Ninja Warrior returns to the Universal Studios backlot for the fourth year

As American Ninja Warrior fans anxiously awaited the arrival of the season 11 taping dates and locations, there was one thing they were pretty confident about. Ninja Warrior likes to kick things off in Los Angeles. In fact, all 10 seasons of the show have started somewhere in the Los Angeles area. Up till season seven, that was usually the Venice Beach boardwalk. But for season eight, the show looked for a different type of quintessential LA backdrop and found it on the Universal Studios backlot.

For the past three years, Ninja Warrior start started taping each season in this location, transforming the part of the backlot usually reserved for NYC-themed filming into the Ninja course. (In season 10, the Dallas episode aired first, but LA was still recorded first.)

The Universal Studios backlot is much more isolated than the rest of the cities. It provides a controlled environment as the Ninjas and crew jump back into things. Also, it looks very, very cool as the crew can customize almost every element around them. For season 11, the show will set up there for the fourth time, filming the LA Qualifiers and City Finals on March 6 and 7.

We feel like the fans are pretty familiar with the history of this location. But just to jog your memory, here are the LA recaps from the last three seasons, as well a few of the well-known runs. It definitely reminded us that LA tends to set the tone for the season, and something exciting usually gets things off on the right foot.

Season eight:

Recaps

Season nine:

Season 10:

Unfortunately, we don’t think we’ll get the fantastic dinosaur set that we saw in season 10. After all, there aren’t any Jurassic World movies coming out this year. But we’re sure the hardworking crew behind the show is till putting together a gorgeous debut episode.