Per Matt
Josh Gates is an adventurer, TV host and a “travelin’ fool,” but what’s he been up to, lately?
At ScareFest, Josh gives an update of Destination Truth‘s current status, previews his upcoming TV pilots and photobombs his new Syfy Family members.
What are your thoughts about Scarefest?
– “It’s great. It’s really one of my favorite events. It seems to get bigger every year. It’s been really fun.”
How many years have you attended ScareFest?
– “This is my second ScareFest. I was here, last year, for ScareFest 5 and here I am, for ScareFest 6.”
Last year, I transcribed the first 15 minutes of your ScareFest panel. You really have a passion for traveling.
– “I really do. One of the things we try to do on Destination Truth along with these cool investigations for these interesting stories is getting people excited about places they’ve never been to or places maybe they’ve never even heard of.”
We briefly spoke at Dragon Con. Seems like you survived that convention.
– “Dragon Con is an intense weekend. It’s so fun, though.”
Recently, your co-worker, Erin Ryder, attended her very first Dragon Con. Was she completely overwhelmed?
– “People have asked me for a couple of years, now, ‘When are you going to bring Ryder out, onto the circuit? When are we going to see Ryder at these events?’ She’s wanted to do events for a while. Her schedule hasn’t really allowed for it. So, the stars aligned and she was able to come to Dragon Con. She had a blast. I think I can safely speak for her and say that she had an amazing time.”
“She’s been to events before and had been to Comic-Con. She kind of knew it was going to be a big event. Until you go to Dragon Con, you don’t realize how amazing all the cosplay is and how crowded it is. It’s just so nuts.”
“Unfortunately, she couldn’t make it out to ScareFest. Hopefully, next year. I know I’m going to do a few more events this year.”
At Dragon Con, you showed a highlight reel in your panel that was incredible.
– “We’ve done five seasons of Destination Truth and I always regret that we didn’t put a proper gag reel together. There’s been a lot of falling over and swearing and mishaps like that, that didn’t make the show. We cobbled together some of the better moments from the show and threw those into a reel.”
What’s the status for another season of Destination Truth? Have you filmed any new episodes since last year?
– “We haven’t. I’m producing two pilots, right now, for shows that I’m not in: One for Nat Geo; one for Nat Geo Wild. So, that’s been keeping me busy this summer. And I’m really close to having another project that I’m really excited about, but I can’t quite announce just yet. But I’m really hopeful, actually, in the next few weeks, to be able to announce something. Some good news there and still talking about Destination Truth and Stranded. Hopefully, those series continue to go.”
Do you have any episodes for Ghost Hunters currently in the can?
– “No. I haven’t shot with those guys, this year. Actually, it’s been a great year for me to step back a little bit. I’ve done some traveling. I’ve been to a lot more of these events, which I haven’t done in the past few years. So, it’s been a fun year for me and as we move into the end of the year, things are going to start to ramp up.”
Are you attending any big Halloween events this year?
– “Yeah. The Ghost Hunters are not doing a live event this year, at least to my knowledge. They’ve had a lot of success at the channel doing a live face-off, for the last couple of years. I don’t know how many of those Ghost Hunters Live they’ve done, six of them, maybe seven. The channel continues to sort of mix it up for the Halloween stuff, but I’m hopeful in the future to do more of those, as well. Those have been great.”
What’s the last country you visited?
– “The last country I visited was Thailand. I was in Thailand and Cambodia in April. That was the last international trip I took and I may not get out of the country, again, this year. So, lots of travel on the horizon, next year.”
Have you been giving away your frequent flyer miles to your fans?
– “No. I haven’t done it yet. We announced this really cool idea for a contest and a way to inspire people to start traveling. It’s something that I still really want to do, but my schedule hasn’t permitted it yet. That’s definitely on the horizon, as well.”
You were involved with a photobomb of the Deep South Paranormal guys at the Black Carpet Event. Have you had any interaction with them before?
– “This is my first time meeting them, actually. They sort of came into the Syfy Family at a time when I wasn’t there as much. So, I haven’t had a chance to meet them, until this event. It was my first time to meet Zak Bagans, too, from Ghost Adventures. We’ve managed to be ships passing into the night, until this.”
I’m always curious if there’s any sort of interaction among the different shows’ stars, off camera.
– “Sometimes there is. The sort-of relationship that I’ve managed to forge with a lot of the folks at Syfy has been great. We typically meet up at events like this or upfronts or different Syfy Channel events. These are the times we get together and reconnect. We always talk about the Syfy Family, but it really is a family. It’s been a great place for a lot of us and I’ve managed to forge some great friendships there.”
Where will you be appearing next?
– “I’m going to a casino event in Minnesota. I’m going to New York Comic-Con and Chicago Ghost Conference. I’m going to be doing a speaking engagement at New York State that I think is just about to be announced. I think that might take me to the end of the year.”
For More Information:
– Josh Gates on Twitter
– Josh Gates Facebook Fan Page
– Destination Truth on Facebook
– Official Josh Gates Webpage