While the concept plays out in short form drops across social platforms, 9Now will carry full length weekly episodes running 22 to 25 minutes alongside the vertical content, showing how traditional platforms can still partner with creators even as social drives the strategy.
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Ditch the oat flat white and cancel your pilates session: 9Now has officially joined the FLEX movement, dropping full access episodes of Australia’s first micro-reality series weekly from Friday, April 24.
FLEX is the ultimate, zero-filter masterclass in surviving Sydney’s most affluent areas, following the lives of seven young, good-looking strivers navigating the “fake it till you make it” reality of Bondi and its high-life coastal surrounds.
Ben swaps rugby dreams for Bondi hustle, chasing business ideas and beachside connections (image – supplied)
In a world where the party-girl lifestyle has traded places with pre-dawn fitness culture, FLEX pulls back the curtain on the gruelling hustle required to stay hot, stay relevant, and stay in the game.
In this modern environment, your abs are your CV and your community is your competition.
Meet the Strivers:
- MARCUS (30): A former British Army soldier who survived a near-fatal attack, Marcus is now Australia’s highest-paid male escort, trapped by a paycheck he can’t walk away from.
- SARAH (33): A former gymnast, pushing her body to breaking point to find “the big break”. She is intensely driven and adventurous and currently navigating life after getting out of a six-year open relationship.
- HENRY (27): A loveable British larrikin, Henry models himself on superheroes, but often leaves the house in mismatched socks. Founder of the Bondi Softies, a Tuesday sand run, he is determined to become the fastest man on soft sand.
- RYAN (30): From playing junior football for the Sydney Roosters to chasing bobsledding in Canada, this former apprentice heavy diesel mechanic is now a PT and online coach, rebounding from a failed $25,000 skincare business venture.
- WILLOW (24): A self-described “gym addict” and unfiltered truth-teller who transformed her life with a 20kg weight loss, and is now attempting to scale her coaching business into a global brand.
- MARIA (27): Brazilian-born Maria traded a life of privilege for the high-energy grind of Bondi. She recently ditched her 9-to-5 and is facing a reality check: no job and an expensive lifestyle to fund. The plan? Turn her art hobby into a career.
- BEN (22): Fresh from the UK, Ben is trading his elite rugby dreams for Bondi’s smoothie scene. Hoping to start a business that merges fitness with partying, he is confident that making connections in the Eastern Suburbs will help bring this to life.
FLEX is a social-first vertical series, with 1-2 minute daily micro-episodes dropping with zero filters on Instagram and TikTok (@FLEX_the_series).
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However, the full story unfolds on 9Now, where 22-25 minute weekly episodes capture the setbacks, the aspirations and the unfiltered reality of a place where the hustle never sleeps.
Because for every aspiration there’s a setback – and in Bondi, the price of the climb is usually more than your rent.
FLEX is produced by Ronde Media.
Catch the streaming premiere of FLEX from Friday, April 24 on 9Now, with new episodes dropping weekly.
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