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HOLLYWOOD (Zap2it.com) Think of Morgan Spurlock's new FX series as "Trading Environments" or perhaps "Life Swap." The award-winning director of the blockbuster documentary "Super Size Me" is bringing "30 Days" to the cable network.
FX has ordered six episodes of "30 Days," which uses "Super Size Me" as its basic unscripted template. In his feature, which earned Spurlock a directing prize at the Sundance Film Festival, the filmmaker spent 30 days eating nothing but McDonald's food. The film chronicled the changes to Spurlock's mind and body.
In "30 Days," individuals will change living environments, leaving their comfort zones to experience worlds that are entirely removed from their own.
"'Super Size Me' dealt with a serious issue in an entertaining way and I wanted to translate that to television by creating a show that would engage a viewer, make them laugh and make them think," Spurlock says. "'30 Days' is going to do just that. Since the show's inceptions, I never imagined it being anywhere but on FX. They were the first network we met with and they are really pushing the boundaries of television and that's what I want this show to do."
Spurlock will host and narrate the series and will also executive produce along with Ben Silverman and Howard Owens of Reveille.
The pilot for "30 Days" takes a Christian insurance salesman from West Virginia (Spurlock's home state) and drops him in with a Muslim family in Dearborn, Mich. The pilot was ordered back in March.
"Ben and Morgan brought us '30 Days' and we knew this was the show we'd been looking for," says FX Entertainment President John Landgraf. "It has been a great challenge and a great pleasure to examine Christian/Muslim relations with these gutsy, talented producers through the pilot process, and we're glad to be able to bite off many more challenges in the coming series.
"Super Size Me" is considered a strong contender to receive at least an Oscar nomination for outstanding documentary.
