iWorld
Amazon renews ‘American Gods’ originals, starring Whittle & McShane
MUMBAI: Amazon has announced that the highly-acclaimed Amazon Original Series American Gods, which premiered on 1 May, has been renewed for a second season. At present, American Gods is among the top 10 shows in India on Amazon’s international Prime Video service.
Amazon claims American Gods, produced by FremantleMedia North America, garnered an overall rating of 8.6 on IMDb and a top critics score of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. Prime Video vice president – international Tim Leslie said, “We’re bringing a second season of Neil Gaiman’s riveting story.”
As is known Amazon Prime Video is offering 30-day free trial for watching these and other Hollywood and Bollywood movies, US TV shows, kids’ programming and Amazon Originals.
In Season one, viewers encountered a war brewing between Old Gods and New. The traditional Old Gods, with mythological roots from around the world, fear irrelevance as their believers die off or are seduced by the money, technology, and celebrity offered by the New Gods. Adapted from the award-winning novel by Neil Gaiman, American Gods stars Ricky Whittle (The 100, Austenland) as protagonist ex-con Shadow Moon, Ian McShane (Deadwood, Pirates of the Caribbean) as Mr. Wednesday, who enlists Shadow Moon as part of his cross-country mission, and Emily Browning (Sucker Punch, Legend) as Shadow’s wife, Laura Moon. American Gods Season one also features Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) as Media, the mouthpiece for the New Gods, Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies, Wicked) as Easter, Pablo Schreiber (13 Hours, Orange Is the New Black) as Mad Sweeney, and Yetide Badaki (Aquarius, Masters of Sex) as Bilquis.
Written by Neil Gaiman in 2001, American Gods has been translated into over 30 languages and earned numerous accolades including Hugo, Nebula and Bram Stoker Awards for Best Novel.
Bryan Fuller (“Hannibal,” “Pushing Daisies,” “Heroes”) and Michael Green (“Blade Runner 2049,” “Alien: Covenant,” “Murder on the Orient Express,” “Kings,” “Heroes”) are writers and showrunners. David Slade (“Hannibal,” “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”) directed the pilot and additional episodes. FMNA’s Craig Cegielski and Stefanie Berk are executive producers along with Fuller, Green, Slade, Adam Kane and Neil Gaiman. Senior Vice Presidents of Original Programming Marta Fernandez and Ken Segna are the Starz executives in charge of “American Gods.”
iWorld
Rusk Media announces Battleground Season 2 on Amazon MX Player
Fitness reality show returns in April 2026 with bigger challenges and mentors.
MUMBAI: The arena is reopening and this time the competition promises even more sweat, strategy and spectacle. Rusk Media has confirmed the return of its fitness reality format Battleground for a second season, set to stream on Amazon MX Player from April 2026. The announcement follows the breakout success of the show’s debut season, which positioned itself as a high energy blend of sport, strategy and reality television. Season 1 brought together 16 contestants for a 28 day test of endurance and discipline, as aspiring athletes and fitness enthusiasts competed in physically demanding challenges and team based battles.
Divided into four teams, the participants trained under a panel of mentors drawn from the fitness and lifestyle space, with former Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan serving as the show’s Super Mentor.
The format quickly found an audience among digital viewers and was listed among the most binged titles on Amazon MX Player. The show also picked up industry recognition, winning the “Most Popular Non Fiction Show” honour at the IWMBuzz Digital Awards 2025.
The first season also drew a slate of brand partnerships, including Honda Bigwing, Charged, American Pistachio Growers, Bigmuscles Nutrition, Ritebite Max Protein, Plix and Sparsh CCTV, highlighting the show’s appeal to brands targeting India’s rapidly growing youth and fitness audience.
For Season 2, the producers say the format will evolve with tougher physical challenges, a sharper competitive structure and deeper mentor involvement while continuing to focus on discovering the next generation of Indian fitness personalities.
Rusk Media, chief executive officer and co founder Mayank Yadav said the first season proved the appetite for competitive fitness storytelling. “Battleground was always envisioned as more than a show. Season 1 demonstrated that there is a massive audience for aspirational fitness competition at scale. With Season 2 we are going even bigger in ambition, intensity and opportunities for contestants and partners,” he said.
Rusk Ads lead Rahul Arora added that the series has also evolved into a strong platform for brand integration and advertiser engagement. “Season 1 showed that Battleground is not just compelling content but a powerful brand ecosystem. As we move into Season 2, we are looking to deepen brand collaborations and build more integrated partnerships,” he said.
With a larger format, an expanding fan base and a new season set to arrive in April 2026, Battleground is positioning itself as one of India’s emerging fitness reality franchises in the digital entertainment space.
