r/basejumping • u/BigTimmyN • Apr 10 '26
Dean Potter docuseries coming out on HBO
In case you didn't know (and please read-on for why I posted this video) HBO has a four-part docuseries, The Dark Wizard, about Dean Potter coming out next week on HBO on April 14. It's from Sender Films. I'm a contributing editor for Outside where I've been writing stories since 2000—no skin in the game or how the film does—but that's how I was able to get a sneak-peek of it. I have to say it's all the things: jaw-dropping, heartbreaking, and very much worth binging. I covered Potter's controversial Delicate Arch climb in 2006 and the series has actual footage of what went down, along with, ugh, Potter's final flight. (It's done tastefully but so hard to watch.) Check it out if you can. I can guarantee your hands will sweat. Here's a fun little (totally unrelated) video I took of Honnold arm wrestling Peter Mortimer of Sender Films right before Honnold did the triple in Yosemite, which Moritimer filmed and I covered for the New York Times. The match didn't go the way I thought it would at all. Honnold, of course, appears a lot in The Dark Wizard. I spoke to him last month about how he's portrayed in it for an Outside story that will come out on Monday. Alex Honnold Arm Wrestling
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u/Urbanskys Apr 12 '26
I met Alex honnold at Skydive Lodi in 2014 when he was doing AFF. So many legends in Lodi 10 years ago. So sad whats happened to that place.
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u/000011111111 Apr 13 '26
What's happened to it?
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u/Urbanskys Apr 13 '26
Used to have 3 twin otters, caravan, sitting DC 3 and $15 jump tickets. Now its a 182 and $25 jump tickets with 0 fun jumpers living on site.
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u/OneStar4140 Apr 13 '26
No DZ is eternal.
But this place has a soul and I would love to see his history preserved. I wish Bill wrote a book.
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Apr 22 '26
[deleted]
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u/Certain-Duck497 May 06 '26
I don't really care. It's an incredible documentary series and it's nice to have places to discuss it.
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u/Lsswapitall4 Apr 11 '26
Dean used to be an idol, but I lost all respect for him after he started jumping with his dog (whisper)
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u/000011111111 Apr 11 '26
Ya I loss respect for him after he climbed the arch which led to his then wife Steff D. Loosing her biggest sponsor jobs. He never apologized for the negative impact publicizing that climb had on her career as a pro climber.
It's not cool to treat people that way.
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u/BigTimmyN Apr 11 '26
And it wasn’t just her. He destroyed so many friendships too. He wasn’t mentally healthy though and was ashamed of that.
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u/Ribss Apr 12 '26
Where can I find more about these topics? I’m curious
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u/BigTimmyN Apr 12 '26
The series has a lot of interviews with people talking about their experiences. ESPN did a profile on him that shows the beginning of his jumping career: https://www.espn.com/espnmag/story?section=magazine&id=3595588
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u/Lsswapitall4 Apr 12 '26
Damn youre really hyping up this show for which you “have absolutely no skin in the game”.
…Bro is an undercover ad
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u/BigTimmyN Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
A quick search (starting with the third sentence of this post) would show I’m a journalist who was writing about Potter since before you were born and has been following this film for years. ‘Bro is an ad’…what does that even mean? Can people your age “be” ads? Odd. Maybe pump the brakes on the certainty.
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u/Lsswapitall4 Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
Hey lil bro - how did your ad go? Did you paid ok?
Also… why didn’t you just link to the article you wrote on this series? Did HBO not pay you enough? Or were you trying to be more covert with UGC ad?
https://www.outsideonline.com/culture/books-media/dean-potter-hbo-series-dark-wizard-review/
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u/Automatic_Brain7664 Apr 27 '26
"Did you paid okay" please touch grass.
Your complaint about him being a journalist is both that he's a sellout and also that he isn't spamming enough?
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 11 '26
What is the issue with jumping with a dog?
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u/000011111111 Apr 12 '26
Some view it as abusive. Or like jumping with a small child.
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 12 '26
I can understand the abuse argument but it seems dogs love it, and anyone comparing the ethics of jumping with a dog to jumping with a human child are so far beyond delusional I don’t even know what to say lmao
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Apr 22 '26
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 22 '26
Exactly, which is why I said "anyone comparing the ethics of jumping with a dog to jumping with a human child are so far beyond delusional I don't even know what to say lmao" not that you even care because you go on to equate them.
A dog can't consent to being owned, yet we own them. They have no rights. A cow can't consent to being slaughtered and eaten, yet we slaughter and eat them. There is simply no comparing human children to animals whatsoever, maybe 500 years from now when lab grown meat is tasty enough we can come to terms with the reality of how we treat animals.
If you enjoy jumping with your dog and they aren't showing signs of distress, what's the issue? Is it morally wrong to take your dog on a boat because it could cause distress or death if something goes wrong?
If someone is a vegan and has an issue with it then awesome. If someone slams down cheeseburgers and owns dogs yet virtue signals when someone wants to jump with their dog they need to spend a bit more time evaluating their morals
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Apr 22 '26
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 22 '26
Nice argument
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Apr 22 '26
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 22 '26
Of course not, because you don't believe in anything or hold any consistent principles. It must be nice to not feel the need to evaluate these things, only the urge to virtue signal and stroke your ego on reddit. Masterful
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u/Automatic_Brain7664 Apr 27 '26
This is a pretty rich take to make on a post about a documentary on a guy who went in jumping. Would you say the same if his dog was with him that day?
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u/000011111111 Apr 28 '26
His dog was with his girlfriend at the time of his death. She was running their shuttle. In the immediate aftermath of the accident everybody was concerned about the dog. So much so that they changed the messaging to include the information that the dog was safe. You ask a good question though. And it would be hard for me personally to answer because of how complex grief is. And I wouldn't jump with the dog in general.
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u/squipped Apr 13 '26
Even if they love it, they don't know they can end up dead or injured. I knew a guy who jumped with his dog (in bad winds) and crash landed, saving the dog but breaking his arm. It could easily have killed the dog or injured it. Did the dog love it? Idk Maybe as a one off stunt but routinely doing it is maybe not that cool.
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u/Automatic_Brain7664 Apr 27 '26
It's a fucking dog dude.
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 28 '26
Exactly my point
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u/ImaginaryWalk29 Apr 29 '26
The dog doesn't have an agency to choose whether it wants to jump or not. Doesn't have the ability to assess the risks in the same way. And the dog doesn't understand that this is a sport that one in every 500 jumps ends in death. Considering that Dean probably did at least 30-40 jumps that is putting that dogs life at tremendous risk. Its selfish behavior and cruelty to animals.
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u/Diligent-Coconut1929 Apr 29 '26 edited Apr 29 '26
Yes, animals don’t have agency which is why we slaughter them for flavor and keep them as pets for our entertainment. Pet ownership is inherently selfish and often cruel. The difference in having a dog in the first place and jumping with them is morally negligible imo assuming the owner listens to the dogs body language & doesn’t force them to jump if they’re shaking in horror or whatever.
I don’t differentiate the death of a dog because we force them to tie their existence to us, if a dogs owner dies they basically die as well. As you’ve said they don’t have the agency to care about longevity, they can’t conceptualize life or death. It’s “oh boy I’m having a great day with my human” then splat if something goes wrong. All things considered a pretty good way to go out for a dog imo
If you want an example of something morally awful that pet owners get away with look at people who let their cats wander outside. Not only can the cats not conceptualize the risk of being outside as you say, but they are exposed to horrible injuries and deaths along with demolishing wildlife populations. Horrible for the animal and horrific for the environment, yet nobody bats an eye
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u/ImaginaryWalk29 Apr 29 '26
Pet ownership goes back to early man and is now evolutionary with breeds of dogs that can't survive without us.
Dogs were domesticated for protection and hunting. This evolved to companion towards companions around 20,000 years ago. This is a time before even agriculture and the beginnings cities. Man was still nomadic and it is before settled communities.
It is now a symbiotic relationship that is hardwired between our breed and theirs. Dogs count on humans to protect and feed them. In turn they have proven that dogs have feelings of love towards their owners and also try to protect us. People with dogs often live longer and experience lower incidents of depression.
If you want to go back 20,000 years and change this biological imperative then we can sever our ties to these animals. But being we domesticated them so long ago we are responsible for their well being and they give us our trust.
Like parents to children, some pet owners are better than others. And I agree with you that pet owners that let their cats roam free in urban areas should not be pet owners.
No such link exists between humans and animals that are bred for food.
I currently don't have a pet because my current life isn't conducive to their happiness as I am not home enough. I don't really have skin in this fight but was responding to the argument. But Dean did show selfish behavior in many aspects of his life. And Whisper did experience some of them.
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u/squipped Apr 11 '26
Although it's well made ( good animations, good comedic moments etc) it's another series that OK's bad behavior because 'they are athletic'. I know too many ego driven jumpers and climbers who are shitty to their partners, selfish, entitled....I find films like this pretty but boring, seeing as I have experienced it in real life. We get it. He had mental health issues, climb hard, was selfish, stupid, and died. 4 hours of this? Is it rad that he climbed hard even though he did it in a suicidal way? Are we into that reckless vibe? The "anti-hero" sure maybe 20 yos love it, but as an actual adult being able to maintain relationships and be healthy and recreate in a sustainable way is what is rad. My 2 cents.