There was a time when returning players seasons were the norm on Survivor rather than the exception. While the franchise waited until season 8 to bring back players for the first time on Survivor: All-Stars, the middle era of the franchise was filled with familiar faces. In fact, 10 of the 15 seasons between Heroes vs Villains (season 20) and Game Changers (season 34) featured at least a few returning players, if not full-blown all-star casts.
The opposite has been true in Survivor’s post-Winners at War new era. With the exception of Bruce Perreault, who was brought back for a do-over in Survivor 45 after being injured in the opening minutes of the previous season, the show went a full 10 seasons before welcoming back fan favorites for the anniversary season of Survivor 50, which premieres Feb. 25 on CBS. And, as Jeff Probst told Entertainment Weekly in Fiji during filming on the landmark season, that was no accident.
“We haven’t done a returning player season in a long time in part because we haven’t needed to,” Probst says. “I have great faith in our casting team, and I think Survivor is typically at its best with new players.”
Robert Voets/CBS
Fans used to agree, complaining when the show would keep mixing former and first-time players, or bemoaning the same faces playing over and over again. However, look at any season ranking list and titles like Heroes vs. Villains, Micronesia, and Second Chance are likely to be near or at the very top. And with new favorites emerging, viewers began to crave seeing recent players from different seasons going head-to-head.
Probst notes the delay was also a simple matter of refilling the cupboard. “After you get a bunch of new players, then you say, “Okay, now we’ve got enough new players that it’ll be fun to bring them back.”
And for the host and showrunner, the timing to finally dip back into that familiar well was not only perfect, but was never in doubt. “I don’t think we needed to do a returning player season any earlier than we did,” he tells EW. “And we never planned on it. Fifty was always going to be the first time. I said to the casting team, ‘We have 100 percent faith in you. You just got to keep finding great people.’ And they have.”
“I don’t know,” Probst answers. “Because remember, you have to have new players to have returning players, and you got to let ’em live a little. Like when we did Survivor: Second Chance in Cambodia, the reason that season was so powerful is those players were f—ing hungry. And they showed up and said, ‘I’ve been waiting a long time for this call and I’m going to kill it out there.’ That’s how it felt.”
While he was already getting a different vibe from the returnees on Survivor 50 while speaking on day 3 of the game, Probst was just as pleased with what he saw from the group.
“With 50, there’s a little bit more levity here. I do see a real cool sense of humor, but I have zero doubt every single person wants to win this season. They know this will be a big f—ing season to win.”
CBS
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To illustrate his point about giving newer players more time to evolve before bringing them back — even though half of the 50 cast is made up of contestants from the new era — Probst name checks the folks and stories that stood out to him at the day 1 marooning, and there is nothing new-era about them.
“Now you finally have [a returning player season] and you look out there and you see Jenna Lewis, the OG who is on the cover of Time magazine back 25 years later. That’s insane. And right next to her is Colby. I mean, that guy was so popular, I’ve never seen anything like it. I know a lot of famous people now but have never seen anybody get the kind of love and admiration and attention that Colby got. But then you watch them have their own journeys. Colby’s had his own life, his own highs and lows and ups and downs and love-hate with Survivor. So to have him back really warmed my heart. I didn’t know if he’d come back.”
As for fan complaints back in the day that they too often brought players back, compared to newer complaints that they don’t do it enough, Probst says that the investment to even care enough is key.
“Here’s the thing about Survivor fans,” the host notes. “They’re the greatest because they have opinions. That’s what I love. I don’t want fans that watch our show and say, ‘Oh, I don’t really care either way.’”
He also says he welcomes the feedback. “I love it if you hate Edge of Extinction and you feel comfortable enough to stop me on the street and say, ‘Love you, bro. But just so you know, that was a ridiculous idea.’ That pleases me in the same way that the group we put together for 50 will please some people and upset other people. There’s no way to satisfy all of us with all of our ideas. I do remind fans, you do have to trust us a little bit, and that we know who wanted to play and who didn’t want to play. We know who wished they could play, but the scheduling didn’t work out. There was a lot of things going on behind the scenes.”
Perhaps that scheduling will work out the next time returning players are brought back… whenever that may be.
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