Netflix's The Mole Season 2 Was Filmed In Malaysia: Johor's Forest City, Petronas Twin Towers And More
Johor's infamous US$100 billion (S$135 bil) ghost town has found a new purpose.
If you've seen the latest season of the Netflix reality game show The Mole, you might have noticed a few familiar sights. The 10-episode season is filmed entirely in Malaysia, with players battling it out against recognisable landmarks including Forest City in Johor, the Petronas Twin Tower in Kuala Lumpur and Tioman Island.
The Mole centres around a group of players who must work together to complete a series of challenges and add money to a prize pot. However, amongst them is an unknown player called The Mole who must secretly sabotage the group and prevent them from adding any money to the fund.
Throughout the season, the players must test their intuition and answer quizzes about the Mole’s identity; whoever scores the lowest is eliminated.
According to Malaysian news outlet Says, filming began in July 2023 and lasted six weeks. A Tioman Island resident also told the outlet that one of the show's sets was at Monkey Bay and that players swam at Tekek Beach.
In a post on its Instagram page, event venue Sentul Depot in Kuala Lumpur said that they were "thrilled to host the contestants" and that witnessing the players' dedication was "truly inspiring".
The first batch of episodes dropped on Jun 28 and saw contestants participating in a heist at Forest City where they had to abseil down a 38-storey building and in a game where they had to transport treasure chests off of Tioman Island.
According to host Ari Shapiro, Forest City's condominiums were "a perfect spot for a glamorous holiday home, for those who can afford it. And most of the year, they lie empty.”
Forest City, a mega-housing project built by Country Garden, China's largest property developer, was launched in 2016. The US$100 billion (S$135 bil) complex is located on four artificial islands and is meant to house apartments, a waterpark and hotels.
But the project was delayed when the developer ran into financial problems, turning into a ghost town.
Spoiler alert: They did not uncover the identity of The Mole. Because the final batch of episodes will only drop on Jul 12.
The original version of this story first appeared in CNA Lifestyle.
For more CNA Lifestyle stories, visit https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/.
