Darnell: 'Wipeout' won't hurt 'Hole' chances

TCA -- "It's unbelievably entertaining," said Fox's president of alternative entertainment Mike Darnell, "way better than our expectations."

Darnell is referring to his upcoming Japanese-inspired game show "Hole in the Wall," which just finished shooting its first two episodes. Darnell says he isn't concerned the that success of ABC's somewhat similar "Wipeout" will diminish his show's chances.

"I don't think it matters, it's about the show," he said. "There's already an audience that's found 'Hole' on YouTube." That said, he noted that sometimes one hit can prime viewers for a similar show -- like how "1 vs. 100" initially performed quite well coming on the heels of "Deal or No Deal."

Darnell added that although he would have done ABC's other physical competition series "I Survived a Japanese Game Show" somewhat differently (such as having the American contestants compete against Japanese contestants), he liked how the Japanese audience uses an array of noisemakers, and he has made that a part of his version of "Hole in the Wall."

The show still doesn't have an air date as its awaiting, ahem, a hole in the schedule.