George Santos has a simple assignment in a new Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test preview: get out of the water and onto a wooden raft. It does not go smoothly. He grips the edge, tries to lift himself and remains in the water as the directing staff calls for him to move.
Actor Oliver Hudson eventually reaches down to help. The short clip is a first look at Santos taking on the FOX competition before Season 5 premieres Thursday, September 24. It shows one difficult moment, not the outcome of his time on the show.
What happens in the raft clip
Santos is wearing a life vest as he holds the side of the raft. Directing staff member Jason “Foxy” Fox stands nearby and loses patience while Santos tries to pull himself over the edge. The preview includes Fox telling him:
“Come on, it’s just a wooden raft.”
The line is blunt, but the footage gives the effort room to play out. Santos gets a grip, slips, and tries again. Hudson then grabs his clothing from above and helps lift him toward the platform. Santos falls back once during the attempt before finally getting up. Hudson helps; he does not do the entire task for Santos.
The clip ends without explaining where this particular task fits within the season or whether Santos completes the broader course. FOX’s preview is enough to show the dynamic: an impatient instructor, a struggling recruit and a fellow contestant who decides to lend a hand.
Who else is in Season 5?
FOX has announced 15 recruits for the Malaysia-set season. Besides Santos and Hudson, the lineup includes actors Candace Cameron Bure, David Charvet and Ruby Rose; former NBA player Matt Barnes; boxer Alycia Baumgardner; former NFL player LeSean McCoy; Olympic figure skater Maxim Naumov; and reality-TV names Brandi Glanville, Bre Tiesi, Alexia Umansky and Mauricio Umansky. Collin Gosselin and Hannah Stocking complete the group.
Santos is listed as a former politician; Hudson and Bure are among the actors, while Barnes and McCoy come from professional sports. The preview does not spend time on those careers. It follows one physical task from the water to the raft.
Rudy Reyes, Billy Billingham, Jason Fox and Jovon Quarles return as the directing staff. FOX says the season’s challenges include a search inside an underground bunker, a supply retrieval 300 feet above the jungle floor and an exercise involving chemical gas. The raft clip offers a smaller, more immediate problem: getting back onto the platform.
When and where to watch
Season 5 premieres Thursday, September 24, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on FOX. FOX says new episodes will be available on Hulu the next day. The series is not decided by a public vote or a regular elimination ceremony. Recruits leave if they quit, fail a task, are injured or are removed by the directing staff.
That format makes the preview worth watching without pretending it tells us how Santos fares in the full season. It shows a setback and a teammate stepping in. The rest begins with the premiere.
For the full lineup, format and premiere details, see our Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test series page.
