Disney+ enters the reality competition ring with The Quest

The Walt Disney Company’s streaming service, Disney+, has entered the reality competition ring with a new show titled The Quest. The service, launched in 2019, currently has nearly 130 million subscribers. While Disney+ has become popular for its original, fictionalized series — most notably, The Mandalorian and Marvel Cinematic shows like WandaVision and Moon Knight — it is no stranger to reality shows. Its current reality fare includes America’s Funniest Home Videos, Life Below Zero, and Pixar in Real Life, so a reality competition show does not seem so farfetched.

What is Disney+’s The Quest?

The Quest is described as a fantasy, immersive reality competition show that should fit in with Disney+’s other high-concept, fantastic shows, and movies. The show’s website claims it is a “groundbreaking” and “hybrid competition series” that puts eight real-life teenagers (Paladins) into the fantastic, fictional world of Everealm, where they must save a Kingdom by fulfilling an ancient prophecy.”

The Quest — all of eight episodes were released on Disney+ on May 11 — initially aired in 2014 on ABC, and at the time, featured adult contestants. Each episode begins with the narrator asking, “What if you could be a real hero in a fantastical world?” and then proceeds to show the teenage contestants’ audition tapes. The eight contestants, aged 13 to 16, filmed their episodes from January to March of 2021, which was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The series is executive-produced by The Lord of the Rings’ Mark Ordesky and David Collins, Elise Doganieri, Rob Eric, Jane Fleming, Bertram van Munster, and Michael Williams. Eric and Williams said that they “were very focused on the aesthetic of the show,” and Fleming and Ordesky call The Quest “an exciting new form of storytelling.”

What do audiences and critics think of The Quest?

Thus far, reactions to The Quest have been fairly varied. Some viewers have said that this updated second season is better than the first and that everything has been “elevated.” However, some viewers claim that they’re unable to tell whether the show is trying to be a fantasy series or a reality competition. The target demographic is probably teenagers interested in fantasy, and adults who tune into the series may not be as interested. Other viewers have said that the show is too staged, the cast is given too much direction, and the episodes are “heavily scripted.” At the moment, the show has only two reviews on Rotten Tomatoes — both of which are positive — so it’s hard to know if it will be renewed.