BTS to bring back Run BTS! with October episodes filmed in Toronto

BTS will bring back its variety series Run BTS! with two new episodes in October, starting at 8 p.m. KST on Oct. 6. A second episode will follow at the same time on Oct. 11, Billboard reported.

The announcement came with a new teaser filmed in Toronto. It opens with the seven members holding a picnic together before taking on two favourite playground-style challenges, “speed walk” and “red light, green light.” The games are simple to follow. Walk fast without running, and freeze on command.

The loser gets punished. That warning hangs over the teaser’s other main event, a pickleball tournament — pickleball being the paddle sport played on a small court with a low net. The clip closes with a title card reading “Run BTS 2.0,” signalling a fresh run for the long-running show.

For fans, this means a double helping in the first week. Two episodes in five days, both in the series’ familiar evening slot at 8 p.m. KST, local time in South Korea.

The return lands between tour dates. BTS has wrapped the North American leg of its ARIRANG World Tour and will continue on to the South American leg. The Toronto shoot took place while the group was on the road in North America.

The tour takes its name from the group’s latest album, ARIRANG. The album gave BTS its seventh No. 1 on the Billboard 200, the US albums chart, when it was released in April. It has since remained on that chart for 27 weeks and counting, Billboard reported.

Run BTS! began as an online variety outlet where the members play games, take on dares and travel together. The new teaser keeps that formula. Picnic food, fast walking and a paddle contest with a forfeit at the end.