Theme parks are still adjusting to the new normal. Universal Orlando Resort and Walt Disney World now have their parks open while the parks in California remain closed. Even where theme parks are open, a great deal has changed. In addition to the various health and safety measures that have been added, many attractions, like parades and shows, are not taking place and one particular show at Universal Studios Orlando might not be coming back even when the rest of them do return.
Fear Factor Live debuted at Universal Orlando in 2005 and while the show it was based on was canceled a year later, the theme park version has somehow remained up until now. The show is currently on hiatus, as are most of the shows of its type, but Orlando Weekly is reporting that there are rumors the show has been officially shut down and will be replaced with something else.
This isn't the first time that Fear Factor Live has been rumored to be on the way out, and it hasn't happened yet, so it's possible these rumors of its demise are premature as well. At the same time, considering the show isn't all that beloved, and the Fear Factor brand doesn't mean much anymore, at some point this show has to go away and so perhaps the day has finally come.
The show was essentially a stage version of the early 2000s NBC series Fear Factor which would pull guests from the audience and give them the opportunity to perform potentially gross or horrifying stunts. Currently, the location used for the show is available to guests as a break area where masks can be removed for those who want to take a few minutes and breath easier.
The survival of Fear Factor Live this long likely has a lot to do with the simple fact that the show probably didn't cost all that much to produce. Any new show would need to be developed and probably would cost more to run on a regular basis. But now, with the show not happening anyway, it's as good a time as any to make changes.
No official announcement has come from Universal Orlando on the tropic, so we won't know for sure what the plan is until then. It's unlikely there will be any official announcement of the end of the old show until there's a new show to announce in its place, and those decisions may not have been made yet.
Not all the shows at Universal Orlando are on hold, the theme park's newest attraction the Bourne Stuntacular just recently opened though the seating is meaning managed to allow for social distancing and even the performers are wearing masks.
