service can be supported on two devices: The ad-based package for $7.99 per month and the ad-free package is $17.99 per month. An ad-free HD package that supports four devices is also available for $24.99 per month.
A free solo rock climber of 30 years, Honnold has actually faced challenges of even greater heights than the Taipei 101, like when he ascended the 3,000-foot granite walls of Yosemite’s El Capitan. The climb was chronicled in the 2019 Oscar-winning documentary feature Free Solo.
The Taipei 101 Is The First Skyscraper Alex Honnold Will Climb
Alex Honnold told Netflix’s Tudum in an article published on the platform last month that he’s not the first climber to take on the Taipei 101, but he’ll be the first to do it free solo.
“Taipei 101, as part of its opening ceremony, was climbed by a French climber named Alain Robert with ropes, and he climbed it over four hours — he had just broken his arm or something crazy,” Honnold told Tudum. “He was a great climber in his time; he’s really a skilled soloist, and he’s climbed a lot of buildings around the world.”
While Honnold admitted that he wasn’t certain of the record, he added in the Tudum interview, “I think, if I do this, it’ll be the biggest urban free solo ever. I think it’s the tallest building that’s been climbed. I’m not 100% sure, but I think so. I don’t know.”
Alex Honnold will climb the Tapei 101 in Taiwan in a live Netflix event.
Netflix
Whatever the case may be, the Skyscraper Live climb will mark a first for the iconic free solo rock climber.
“I think the thing that’s most uncertain to me is the psychological state — how’s it going to feel? I’ve never climbed a skyscraper before,” Honnold told Tudum.
As for his state of mind during the climb, Honnold added for the publication, “I’m sure I’ll feel a little nervous at the bottom, just because it’s something totally new and I don’t know how it’s going to feel. I’ve spent 30 years climbing rock faces; this is going to be my first big handmade structure, so I’m sure it’ll feel a little different.”
Skyscraper Live begins streaming live on Netflix at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Friday.