Infamous challenges included eating horse rectum , transferring dead rats by mouth, and consuming "maggoty cheese" .
The season concluded with a two-hour special where 12 winners returned to compete for a $100,000 grand prize and two Mazda RX-8 sports cars. Memorable and Extreme Stunts Fear Factor - Season 3
Contestants performed high-stakes maneuvers such as being suspended beneath helicopters, traversing a 350-foot tightrope over a dam, and driving cars into pools. Introduced four duos competing as teams, a format
Introduced four duos competing as teams, a format that eventually became the series' standard. Despite such controversies
The intensity of Season 3 stunts led to significant public reaction. NBC was notably sued for $2.5 million by a viewer who claimed that watching a contestant eat rats mixed in a blender caused him to vomit and experience a rise in blood pressure. Despite such controversies, the season maintained high viewership and solidified the show's place in the early 2000s reality TV landscape.