‘Welcome to Earth’ cast explains how they remained safe while filming

The new Disney+ series Welcome to Earth, out Wednesday, follows actor Will Smith on a once-in-a-lifetime adventure around the globe. Dwayne Fields, a polar explorer, is one of the experts who joins the actor, and he’s sharing all the details about their journey — like where they went, for starters. 

“So I got to take Will to Iceland, which is one of the most stunning places you can imagine,” Fields tells ABC Audio. “It’s this dynamic environment that’s constantly changing, so much so that one of the places that we went to nobody knew existed 10 years ago. That’s how much this place is changing.”

Although stunning, exploring some of the world’s greatest wonders can be pretty dangerous at times. So was Fields ever worried about killing the Oscar-nominated actor? He says he knew they’d be just fine, thanks to having “the best safety teams in the world around us.”

The explorer adds, “Equally, we were two capable adults who wanted to experience our own anxieties, especially Will, he wanted to push himself. And I think that’s what this series was very much about.”

Likewise, Erik Weihenmayer, a mountaineer who is blind and accompanied Smith inside of an erupting volcano, echoed that having “a very strong team around you, it’s one of the greatest ways of minimizing risk.” 

Being safe didn’t stop the fun though. Weihenmayer says it was “really cool” watching Smith have this experience for the first time.

“He was like a kid, you know, he was he was smiling and elated and terrified,” Weihenmayer shares. “And you know, and just like experiencing like this stuff like a child for the first time and it was really cool, you know, to be a part of that kind of enthusiasm.”