American Gladiators announced a new cast member today -- "The Beast." He'll be there for the semi-finals. The final 12 contenders will have to deal with this "monster" (that's the term from the press release) to get to the ultimate prize.

Those of you who have watched the show know it's really the reverse treadmill thingie that poses the biggest obstacle between any contender and his/her victory. But The Beast should terrify a few of the hopefuls. He stands at seven-feet-tall and weighs 318 lbs. From the picture, you can see that 200 of those pounds are in his neck.