Television series
Holey Moley
Golf's silliest cousin, played on a course engineered by people who clearly hated golf. Amateur mini-golfers attempt Wipeout-scale obstacles — windmills the size of houses, water hazards with trapdoors — while Steph Curry and a commentary booth crack wise over every faceplant. It's dumb, cheerful, family-friendly slapstick with genuine athletic peril, and it knows exactly what it is.
If you liked this
Wipeout2008
The blueprint for Holey Moley's whole vibe: ordinary people, absurd obstacles, gleeful commentary mocking every wipeout. If you like watching people fail spectacularly and safely, this is the mothership.
But The joke is the format, and the format doesn't evolve much across seasons — one binge is plenty.
American Ninja Warrior2009
Same obstacle-course DNA but played dead straight — genuine elite athletes, real stakes, no comic commentary undercutting the effort. Great if you want the physical spectacle without the goofiness.
But It takes itself seriously where Holey Moley doesn't, so the tonal shift might feel like a letdown if you came for laughs.
Gina Brillon: The Floor Is Lava2020no page yet
Netflix's take on childhood-game-as-adult-obstacle-course, with the same giddy production-value silliness and contestants hurling themselves at foam pits for glory and cash.
But Less structured competition, more chaotic vibes — some episodes coast on spectacle rather than tension.
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Takeshi's Castle1986
This is where Wipeout, and therefore Holey Moley, actually came from — the same format of humiliating obstacle courses and delighted spectatorship, just decades earlier and in Japanese.
The actual Japanese progenitor of this entire genre — contestants storm a giant castle through absurd physical gauntlets while a beloved actor-director watches, mostly unimpressed. Gloriously deadpan, genuinely inventive obstacles.
But Original Japanese version has no English commentary; most Western viewers know it only through the dubbed-and-redubbed MXC version, which changes the tone entirely.
More like this (6)
Cannonball2020no page yet
A giant water-slide obstacle course with the same friendly chaos and celebrity hosts cracking jokes at contestants' expense — basically Holey Moley's soggier sibling.
But Water slides get repetitive fast, and the format has less variety than the golf-themed madness of Holey Moley.
Fear Factor2001
Trades mini-golf whimsy for gross-out physical stunts, but the core pleasure — watching regular people attempt ridiculous physical feats for money — is identical.
But Much grosser and meaner-spirited than Holey Moley; the stunts lean disgusting rather than silly.
American Gladiators2008
Regular contestants going up against imposing, costumed pro athletes in physical challenges — bombastic, over-the-top, and gloriously earnest 80s-throwback energy.
But More muscle-bound spectacle than comedy, and the format feels dated even in its revival form.
Minute to Win It2010no page yet
Swaps obstacle courses for absurd household-object challenges, but keeps the same family-friendly, anyone-could-try-this game show cheer and big-money stakes.
But No physical peril or slapstick falls — it's tamer and less visually spectacular than Holey Moley.
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters2007
Strips away the slapstick and studio gloss to show what actually drives someone to publicly humiliate themselves chasing a silly title — the human engine underneath every goofy competition show.
A documentary about grown men obsessively chasing a Donkey Kong high score record — it's the same energy as Holey Moley's contestants, ordinary people risking dignity for a niche, slightly ridiculous glory.
But It's a real documentary with real stakes and genuine pettiness — no laugh track, no safety net, occasionally uncomfortable to watch.
Squid Game2021
Same bones — regular people, absurd oversized games, elimination rounds, a crowd watching people fail — but played as tragedy instead of comedy, revealing what's actually unsettling about turning humiliation into spectacle.
Childhood playground games rebuilt as elimination challenges for desperate contestants — the structural cousin of Holey Moley's course design, just with mortal stakes instead of a giant novelty check.
But Genuinely violent and bleak; if you want Holey Moley's cheerful mood, this will be a jarring, upsetting swerve.
People
Cast
Writing
- Chris CulvenorCreator
Production
- John-Liam StapletonCo-Executive Producer
- Kate ShelbournCo-Executive Producer
- Charles WachterExecutive Producer
- Chris CulvenorExecutive Producer
- Erick PeytonExecutive Producer
- Jeron SmithExecutive Producer
- Michael O'SullivanExecutive Producer
- Paul FranklinExecutive Producer
- Stephen CurryExecutive Producer
- Wes DeningExecutive Producer
Recommended by
American Gladiators, Wipeout, Supermarket Sweep, American Ninja Warrior, Ellen's Game of Games, The Titan Games, American Gladiators