Will Smith will traverse some of the wildest corners of the world in a new show for National Geographic.
The West Philly native is the host of the seven-part travel series "Pole to Pole," debuting in January. With the guidance of experts, Smith embarks on adventures across all seven continents, starting in the icefields of the South Pole and ending on the frigid waters of the North Pole. The story unfolds over 100 days, though the series itself has been in the works for five years.
MORE:Philly native Sheinelle Jones named Jenna Bush Hager's permanent co-host for final hour of NBC's 'Today' show
"Pole to Pole" also takes Smith through the Amazon, Himalayas, Pacific Islands and Kalahari Desert. Each destination presents extreme challenges in the name of science. In Bhutan, he climbs to a village with a 13,000-foot altitude. In the Arctic, he dives under the ice to retrieve ecological samples.In Ecuador, hecatches a green anaconda and collects one of its scales to measure pollutants in the water. In another part of the rainforest, herappels into a cave network to milk a tarantula for its venom, which has numerousmedicalapplications. The latter is an especially big deal for the actor, who's long been scared of spiders.
Scientists, linguists, Indigenous people and explorers steer Smith through each part of the journey. "Pole to Pole" takes up "life's biggest questions," exploring what makes people happy and how communities can thrive in even the harshest environments.
"Looking around, there's no cars, no phones, no sounds, only the noise that you're making," Smith says in a trailer for the series. "It's like, I can be me. Somebody who's actually flawed and scared.
"Traveling pole to pole has not only changed the way I see our planet, it's changed the way I see myself."
The docuseries will premiere on National Geographic on Jan. 13 and stream the following day on Hulu and Disney+. Check out the trailer below:
Follow Kristin & PhillyVoice on Twitter: @kristin_hunt | @thePhillyVoice
Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice
Have a news tip? Let us know.