I started watching Big Brother this season to support Devens and Dee, and two weeks in, I’m fully in the deep end. I’m making real alliances, sleeping in the have not room, making fake alliances, reattaching my microphone and eating slop. I think this show is just going to be a part of my summer routine moving forward, but as a Survivor fan, I need to talk about the confessional situation because yikes.

At least eighty percent of everything we see come out of the Diary Room is inauthentic trash. So many of these confessionals sound like the houseguests were given a paper to read from. Perhaps even worse, a healthy percentage of them are just narrating plot action that we’re all literally watching on the screen or detailing the most obvious surface level motivations that we don’t need to hear.

During Wednesday’s episode this week, we all watched Lala go over the rules of the Veto Competition in really extended and specific detail. Then, for unclear reasons, we got a confessional of Lyric blandly explaining the exact same rules to the audience like thirty seconds later, once again in really specific detail, down to telling us how many pieces they had to find (12) and how they needed to fit on the board (“flush”). What could have possibly been the thought process behind including that confessional? Choose one or the other!

Sadly, that’s a recurring theme with so many bits we see from the Diary Room. Let’s just focus on that same Veto Competition as an example. We also got confessionals from multiple houseguests explaining to us that some of the pegs have more space around them so that must be where the bigger pieces go. That’s obviously a good strategy observation and worth hearing about, but did we need that same a-ha moment from both Jason and Angela? No, we did not. Choose one or the other!

And don’t get me started on the references and puns. I love bad puns, and I love cheesy references. I kind of like how kitschy Big Brother is. I was fine with Rachel getting murdered by a dinosaur during the first episode, but a confessional either works or it doesn’t. If the houseguest sounds like they’re delivering a rehearsed line, it shouldn’t make the final edit. There are at least four or five confessionals every week that sound so inauthentic coming out of the houseguest’s mouth. It’s shocking so many of them make the final edit.

After a few episodes of this, I asked the other people on staff here at CinemaBlend who watch Big Brother what the story is with the Diary Room content, and they both said some version of, that’s just how the show is. You’ll get used to it. Why is that an acceptable answer? It's certainly not fine with some former players who have complained about it.

I watch so many reality competition shows. I watch Survivor, The Traitors, Top Chef, MasterChef, Dancing With The Stars, Project Runway, Tournament Of Champions, The Amazing Race and like a dozen more. None of the other shows have this problem. Not a single one consistently includes content that feels repetitive and inauthentic. It doesn’t have to be that way.

It’s all particularly frustrating because each episode does contain some legitimately terrific confessionals, and if you watch the live feeds, these people have a lot of charisma and are always hooking up and scheming. There is a reason they were chosen to move into the house. There is plenty for producers to work with.

Unfortunately, it seems to me like those same producers are encouraging players to distill their thoughts down into generic euphemisms, obvious observations ("I need to win to get myself off the block!") and corny line reads they're literally handing them. Why is that the goal? Who decided this was the most optimal Diary Room content?

The team needs to change their strategy for getting Diary Room content, and they need to be more thoughtful about what they’re choosing from the material they do get. We need less obvious narrational content. We need less inauthentic line reads. We need less generic summaries. Instead, we need more confessionals that show off the personalities and emotions of the houseguests.

You can catch new episodes of Big Brother 28 multiple times a week on CBS, and you can watch the live feeds on Paramount+.

Warning! The following contains spoilers from the Big Brother Season 28 live feeds as of Thursday, July 23rd. Stream the feeds with a Paramount+ subscription or on Pluto TV, and read at your own risk!

Things couldn't be going better for the reality television veterans in Big Brother. Rick Devens gave them some added power and comfort with his Week 2 Head of Household win, and the fact that he also won the Week 2 veto only made it sweeter. With the security of the Tool Shed, they can skate on to the midpoint of the game without much trouble, so of course they're probably about to ruin it by overthinking things.

Dee Valladares and Rick may know Survivor, but as Cirie Fields learned in Season 25, Big Brother is a different beast. In their eagerness to make moves, they may just blow up their majority alliance, and Angela Murray's paranoia is not helping.

The Vets Are Discussing Moves That Could Break Up The Crossovers

With it looking increasingly likely that this week ends with either Rome Seymour or Jason De Puy walking out of Big Brother in Week 2, Dee and Angela thought it was time to prepare to target their next enemies. Unfortunately, they're convinced that Crossover-alliance members Barrett Pfeiffer and Drew Campbell need to go to protect their position.

That alone is messier than Angela Murray badmouthing past Houseguests on the live feeds, but it gets worse. Angela and Dee are trying to form new separate alliances with people like Lala Verrett and Taylor Brown, but are realizing their current goals don't align with their new allies. It's messy, and despite Devens trying to advocate against turning on Barrett and Drew, it looks like the chances of that happening are growing, and it'd be the end of the Crossovers.

The Vets Have A Decent Chance To Steamroll The Season With The Tool Shed, And These Overplays Could Ruin That

While others watching Big Brother online may prefer the vets to blow up their games and shake up the house dynamic, I know Survivor fans may be upset that Dee and Devens might not be long for the house if they do this. I can't guarantee it'll happen, but what I can say is we've seen a past Survivor player engage in this kind of overthinking before.

Cirie Fields made similar mistakes when she played Big Brother in Season 25, opting to immediately target members of her own alliance rather than completely handle those outside of her numbers first. She went after solid allies Hisam Goueli and Red Utley to ensure she had a better grip on the alliance, but then dwindling those numbers ultimately led to her losing her closest allies, Izzy Gleicher and her son Jared Fields, soon after. Maybe Survivor players just can't adapt to the slow pace of Big Brother, and they try to make too many moves too fast?

The Tool Shed alliance, which consists of both the Crossovers and Red Corner alliances, was only recently set up. I wouldn't be surprised if that alliance quickly crumbles once word travels around that Dee and Angela are openly discussing cannibalizing it by targeting Barrett and Drew. I certainly wouldn't trust the alliance was real after that, and think this is going to blow up for the vets in a big way. I mean, at the end of the day, couldn't the Red Corner sans Devens just bring in Drew and Barrett and gang up on the vets?

We'll see how this all plays out after the Week 2 eviction, which airs on CBS on Thursday, July 23rd at 8:00 p.m. ET. Big Brother is delivering top-tier drama with Season 28 at the moment, and if The Crossovers blow up in Week 3, I'd clear my schedule to watch it all unfold on the live feeds!

Former Big Brother winner and reality television icon Rachel Reilly has been open about her desire to be a castaway on Survivor in the past, and let the record show, she’s just as determined as ever. In fact, her husband Brendan has been teaching her how to make fire in their backyard. Given her popularity within the competition community, you’d think we’d get to see those skills eventually, but the Survivor casting department has been notably reluctant to cast veterans of other franchises in the past. So, what are Rachel’s actual chances? Let’s talk this out.

In Survivor’s 50 season history, there have only been five total castaways who previously appeared on other majority reality competitions before they hit the beach. Twins Natalie and Nadiya Anderson were on The Amazing Race, as was White Lotus showrunner Mike White. Hayden Moss and Caleb Reynolds were both on Big Brother. That’s it. Other players may have been on lesser shows before, but longtime host and showrunner Jeff Probst and company haven’t consistently looked to their primary competitors and sister shows to find people.

That being said, now may be a unique moment. Survivor 50, with an all-star cast of returning players, just gave the show its biggest ratings numbers in years, and likewise, Big Brother is currently in the middle of a resurgence thanks to its decision to cast Survivor favorites Dee Valladares and Rick Devens. CBS is definitely looking at those figures and figuring out how to keep them rolling.

Probst has already committed to do another returnee player season on Survivor. The producers haven’t announced exactly when it’ll happen, but the fanbase is widely of the belief that it’ll be 53 or 54, which would mean it’ll air in late 2027 or early 2028. Outside of that, however, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some additional decisions made with ratings in mind, which could mean a cast that includes some celebrities or stars crossing over from other franchises. If the show did that, you’d have to think Reilly would be near the top of the list.

It’s hard to make a case that many reality television stars have been more successful than her over the past few decades. She, of course, won Big Brother, but her resume goes a lot deeper than that. She also won Snake In The Grass and Celebrity Fear Factor. She made three appearances on The Amazing Race, including two where she got to the finals, and she made additional appearances on The Traitors, Worst Cooks in America and more. She doesn’t have quite the name recognition or crossover appeal of a player like Boston Rob, but within the reality competition community, there aren’t many bigger names, which is why we've seen her make appearances on the last two Big Brother seasons.

Here’s what she told US Weekly about competing on Survivor…

Personally, I’m all for Rachel appearing on Survivor. She has a fantastic social game, and she always creates can’t look away television. It would be a lot of fun to see her bounce off some personality types she might not be getting on other reality shows as well. Fingers crossed it happens at some point, whether she's figured out how to make fire yet or not!

Warning! The following contains spoilers from the Big Brother Season 28 live feeds as of Sunday, July 19th. Stream the feeds with a Paramount+ subscription and read at your own risk!

Week 2 in Big Brother is already zooming along, as Survivor stars Rick Devens and Dee Valladares continue to tighten their grip on the game. Rick won the Week 2 HOH competition and has already gotten to work uniting his Crossovers and Red Corner alliance into the "Tool Shed" and is angling to take out the other side of the house.

Those watching Big Brother online live feeds on the 2026 TV schedule saw Rick put Jason De Puy, Lyric Medeiros, and Melody Morris on the block, but a bigger plan was on the table. Devens wants to "backdoor" Rome, but Lyric has a plan that could keep them both safe this week.

Devens Won The Week 2 Veto

The power is in Devens' hands to do as he wants this week, which is great because he feels committed to the plan of "backdooring" Rome Seymour. For that to happen, nominations couldn't stay the same, so he's feeling good about taking someone down and putting that plan in action. The question is who he should take down, which remains a hot topic with hours to go before he makes a decision.

Lyric Is Trying To Fake A Breakup With Rome To Save Them Both

Lyric received a lot of criticism for prioritizing her showmance with Rome over playing Big Brother, but she's now locked in and trying to convince the house that their relationship is over. Her pitch to Devens was to use the veto to take her down, and then put Rome on the block so that she doesn't have to suffer for his actions.

Truth be told, it felt like Lyric effectively fooled Devens for a time. He soon spun the narrative to Dee that using the veto on Lyric was a good idea, and they'd be better off targeting Melody to weaken the position of their ally, Drew Campbell, who was maintaining alliances with Houseguests on the "other" side of the house.

Devens has made it clear that he'll go with whoever the majority of his alliance backs to save, but that Rome is going up either way. Obviously Lyric would prefer she be off the block to make the odds better both of them survive this week, so she'll continue to push for that outcome.

I feel like it isn't being talked about enough, but Rome still has the BB Blockbuster to save himself, though Devens seems ready for that possibility. He's hoping he can find a way to work out a deal with Rome and Lyric to protect himself and Dee, should the other side get an HOH win sometime in the near future. I think, ideally, he'd prefer to cut the head off of the snake and take down the alleged ringleader orchestrating a solid alliance outside the Tool Shed, but people who want to win Big Brother always have to be flexible.

The situation is very much in flux, so continue to check in on CinemaBlend for updates on what's happening in the Big Brother house. Catch a new episode this week on Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 8:00 p.m. ET on CBS, or over on Paramount+.

We’re all used to Big Brother players shouting out family members and friends during their live votes each week, but now and again, one of them will drop a reference that makes you do a double take. This week, that person was Rick Devens, who said happy birthday to his daughter, said hi to his wife and son and then name dropped popular director and DC executive James Gunn. Initially, most fans thought it was just Rick being goofy, but it turns out there’s an entire backstory here.

Rick and James Gunn apparently know each other in real life. In fact, there was a plan for Rick and his family to appear in the background of the upcoming Superman sequel Man Of Tomorrow, which Gunn has been on-set directing the past few months. Prior to the shooting day, however, Devens called Gunn and told him he wasn’t going to be able to come anymore for a reason he wasn’t allowed to share. That reason was obviously he was going to be sequestered in the Big Brother House.

Gunn posted a video of Devens shouting him out on Big Brother over on Threads, and when fans asked what the connection was, he talked about knowing Rick in a series of messages. He also said that even though Rick missed out on the Superman shoot, his family did not…

Everyone, even James Gunn, likes being shouted out on television, but the excitement here no doubt ran a lot deeper because Gunn is a noted OG Big Brother fan. As such, that reference definitely hit harder than it would have otherwise. I’m sure he’s loving this season too, given he’s got a friend on the show and also, it’s been objectively a glorious mess so far.

Part of the reason why it’s been such a mess has been Devens himself, who doesn’t know how to do anything other than play hard. He was a menace on both of his seasons of Survivor, finding idols and getting up to all sorts of weird schemes. There aren’t any Idols on Big Brother, but there are plenty of opportunities to cause chaos. To the surprise of no one, Rick has taken advantage of those, forming multiple alliances and taking part in what’s rumored to be one of the wildest nomination ceremonies in the show’s history, which is going to air this evening.

You can catch Devens on Big Brother throughout the Summer, which airs new episodes several times a week on CBS. You can also tune into the live feeds at any time, which are streaming on Paramount+. As for Man Of Tomorrow, you can catch James Gunn’s newest a little less than a year from now on July 9th, 2027. Sadly, Devens won’t be a part of it, but we can all look for his wife Becca and their kids in the background.

Warning! The following contains spoilers from the Big Brother live feeds as of Friday, July 17th. Stream the feeds with a Paramount+ subscription or on Pluto TV, and read at your own risk!

It's a new week in the Big Brother house as it continues its run on the 2026 TV schedule, and we're already off to a hot start. While there were efforts to try and save Ashley Trail, she ended up sabotaging her own rescue by exposing the major alliance forming to the other side of the house. Now, the Week 2 Head of Household is planning to embrace that exposure and declare "war" in a way that mimics Survivor.

So many things happened overnight, so if you weren't watching Big Brother online and catching up on sleep, have no fear. Here's what we know about the Week 2 HOH and how their unique brand of "chaos" will potentially create two "tribes" in the game.

Rick Devens Won The Week 2 HOH

In what is no doubt another major coup for the returnees, Rick Devens won the Week 2 HOH. It's the best-case scenario for Dee Valladares, who can now rest easy following her Week 1 reign, as her biggest ally is running the house. Could this mean we'll see some traction in her budding showmance with Barrett Pfeiffer?

Rick Is Planning To Declare "War", And Split The House Into Two Tribes Like Survivor

Rick initially seemed intent on playing it safe with his nominations and targeting Mallory Aurichio, Lala Verrett, and Melody Morris. However, that all changed after a conversation with Angela Murray, which encouraged him to go full-tilt and openly declare "war" on the other side of the house.

As of writing, it seems Devens will now put up Melody, Jason De Puy, and Lyric Medeiros, with the hope of backdooring Rome Seymour. Rome is generally seen as the ringleader of the "other" side of the house, which comprises everyone who isn't in the Crossovers or Red Corner alliance.

Backdooring anyone in Big Brother is a tall order in the modern seasons, as Rome will still have a chance to save himself with the BB Blockbuster. This plan could also fall apart if Rome is chosen to play the veto, and ends up pulling down Lyric, which would grant him safety.

There's also talk of Rick making a public declaration of "war" during his nomination ceremony, openly acknowledging the house is divided down the middle. It feels very Survivor to try to split the house between two sides, but as Dee and Angela discussed that same evening, pushing that narrative only helps the returnees shield themselves. I'm curious to see how the "other" side of the house responds, and if they organize in a way Rick's alliances have in order to have a better chance at surviving what might otherwise become a steamroll.

Big Brother will show the HOH competition on Sunday's episode, which airs on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm interested to see what the contest was, and how Houseguests respond to this declaration of war.

Most of the reality competition show chatter right now is centered on Big Brother and more specifically, the casting of Survivor favorites Dee Valladares and Rick Devens on 28. Their surprise inclusion in the cast, along with BB legend Angela Murray has added a really fun and chaotic twist so far, but it turns out Dee and Rick aren’t the only two Survivor alums returning to television. One of Dee’s fellow castaways from 45 is about to get her chance, and it’s about freakin time.

Survivor 45 is best remembered for Dee’s pretty consistent domination throughout the season (and Emily Flippen greatness), but it’s also remembered by hardcore fans as a season of missed opportunities for two players who seemed to have really high upside: Kaleb and Kellie. They both had strong social games and looked good strategically but wound up being the first two members of the jury. They’re both consistently mentioned by fans as ideal returning candidates, but it looks like Kellie is about to get her shot on another reality show first.

FOX announced this week that it’s bringing back the game show 99 To Beat in the Fall to pair with breakout favorite The Floor, and rumors are swirling about some deep cut reality characters that are being brought back. Kellie Nalbandian has consistently been part of those rumors, and some of her friends, including the aforementioned Dee, have commented on social media about how excited they are to see her play. That’s enough for me to assume this is happening, and I am fired up about it.

If you haven’t watched 99 To Beat yet, you’re missing out. It sounds like the dumbest show in the entire world, but it’s an absolute blast. It follows 100 contestants who compete in a series of really simple tasks. One of them might be threading a needle and sewing two things together. One of them might be dropping a quarter into a shot glass inside a fish bowl.

Whoever finishes last is eliminated, and everyone else moves forward to the next task until eventually, there’s only one person left who wins the grand prize. Once you get a few challenges in, everyone starts taking it really, really seriously, and it leads to desperation, a lot of crying and even the occasional medical emergency. It needs a few minor tweaks, but the spirit of the show is fantastic.

During the first season, a bunch of reality show veterans participated including Survivor Queen Sandra Diaz-Twine and former winner Danni Boatwright, as well as Challenge favorite Cara Maria Sorbello and Big Brother’s Tommy Bracco. Kellie will reportedly be joined by other reality TV alum including Quinn from Big Brother and Daya Betty from Drag Race.

99 To Beat will officially return in late September. There’s no point in speculating how Kellie will do because there’s so much chance involved, but as a fan of her Survivor run, I hope we’re at least going to see a deep run and a lot of confessionals. Until then, we can all watch Dee dominate Big Brother and maybe, just maybe give us a little entertainment with a showmance.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck is now a very well-known TV personality. However, back in 2001, she was a 25-year-old still rocking her maiden name (Filarski) who joined Survivor at the start of the reality TV revolution. She made an impression on viewers for her personality and her tight alliance with Tina Wesson, who ultimately won Season 2. While she did pretty well surviving in the Australian Outback, she recently admitted she only made a half-hearted attempt to learn a couple of things on the plane out to film the TV show.

In an interview with The View producer Brian Teta ahead of her 2026 TV schedule return, Hasselbeck admitted she was not as prepared for Survivor as her CBS edit made her look. The good news? The flight from the U.S. to Australia is not exactly what I would describe as short. So, on the journey, she learned about fishing and tying knots.

These days, the types of things contestants do to prep for Survivor include intermittent fasting and figuring out how to get rid of unwanted body hair for 26 days. Contestants care a lot less about the actual survival aspect of the series in favor of the gameplay, and Jeff seems to like it better that way. However, in Season 2, the show was still very much a social experiment. Having survival skills at making fire or fishing gave competitors a giant edge, at least before the merge.

Hasselbeck said when she got to camp, she convinced everyone she was a “knot specialist,” and the rest was history. She became one of the most memorable contestants of all time, and went on to garner additional gigs on TV, most notably on The View, after her torch was snuffed. Interestingly, though, while she’s returned to the daytime show in the time since her 2013 exit (despite some controversy during her original run), she’s shown no interest in trying to return to the island again.

She’s said it’s because she doesn’t want to take too much time away from her children, whereas it’s easy to “settle in” for a quick stint on The View. Though fans recognize her from both of her prominent gigs these days, she joked it depends on how much effort she’s put into styling on a given day.

So, I would not expect Hasselbeck on Survivor anytime soon, despite Jeff expressly saying the show will be doing more with returnees in future seasons. Though, I'd love to see her show off these knot-tying skills.

Rick Devens is one of the most chaotic players in the history of Survivor. Between finding real hidden immunity idols, planting fake hidden immunity idols and lying about what advantages he may or may not have, he played harder and weirder than his fellow castaways during both of his seasons. Big Brother producers are hoping they’ll get that same outside the box weirdness from him this summer, but unfortunately, there’s one problem with that.

During the refurbished Big Brother Unlocked, Devens said during an interview that producers told him he isn’t allowed to make up his own advantages. Unlike Survivor, there are rules on Big Brother that prevent contestants from manipulating their fellow players, at least when it comes to production directives. That guardrail is staying in place this season, despite Devens’ presence. In fact, Executive Producer Rich Meehan made that very clear during an interview with Entertainment Weekly when Devens’ outrageous history came up…

This article isn’t long enough to rundown Devens’ entire shady history with rule-bending on Survivor, but I’ll give one specific example to illustrate what I’m talking about. During Survivor 50 at the beginning of the season, he took materials he found around the beach, wrapped them up in a pocket square and planted the package inside the Tribal Council set.

Weeks later, when he thought he was at risk of going home, he told everyone he found a clue to an idol that would keep him safe but hadn’t been able to retrieve it. He then got up, tore apart the set and grabbed the package he left to the absolute shock of the other castaways. He easily survived the night’s vote, as well as several more during a deep run.

I would love to see an alternate universe where Rick is allowed to lie to everyone and says he has an advantage that lets him put four people on the Block or some such nonsense. That’s not going to happen, but I’m hopeful he’ll still find a way to do a few really unexpected things. That’s certainly what production is hoping for. Here’s another quote from Meehan…

As of now, Rick is still playing it pretty low key in the house. If the live feeds are any indication, he’s built up a lot of strong relationships already, and he looks like he’s in a pretty good position with most of the houseguests, apart from Jason who is skeptical of him and the other reality show veterans like Dee and Angela. I suspect he’ll continue to blend and try not to get too crazy for a few weeks, but if at any point he starts to feel his back against the wall, that’s when we might see something really wacky, even if he’s been partially handcuffed by producers.

You can follow along all season, as we'll be covering everything going on in the house, from early season spoilers to late game strategy.

Survivor is one of the best reality shows of all time, and is still going strong despite its decades on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription). Its most recent installment, Survivor 50, was one for the record books, and clearly the Television Academy agrees because it got a whopping five Emmy Nominations this year. And the cast of Survivor 50 had a lot to say when their season was honored in this way.

The 50th Season featured returning Survivor players for the first time in years, which really helped to raise the stakes. And while Jeff Probst accidentally spoiled a segment during the live reunion, he was still nominated for Outstanding Host, alongside the show's four other noms, including Outstanding Reality Competition Program. The show's official Instagram posted about the noms, which you can see below:

The cast of the season sounded off in the comments section, and they seem thrilled that Survivor 50 was recognized. Because while the contestants are in it for the Survivor prize money, there's also a sense of pride about being in such a successful chapter of the show. Some choice comments read:

• Rizgod: we bringing it home Jeffrey! THIS IS OUR YEAR
• Ozzy: Had a dream about IT!! and WE WIN!!
• Kamilla: EMMY VOTERS PLEASE VOTE CORRECTLY THIS YEAR AND MAKE SURVIVOR WIN EVERY CATEGORY THANK YOU 🙏🏾
• Q: Would be a big mistake if Survivor didn’t win!!
• Cirie: 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾Welll deserved ‼️
• Stephenie: I called it and told you at the wrap party!! It’s your and our time 👏👏👏👏👏🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
• Tiff: 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

Clearly, the castaways of Survivor 50 are proud that their season is getting so much love from the Television Academy. And I understand why; they endured countless insane twists, and a number of beloved players ended up being eliminated early. But if their season got Emmy nominations, it has the potential to make some of their frustrations worth it.

Of course, some fans might be worried that Survivor 50's Emmy noms might result in future seasons during the Open Era being inspired by what happened during this last season. Because while 50 was fun, there were also some moments that went viral for the wrong reasons. Namely Zac Brown's extended cameo, which resulted in the lowest-rated Survivor episode ever. Twists like the Blood Moon didn't go over well either, while fans enjoyed others like the pair elimination and MrBeast's coin toss that doubled the prize pot.

The tease of the Open Era's start had some fans scratching their heads, but it's clear that Survivor isn't going anywhere anytime soon... especially if it keeps racking up Emmy nominations.

Survivor's catalogue is streaming over on Paramount+, and a new season is set to premiere sometime in the fall as part of the 2026 TV schedule.

It’s been a little over twenty years since The Amazing Race won the first Emmy for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program, and in the time since, the Television Academy has steadily added more awards to honor the great work being done in the reality space. Given the popularity and staying power of the genre, those honors have been well deserved, but there’s still one huge omission the Television Academy needs to fix.

Producers, hosts, casting departments, cinematographers, costume designers and more working professionals are now eligible to win dedicated categories, but the actual people we tune into these shows to watch still aren’t eligible to win anything at the Emmys. That’s a problem, and it’s also a huge missed opportunity. We need a category that’s for Best Reality Competition Contestant And/ Or Cast Member, and we need it as soon as possible.

Imagine an alternate universe in which Survivor legends like Boston Rob, Parvati Shallow, Sandra Diaz-Twine and Cirie Fields were Emmy nominees or even winners. Imagine a world in which Big Brother favorites like Rachel Reilly, Dan Gheesling and Taylor Hale could brag forever about being recognized by the Academy. Imagine if standouts from Drag Race, Top Chef, Amazing Race, American Idol, Love Island, The Traitors and other competitions were eligible to do more than just win the show.

And that’s doubly true for the stars of more traditional reality shows. The Real Housewives are the most obvious example. Nene Leakes, Lisa Vanderpump, Teresa Giudice and so many others have turned millions of people into passionate and dedicated fans. They’re fantastic at what they do and deserve the chance to be honored in the same way as the stars of more traditional scripted shows. How much drama and intrigue and fun would have been created by some of these women being put head-to-head in the same Emmy category? I’d watch a multiple episode arc of that every season.

I’m sure there are any number of practical reasons why this hasn’t happened. I’m sure there are issues with union vs non union performers. I’m sure there are issues with feeling like these personalities are supposed to be “real people” and not professionals working on a show. I’m sure it would be awkward for voters to try and figure out how to compare Tom Sandoval to Rick Devens and Bob The Drag Queen.

I get that it’s complicated, but the Emmys are about honoring people doing great work in television. Clearly, the Television Academy has decided the reality genre is worth celebrating and is here to stay. I agree. Now it’s time to start celebrating the actual people we’re watching each season. With all due respect to hosts, it’s the actual contestants who make or break a season. Assumedly, that’s why, back in 2017, the Academy officially added Outstanding Casting For A Reality Program. Now it’s time to do the same for the contestants and cast members.

If it were up to me, I’d add four categories and do Best Male Star In A Reality Show, Best Female Star In A Reality Show, Best Male Competitor In A Competition Show and Best Female Competitor In A Competition Show. Honestly though, I’d settle for just one that more generally honors the stars in the entire Reality-Competition space. They’ve collectively earned their moment. Now it’s time we give it to them.

We’re just days away from the season premiere of Big Brother 28, and we’re all guzzling down rumors like the slop punishment just ended. This season’s theme is time travel, and it’s being widely speculated that we’re going to see the return of some Big Brother legends, as well as stars from other reality shows. Survivor is the crossover franchise being discussed the most, and few names have been thrown around more aggressively than that of Tyson Apostol. Let the record show, however, that he is claiming he wants no part of that.

The former winner did his weekly appearance on the Rob Has A Podcast network a few days ago, and to say he poured cold water on the rumors would be understating what happened. Not only did he deny he was going on the show, he unloaded on the entire Big Brother franchise. He said he’s been very open in the past about how much he hates it and how much he hates the “annoying Big Brother energy” many of the houseguests have. Here’s a portion of his quote…

Now, you’re probably thinking this little rant put an end to the Big Brother rumors, but you would be mistaken. Apostol has a bit of a wacky sense of humor. He once said he went on The Challenge because he knew other Survivor players were hoping to get invites, and he wanted to make them jealous. He’s not exactly someone who is honest about what’s going on all the time.

Just as there’s a history of dunking on Big Brother, there’s also a history of saying one thing and doing the exact opposite. He’s been on non-Survivor reality shows in the past, and it would not be a shock to see him show up in the Big Brother house this summer, even after this middle finger.

That being said, I’m not really sure Big Brother producers share Tyson’s unusual sense of humor. I’m not sure they would enjoy bringing on someone who just publicly ripped their show. Also, even if they did, I’m pretty sure Tyson is telling the truth. I don’t think he wants to go on Big Brother because I really do get the sense that he hates it. I don’t think he’s been doing some long-term bit to fool people.

The fun thing about this Big Brother season, however, is that we all get to speculate about what might be coming. Whether it’s Tyson or some other legend, it seems like we are going to get fun Survivor representation on the show, and I’m sure we are going to get many of the biggest names in Big Brother history back in some capacity. I can’t wait to see all the surprises, and I can’t wait to speculate with fans the entire time.

Big Brother premieres on Thursday July 9th on CBS. Fans can also follow the show via live feeds on the currently discounted Paramount+, which will start on the 10th.

We may be in a bit of a lull in the Survivor narrative after Season 50 wrapped its storied season and fans await Season 51. However, former cast members have still been very active, talking about what happened on the island and more. And noted sharer Savannah Louie – yes, the contestant with the intense prep stories – just explained a bit more about what happens when the cast ends up in Ponderosa.

If you’re reading this, I assume you watch the show and know that Ponderosa is the place exiled Survivor cast members go after the tribe has spoken and their torches are snuffed. Previous seasons have given us behind-the-scenes vlogs showing off Ponderosa, but in the Instagram Era, we also get photos of the cast having a blast and more. Like Tiff’s post after her exit:

Meanwhile, Savannah Louie actually won Survivor 49, meaning she previously didn’t have the weeks of relaxation at Ponderosa experience a lot of other contestants have. When she came back in Season 50, people found out she’d won, and she was eliminated before the merge. She later told fans all about her Ponderosa experience, and there were three things even I didn’t know having covered the show.

Louie recently spoke out about the three whole weeks she spent in Ponderosa, which we recently learned sometimes houses the Love Island cast at the same time. I know, weird, right? She opened up about some stuff fans should already have gleaned about the living situation post getting booted. We know the cast chats and shares the narrative after exits, and (as Jeff has noted) this can influence the jury’s decision later on, a move Louie says is “as close to a live season of Survivor as you can possibly get.”

But there were three more gems I’d not really known about.

The Cast Goes To Ponderosa Before The Show Even Films

Survivor fans know about the post-exit interview that goes down right after Jeff snuffs out someone’s torch. I was unsurprised to hear those are edited down, but Louie did share one interesting tidbit about the Ponderosa sitch I hadn’t know.

Yes, the Season 50 cast was stacked with returnees, so a lot of them had been to Ponderosa before, anyway. Plus, I knew contestants are kept quarantined before new episodes begin (though there was rampant cheating with this alleged in Savannah's own season), but somehow I hadn’t connected the dots this all happened in the same place.

There’s A Big, But Glum, Post- Exit Meal

Obviously, a lot of people are in their feels after getting voted out. It’s gotta be a moment that makes people feel glum and kind of unpopular, but Louie says it’s the best day for all the other ousted contestants, so the feeling is short-lived.

Plus, you get a giant meal out of it, so it’s really kind of a win even if it doesn’t feel that way?

You Have To Get Used To Sleeping In A Real Bed Again

Personally, sleeping on sand and hard bamboo sounds horrific. I’ve seen seasons of Survivor where bugs abound, and to be honest with you, I think this is the single biggest factor that would keep me from ever applying to compete for Survivor. For contestants who have already appeared on the show, though, it’s basically the opposite:

Clearly, the contestants on the show are gluttons for punishment, because some of them have slept outside on the hard ground, three, four, or even more times. I can't imagine what it would be like sleeping in a bed again, but I'm glad Louie is here to explain it ahead of of Survivor 51 hitting the 2026 TV schedule this fall.

Are we about to see two of the most popular franchises on television unite? Fifty seasons into its run, Survivor remains the most popular reality show on television, and now, it looks like there’s a chance it may join forces with a buzzy star of one of the Yellowstone spinoffs? Natalie Alyn Lind, best known for playing key Dutton Ranch character Oreana Lynn Jackson, recently attended last season’s finale of the beloved reality show, and while there, she apparently shot her shot with producers.

The Daily Mail caught up with the rising star during a recent event, and during the conversation, she talked about her convo with producers. She said the producers told her they want her on the show, but she’s trying to figure out how to work it into her busy schedule. Here’s a portion of her quote…

Lind has been open in the past about how much she loves Survivor. She once had a Survivor themed birthday in Mexico where the group literally played for an entire weekend, and she’s said during interviews that she would go on the show in a heartbeat. As such, it’s not a big surprise that she was so direct about wanting to go to Fiji, but obviously with her schedule, it’s far from a done deal.

The Survivor fanbase has a complicated relationship with celebrities to put it nicely. During the recently aired Survivor 50, the show shoehorned in appearances from Jimmy Fallon, Billie Eilish, Zac Brown and Mr. Beast, among others, and at points, the negativity was very loud, as some fans felt their presence was upstaging the season. That might make it sound like fans, in general, are against celebrities appearing on the show, but more accurately, they’re (mostly) against celebrities appearing on the show as anything other than contestants.

There’s a long history of casting celebrities and prominent people being full blown castaways on the show, and for the most part, those appearances have gone over very well. Hall of Fame football coach Jimmy Johnson, popular wrestler Johnny Nitro, former National League MVP Jeff Kent, Facts of Life star Lisa Whelcher, R&B star Taj Johnson-George and many others have shown up on random seasons as just another player. More recently, we’ve gotten Marvel superproducer Nate Moore and White Lotus creator Mike White, and I’d argue they were both two of the more popular castaways during their recent seasons.

A good rule of thumb is if you’re going to be on the show, fans want to see you fully commit and be on the show. Fortunately, it seems like Lind is willing to do that. I watched a previous interview with her talking about how she’s planning to make fire in her backyard; so, I think she’s fully in the deep end. She’s also got a very vibrant personality that would likely pop on the show; so, I’m all for this happening.

As to whether or not it will, however, that’s another matter entirely. There’s her schedule to worry about, but there’s also the producers. They may have given her positive feedback in the moment, but saying you’ll cast someone and actually casting them is another matter entirely. Fingers crossed it works out.

Regardless, both Survivor and Dutton Ranch are doing well on their own. Dutton Ranch will air its Season One finale later this week and has already been renewed for Season 2. Survivor 51 will return this fall to start a new era.

I didn't expect to find one of the best reality shows I've seen in a minute while browsing with my Netflix subscription, but here we are. Outlast: The Jungle just ended recently, and if you're a Survivor fan longing for the classic seasons of the show, this series deserves your attention.

Rather than nitpick at Season 50 and how the contestants of the modern era have it much simpler than the classic casts, why not check out Outlast: The Jungle? It's a competition series that puts the emphasis on survival and adds a social element that becomes vital for those who want to win its grand prize of a million dollars.

Outlast: The Jungle Puts Survival Front And Center, Unlike Modern Survivor

I know Jeff Probst preaches that the "new era" of Survivor is harder because they don't have rice, but I've just seen what it looks like when a team has to survive with zero food rewards from start to finish. Outlast: The Jungle had teams surviving on snails, coconuts, miniature crabs, and occasionally insects, and that's if they were lucky enough to get a fire going.

This reality show is hardcore, and in addition to tasks they had to complete delivered via helicopter, many of these players competed running on days without food, minimal sleep, or supplies. It's very similar to what I like about Alone, in which sometimes it's not even the challenges that force an elimination. Sometimes, it's just too difficult to go on.

I'm Hoping Outlast Continues To Do Seasons In Tropical Climates

I will concede that, prior to Outlast: The Jungle, the series would've been a poor Survivor replacement. The previous two seasons were set in cold climates, so whether it can continue to thrive as a Survivor substitute largely depends on whether future seasons will take place in a tropical climate. I think I'd prefer that, but only because I've watched enough Alone to know that once the temperatures drop, I'm just watching people hang out in huts.

I'll also say that if you're someone who is particularly fond of a host as delightful as Jeff Probst and challenges where contestants have to solve a puzzle, that's not what Outlast: The Jungle is. On this show, the challenges are like, "Hey, do you want a Ferro rod to make fire? If so, force one of your teammates to leave the game."

It may not be as creative, but it sets the stage for a lot of social conflict that reminds me of the early 2000s reality television days. When you're hungry, tired, and uncomfortable, it seems many contestants laser in on that prize money and making the experience worth it. This can lead to some pretty nasty exchanges, and Team Charlie, which may end up on a list of all-time reality show villains.

If that sounds of interest, stop wasting time and get to watching Outlast: The Jungle on Netflix right now. I can't wait for news about next season, which I'm hoping happens given it's in the Top 10 on Netflix.

Jonathan Penner has one of those Survivor résumés that would make you assume his most vivid memory involves pain, strategy or Jeff Probst calling for medical. The three-time player competed on some of the best Survivor seasons: Cook Islands, Micronesia and Philippines. He became one of the franchise’s most memorable players and was famously medically evacuated due to an infected knee. So, yes, I would have guessed that moment had lodged itself deepest in his brain. But turns out I'd be wrong.

It seems Penner’s most cherished Survivor memory is far more personal. While discussing the show’s 25th anniversary and Survivor's 50th season with People before the Tribeca Festival, where he helped organize a special panel, Penner said the moment that stayed with him most was seeing his late wife, filmmaker Stacy Title, during a family visit on his first season. He said:

That answer hits hard. Title died in 2021 following a battle with ALS, and the couple had been married for more than 30 years. What may have once played as a sweet family-visit memory now carries a much deeper ache.

Family visits have always been one of Survivor’s most reliable emotional pressure cookers. Players spend weeks starving, scheming and sleeping in the dirt, and then one familiar face steps onto the beach and everyone breaks down. For Penner, that moment was not just a morale boost but became the island memory he now holds closest.

For me, all that is especially striking, because Penner'sSurvivor career had plenty of moments fans might expect him to name. His medical evacuation in Micronesia was brutal, and it forced him out of the game at a point when he still had more moves to make. He also had memorable runs on Cook Islands and Philippines, where his strategic instincts, sharp confessions and willingness to scrap made him the kind of player who belongs in any conversation about Survivor contestants who really understood how to play the game.

Jonathan Penner's first season, Cook Islands, remains one of the show’s most discussed entries, and not only because of the gameplay. The season famously split tribes by race, a decision that former players Ozzy Lusth and Parvati Shallow have reflected on years later. Penner was right in the middle of that complicated season, which still comes up whenever fans rank the 10 best Survivor seasons.

Penner also spoke about how the game has changed, particularly when it comes to casting villains. He said he has heard Probst wants to move away from villainous characters, because the show wants younger viewers to see good choices lead to good results. He said he understands that thinking, but he also argued that morally complicated players remain part of what makes the show work. He added:

That feels like a very on-brand answer from Penner. He has always understood Survivor as both a game and a dirt-covered mirror held up to human behavior. The show needs heroes, but it also needs players willing to lie, flip and make everyone at home yell at the TV. That tension is part of why the franchise still sparks conversation on the 2026 TV schedule. Still, as a fan, I find it so sweet that after all the alliances, injuries, torch snuffs and confessionals, that meetup with his late wife is what stands out most from the experience.

Fans can revisit Penner's Survivor journey, along with every previous season, with a Paramount+ subscription.

Survivor has seen some changes over the course of its run, even now after completing its milestone 50^th season on the 2026 TV schedule. The reality competition series is still seeing some firsts, but there are some things that will never change. Longtime host and executive producer Jeff Probst weighed in on a perplexing mistake that Survivor hopefuls can’t seem to stop making, and he seems pretty frustrated.

It’s always fun to see who will be on the next season of Survivor and who fans will root for and against. It also means that some very lucky fans will have a chance to be on the show and try their hand at being the Sole Survivor. 51 seasons in, you never know what to expect with the next group of Castaways, and I can only imagine how long the casting process is. It’s probably pretty tedious, especially since some people can’t seem to stop making the same mistake. Probst shared some tips on how to film an audition tape at PaleyLive (Via Instagram) as well as one thing he finds pretty annoying:

Survivor is all about deception and making alliances before breaking relationships, so it’s not so surprising that some people would rather enter the show as someone completely different. It is mind-blowing to know that so many people are afraid to be themselves, especially for a show like Survivor, where it’s better to be yourself than someone trying mischievous... even if it means not making it all the way.

That being said, no one knows what it takes to be on Survivor more than Probst, whose own audition tape proved that being yourself does actually work. He’s previously shared his Survivor audition tape, a.k.a. the tape he used to convince CBS he should host the competition series. It involves him being incredibly goofy, a look-a-like doll, and really just showing that he wasn’t exactly suited to be in charge of what would be a staple on reality television. That ended up working, of course, and it makes me wonder just what would have happened had he gone the route of a chunk of Survivor hopefuls.

It shouldn’t be surprising that Probst is trying to give advice to Survivor hopefuls. Earlier this year, he admitted that he wasn’t comfortable with what producers wanted in the early seasons, which was to hold the contestants accountable in a “slightly more aggressive” way. He confessed that there have been seasons where he wasn’t necessarily himself, so this is just another example of why being yourself is always the best route.

This does make me wonder just how many hopefuls truly go out of their way to make their Survivor audition tape stand out, whether it’s climbing a mountain or who knows what else. And how many of those actually make it on the show. But it sounds like those kinds of auditions don’t really stick out to Probst in the way hopefuls want them to.

It’s not exactly a secret that Love Island and Survivor both film in Fiji near one another. However, this week the news blew up as fans found out the shows film so nearby that members of some of Survivor’s tribes can allegedly hear the Love Island cast partying across the water. Given Survivor keeps its own cast cold and hungry, there’s obviously been a lot of responses. Let’s talk it out.

What We Know About Survivor Filming By Love Island

It was actually members of the Survivor cast who confirmed this is a thing. Season 49 winner and Season 50 early ousted contestant Savannah Louie said she couldn’t hear the other show on 49, but said during 50 that she could “at one point.”

Reports about both shows noted the two series frequently overlap.

While it sounds like filming was in tandem during Season 50, as well, I do think it’s worth pointing out Rizo did not hear the other show while he was on the island, so it’s unclear if this is a frequent phenomenon. Plus, other Season 50 star Tiffany said they might film at the same time, but called hearing the other island “a lie” in a separate social post. This had fans speculating about whether it’s actually the ousted Survivor contestants who are able to hear Love Island from Ponderosa, as Savannah was not ousted in 49 but was ousted way before Rizo and Tiffany (who both made it close to the end) in 50.

In general, CBS is known as a network for some of the best reality television, and originally ran both shows, though Love Island has been available with a Peacock+ subscription since Season 4.

Despite filming both in Fiji, there are not a ton of ways they overlap, save two. First, they sometimes share crew members. While the producers, hosts and more are different on both shows, The Sun reports that some of the technical workers, camera operators and more crew members are locals from Fiji who may do jobs across both shows.

Apparently, the Ponderosa location is the same location Love Island contestants and crew stay at while filming. However, an insider says there’s “no interactions allowed whatsoever” between the two casts. “Separation rules” are enforced if both shows film at the same time and house contestants at the Mana Island Resort.

Either Way, The Internet Seems Delighted About This Development

It’s unclear if Survivor contestants really hear anything while they are alone with their thoughts and their empty stomachs pre or post-merge. I do think it’s is fascinating there is overlap between the Survivor and Love Island casts. I particularly didn’t realize the infamous Ponderosa setup was the same as the other show’s base camp, and I wonder how they keep everybody separate in order to make sure the ousted Survivor contestants don’t leak.

I’m not the only fan curious about the arrangement. In fact, when Internet users also found out, many of them had amusing responses about what crossovers could look like.

• When they vote someone off of Love Island they should have to go join the Survivor cast -Phoenix
• We need a proper Love Island and Survivor crossover season where all the starving Survivor contestants start hooking up and the hot people in swimwear from Love Island start going feral -Mason
• Survivor should let love island use exile island -KFJDGH
• Hear me out: Love Island and Survivor are filmed on the same island. Next season they need to do a contestant swap of whoever gets voted off, see who can last until the end. -maybe-clare

I cannot imagine most of the cast members on Love Island agreeing to what the Survivor tribemates go through, except for maybe spicy narrator Rob Rausch. I’m sure Rausch would just catch a bunch of snakes and hang out. Meanwhile, I kind of could see at least some Survivor cast members on Love Island. I said some!

Meanwhile, Survivor used to travel to a different location every single season, but has been setup on Fiji every season since 2016. Love Island premiered in 2018, so the two shows have been side-by-side for some time. It doesn't seem to be an every time season thing, necessarily. Survivor 51 already filmed while Love Island 8 is in production now. However, Season 52 of Survivor is already ready to get rolling. So we'll have to wait and see. I'm very interested in more details about this whole setup, however. Jeff-- where you at?

Does Survivor give the winning player a specific edit each season? Longtime host and showrunner Jeff Probst has always said no. In fact, a clip of him saying a winner’s edit does not exist has been re-circulating since the Survivor 50 finale aired. What’s the truth though? Is there such a thing as a winner’s edit? I think it’s pretty obvious after what we saw this past season.

Before we get into my thoughts, let’s talk about what a winner’s edit is and what Probst has said on the subject in the past. Obviously, every season of Survivor has a winner, and whatever edit that winner gets is technically the winner’s edit. More broadly, however, when Survivor fans use the term winner’s edit, what they’re saying is that a certain character on the show was edited in such a way that it was obvious they were going to win.

Probst has been asked about the winner’s edit over the years, and he was the most vociferous in denying it during an appearance on The Friendship Onion a few years ago.

Pretty clear, right? Well, not so fast. In the same interview, Probst elaborated on his comments to clarify what the show actually does. He said the editors try and treat the show like a mystery. They either keep in certain clues or remove certain clues in order to keep fans at home guessing who might win the show. In a perfect world, he wants some people to be right and some people to be wrong. Here’s more of his quote…

That brings us to Survivor 50, which I think is a pretty clear example of what the show does and does not do. Aubry Bracco, of course, won the whole thing, and for the last several episodes, most fans were very confident she was going to win. In fact, I completely avoided spoilers and betting markets the entire season but still went into the finale thinking her win was basically a foregone conclusion. It seemed so obvious.

At the same time, however, it’s not exactly like she got an edit that made her look like a conquering hero the entire time. In fact, the show basically dunked on her during the early episodes. We got one scene with Genevieve that made her look like she had zero people skills, and while we got bits of relationships between her and Tiffany and her and Coach, we didn’t get to see her interact with a lot of castaways early in the game. For the first several episodes, many people who do power rankings had her near the bottom of their lists.

But she also always got consistent content throughout the show. She had at least one confessional every single episode. We got to hear her motivation and point of view on key votes and decisions she made throughout the game, and during the last few episodes especially, we started to hear her talk regularly about her goals and how she was going to win the game, all of which are parts of what fans think of as a traditional winner’s edit.

What made Survivor 50 so obvious, however, was that, with the exception of Jonathan, none of the other players who made it to the end got anything close to a winner’s edit. We know from exit press that Tiffany was a real threat to win the game, but she had the least number of confessionals for like half the season. The show clearly wouldn’t edit its winner like that. We heard from Joe a little bit more, but a lot of that content was other people roasting him in confessionals, to the point where it was really obvious he couldn’t win a jury vote.

Rizo got some positive content, but we also heard from player after player talking about him being lazy at camp or being someone they thought they could beat at the end. Jonathan got the best edit of the non-Aubry players, but we also got so many cut-to shots of jury members rolling their eyes when he would talk that it seemed unlikely he could win a vote either.

So, yeah, we all knew Aubry was going to win, but it wasn’t because she got the world’s most obvious winner’s edit. It’s because everyone else was so far away from getting a winner’s edit that she was the only one left. She was the last viable player because the show told us she was the last viable player. It went out of its way to tell us other people couldn’t win with the editing choices it made.

I don’t think it’s fair to say there’s a specific winner’s edit on Survivor. The show clearly changes up how it edits its winners. That being said, I do think it’s fair to say that there are certain boxes the edits of most winners check, and sometimes the show can lose sight of the fact that only one person is checking those boxes. Too many seasons end with one player who is a possible winner and a bunch of players that don’t seem like possible winners.

So, from my vantage point, they don’t need to change how they’re editing the winner, but in certain seasons, they do need to change how they’re editing the loser. That doesn’t mean they should make obvious goats who get dragged to the end look like something other than what they are, but it does mean second placers who get a few votes and people who finish fifth and sixth should often be more represented on the show, even if it means fans will be disappointed when they lose or go home. To use Probst’s analogy, a good mystery needs other suspects, and sometimes Survivor forgets to make its other suspects viable killers.

I hate to point down at my wristwatch in the universal sign of “time’s ticking,” but CBS, time is ticking. I really thought we’d pretty much run through the whole Spring 2026 TV schedule and learned the fates of all the canceled and renewed shows. Particularly after NBC's The Hunting Party was axed yesterday. However, one of the more intriguing entries this year is still on the bubble, and the Eye Network does not seem to be in a hurry to make a decision about it.

Yes, I’m talking about America’s Culinary Cup. The newcomer entry had an expensive-looking set, a large prize package, and much higher-end contestants than most cooking competitions, likely thanks to that big prize package. In its first season, I’d argue it did some things right and some things that could use tweaks. This is pretty typical for newbie shows.

Since CBS produces some of the best reality shows, and I thought this was generally well done for a first season series, I thought this would be an obvious pick for a second season. Turns out, this hasn’t been the case. There’s been discourse the series could go either way, and we are well into the month of June, and no decision has been made yet.

The Case For Renewing America’s Culinary Cup

Back in March, CBS was really gung ho about promoting America’s Culinary Cup. The show was the big push to garner eyeballs during March Madness. It also was put with Survivor on the TV schedule, a lead-in that should be a dream for pretty much any reality show. It’s also worth pointing out CBS is only doing one season of Survivor's other lead-in, The Amazing Race, per year, while the network still does two seasons of Survivor. Having TAR in the fall and episodes of Culinary Cup in the spring seems like it would be an idea pairing with the Jeff Probst-produced series.

It’s not that those shows have a ton in common, but as someone who watches a lot of reality competition series, I can confirm I'm not all that picky about what’s what. Plus, Padma is good TV and her rapport with Michael Cimarusti and Wylie Dufresne grew as the show wore on. It also maintained the same core audience through its first 11 episodes, as well, averaging between 1.5 and 1.9 million viewers an episode. Not amazing, but definitely consistent.

The Case For Canceling America’s Culinary Cup

The case for canceling ACC also needs to tie in with Survivor. Padma’s series was not a huge ratings behemoth during its first outing. In fact, it honestly struggled to hang on to the viewers who tuned in for Survivor. It’s also worth pointing out Survivor was airing Season 50 when America’s Culinary Cup was also on, so fans were way more excited about tuning into that series this season than they might be during a normal season.

This does not bode super well for Padma’s show. Let’s say Culinary Cup gets renewed to air next spring with Survivor again, great. Well, likely, Survivor’s numbers will be down from Season 50 just because it’s (likely) not going to be such an iconic returnee cast. If Survivor is down, the lead-in for Culinary Cup will probably be even lower for a show that is already only doing OK minus numbers. This is not great news.

I’d be interested to know how America’s Culinary Cup did on streaming. I actually watched it with my Paramount+ subscription, despite the fact I still have cable. That could be the factor teetering the series either way. I do think a lot of reality shows get better a few seasons in, and there was enough I enjoyed about America’s Culinary Cup to watch another round, but it may be too late for me to be saying this.

Still, I cannot believe CBS has not made a decision either way yet! It’s summertime!

Jeff Probst is always a hot topic of conversation amongst Survivor fans, but all the chatter around the longtime host has gotten particularly loud lately. That was to be expected while Survivor 50 was airing, but the volume on that noise has somehow increased since the finale aired. First, it was because of comments about how the game has moved past traditional villains. Now, it’s about who he’s thinking of while making the show: 6 year olds.

I know that probably sounds like a joke or an exaggeration, but when I saw the quote going viral, at least amongst Survivor fans on social media, I listened to the interview to get the context myself. It happened on The Town podcast earlier this year. The host asked Probst what he intentionally changed about the reality competition show after he took over as showrunner in Season 21. He said he wanted to make the picture look better and more cinematic, and he said he wanted to turn it into a family show that inspired little kids.

I can’t imagine you’ll find a Survivor fan that would complain about the cinematic part. The show looks way better than it did in the early seasons, and not just because technology has improved. Job well done. The family friendly part though? Not so much. A very loud contingent of fans has been screaming about how overly positive the show has become, especially during the so-called New Era, and this interview only pours gasoline on that fire.

Under original showrunner Mark Burnett’s leadership, Survivor was, at its core, a social experiment. A group of players with very different and sometimes divisive personalities were marooned in an exotic location, and while they technically played the same game they do now, interpersonal dynamics were much more central to the show’s focus, as were shenanigans.

Cast members screamed at each other regularly. They stole and sometimes burned or buried each other’s clothes. They lied about their grandmothers dying and being victims of Hurricane Katrina. They got naked, injured rival players during competitive physical challenges and said vicious things about each other during confessionals.

To be clear, there was always a lot of heroism and gameplay too. Castaways built shelters and learned how to fish. They made friends and one time, literally got engaged during a finale. They also figured how to play the game strategically, inventing alliances and blindsides, learning how to flush idols and split the votes. The good and the bad were all in balance, which is perhaps why the greatest season in the show’s history, the last before Probst officially took over, was called Heroes vs Villains.

Probst’s vision for Survivor, however, seems to involve removing most of those allegedly negative elements, and it goes far beyond his continual refrain that he’s done casting villains. Tribes can no longer take supplies from the other camp. They no longer compete in any challenges that involve touching, hitting or physically competing against each other. They can’t cuddle or take off their clothes. Players are told they’re less likely to be shown in the edit if they swear on a regular basis, and if an argument does happen on the island, according to players in recent seasons, it’s often either not shown at all or heavily minimized in the edit.

Jeff’s version of Survivor, especially in recent years, has become really inspirational and filled with positivity, but the thing is, it’s not clear if that’s actually what fans want. It’s certainly not what I want, and if you can go by most people on social media, as well as most people I’ve talked to in real life, it’s not what they want either. I’m not saying they want Real Housewives Fiji, but most fans want a mix of heroes and villains and a show that doesn’t shy away from conflict and negative feelings.

I watched the first season of Survivor with my parents when I was in middle school. I loved it, but even then, I understood I was not the target demographic. It was a show about adults, featuring adults doing adult things. Is it crazy to say that even in 2026, that’s the way it should be?

I don’t want anyone involved with Survivor thinking about little kids when they’re making casting or editing choices for the show, and I certainly do not want the host and showrunner thinking about them all the time. It’s how we’ve gone from Heroes vs Villains to a ten year New Era stretch that is considered by every single Survivor fan I know to be the worst group of seasons in the show’s history.

It seems like CBS may finally pull the trigger on a special that pits Survivor and Big Brother stars against each other, according to a new rumor. While we don't know if this will be a one-off planned for the 2026 TV schedule or something saved for those with a Paramount+ subscription, word is circulating fast that a lot of familiar faces are gathering for a new game show.

Prominent insider accounts like @TheBigBroTea reported that BB Season 24 winner Taylor Hale and Season 27's Keanu Soto were in Portugal at the same time. While there were brief rumors that the duo was dating, insider @realitytv_fan claimed on their Instagram story that CBS is filming something there with alumni of Big Brother and Survivor:

There are a bunch of names floating around about which former Survivor or Big Brother players are participating, and little to confirm it. On the Survivor side, I've seen claims from @SpinnerTea that Cirie Fields is participating, as well as Survivor 49 and 50 breakout Rizo Velovic. CBS has not confirmed any of this, but given it seems like something is in the process of filming, that's not particularly odd.

It's also not surprising that it seems like CBS could be pulling the trigger on a Survivor vs. Big Brother game show, as fans of both have pushed for something like this for decades.

In general, I feel like CBS could be taking a page out of The Traitors' playbook and finding more ways to bring stars of its various reality shows together beyond competitions like The Challenge. The Amazing Race recently did a full season with former Big Brother cast members, and BB featured Cirie, a Survivor legend, in Season 25. However, I'm dying for a program that truly brings the two shows together.

So far, this rumored show doesn't sound like the Big Brother/Survivor hybrid series that I had in mind, but I'll take it. Ultimately, I'm just happy we're getting more chances to see these reality stars on television, as there are only so many seasons of The Traitors, Love Island, and The Challenge to go around. I'm excited to see what becomes of this project, assuming the rumors are true and CBS is cooking up a new reality show for its viewers to enjoy.

Right now, the only thing we know for sure is that Big Brother Season 28 is headed to CBS on Thursday, July 9th. Tune in for the 90-minute premiere, and be sure to check out the episode schedule so you don't miss a single moment.

There is no universally recognized favorite player in Survivor history, but there is most definitely a core group of fan favorites that appear on lists over and over again. At or near the top are the show’s only two-time winners Sandra Diaz-Twine and Tony Vlachos. They’re both royalty in the Survivor community, but apparently, if they applied to go to Fiji today, host Jeff Probst wouldn’t cast them.

At least that’s the implication many are taking from comments the longtime face of Survivor made. He recently sat for an interview at a live event, and a portion of the conversation was recorded by The Ankler. In the clip, Probst mentions Tony and Sandra as good examples of villains. He says they were awesome once upon a time, but now that the game has evolved, he’s trying to bring in different sorts of people that bring more “joy.” You can check out the portion of his quote quickly spreading around the fanbase below…

Now, some fans feel like he’s implying Tony and Sandra are assholes in the above quote. I get where those fans are coming from, but I wouldn’t take it that far. I don’t think he meant to imply two of the game’s greatest players, who he has consistently praised over the years, are assholes. I do, however, think he’s saying people like them wouldn’t fit in the modern game, and that’s an obvious problem with the modern game. You can watch the full clip below, which begins abruptly and without context and judge for yourself…

In what should be a surprise to absolutely no one, many fans are not pleased with Probst’s comments. Obviously the ones who think he was calling them assholes are not happy campers, but there are also many who are just confused about why he wouldn't be desperate to find more players like them. Others are expressing more general frustration about the fact that they want more villains or that the show has become "nicest person left standing." Even some former players have come out and said they don’t really understand where Jeff is coming from with these comments.

It’s not exactly a hot take to say the Survivor fanbase hasn’t been particularly happy with the last ten seasons of the show. Those on social media have been pretty loud in saying they’re not happy with the direction, and that frustration has extended to many journalists covering the reality competition, as well as more casual fans I speak to in real life. There is a collective sense that Survivor has lost its edge and gotten way too nice.

You could point to the shortened game, the editing style that highlights players growing or learning something or the tendency to cast superfans who are happy to be there. More often than not, however, fans simplify the problem by saying there’s a lack of villains. Almost all of the narrative structure of the show is around the challenges, the strategy around the votes and the personal emotional journeys of the contestants. Once upon a time, it was a lot more about interpersonal conflict that often resulted in clashes at camp and mean-spirited confessionals.

Probst has, over the last few years, waffled a bit in his stance about villains. Sometimes he’s come out and said he flat out does not want villains on the show. Sometimes he’s come out and said he doesn’t want mean-spirited villains but does want cutthroat players like Parvati, Tony and Sandra. Now, he seems to be implying even Sandra and Tony take things too far. In the same interview, he pointed to Savannah and Genevieve as more modern players he thinks play a villainous style that he approves of.

Personally I’d much rather see villains of all sorts back on Survivor. I want the Tony and Sandra types, but I also want the Russell Hantz, Richard Hatch, Chaos Kass, Randy Bailey, Courtney Yates and Abi-Maria Gomes types too. I want people that stir the pot, but even if we don’t get that, it sounds like change is coming to Survivor sooner rather than later.

Probst announced the next season of the show will start the so-called Open Era, which will make the game more unpredictable. We’ll also be getting another returnee season, probably during 53 or 54. Fingers crossed he surprises everyone and bring back Sandra or Tony or another one of the OG villains.

A new reality series leaning into the concept of "bed rotting," or hanging out in bed the entire day, is on its way to the 2026 TV schedule. What's more, alumni from The Traitors, Love Island, and Survivor are involved in this wild-sounding, new series as well. Bed Rot is premiering a new season on YouTube, and it even has a star from Taylor Frankie Paul's canceled season of The Bachelorette. Of course, some people may want to know how the bathroom accommodations are going to be situated.

The news comes from EW, which reports that the CozyEarth YouTube channel is launching the new season of Bed Rot featuring well-known celebrity talent. Here's a rundown of who is involved as well as information on other reality shows they've been part of over the years:

• Carolyn Wiger - Survivor, The Traitors
• Natalie Anderson - Survivor, The Traitors, The Challenge, The Amazing Race
• Ben Katzman - Survivor
• Vanna Einerson - Love Island USA
• Chase McWhorter - The Secret Lives Of Mormon Wives
• Aaron Kahng - The Bachelorette
• Zadok Esters - Beast Games
• Luke Yates
• Phalesia Pilkington
• Sam Curtis

This group will compete for $100,000 in a competition that involves staying in a bed for as long as possible. Contestants who leave the bed are eliminated, which opens the door to the big bathroom question on my end. Details on that front may still be a bit fuzzy. However, I found a previous season to research, and I got some (but not all) of my questions answered. And, needless to say, this may be the next reality show to deliver iconic moments.

What I Learned Watching A Previous Bed Rot Release

While it's true that Bed Rot contestants sit in bed for a bulk of the game, there are limits. Utah Business learned when the concept first took off that the show does allow for scheduled bathroom breaks, but only within a designated time frame.

There are also instances in which contestants must get out of bed to compete in elimination challenges, which is another way to cull the number of competitors outside of them, leaving the bed during the traditional six-day challenge.

While elimination challenges make up the bulk of Bed Rot exits I saw in my viewing, I saw some truly baffling moves that were more embarrassing than Jeff Probst's recent Survivor blunder. One woman who clearly didn't understand the rules was eliminated for getting out of bed to stretch and perform some yoga moves. (My thinking was that she was a plant added for entertainment value, but I've seen some pretty bone-headed moves in Big Brother as well.)

What I'm most eager to see is how Bed Rot does in the transition from online sensation to reality show, especially with top names from other TV franchises in the mix. This feels like its big coming-out party for the masses, though it had 85 million impressions on its TikTok account when it did Season 2 last year. We'll see how this season fares. I'm also curious as to whether this time next year a new season will be available with a Netflix subscription or if the show sticks to YouTube and other platforms.

Keep an eye on Cozy Earth's YouTube Channel for the debut episode of the latest season of Bed Rot on June 11th. I'm subscribed and ready to see how it turns out, and have a feeling Natalie Anderson is going to win it all. I'll also be hoping the best for everyone as they hold out for the bathroom.

I don’t think anyone would argue the last season of The Amazing Race was a fairly big departure from previous seasons. This mostly had to do with the format, which featured teams of Big Brother players and a loved one competing against one another for the winning million dollar prize. The previous CBS stars were all very aware of the cameras and how they wanted to come off, but mostly, it was really interesting to see reality stars from one game play another, and to see those fandoms collide. So, why doesn’t the show mix things up more often?

Apparently, There Is A Reason

I'd love to see a season of The Amazing Race that mimics what The Traitors has done for those with a Peacock subscription. While we've gotten some celebs on the reality competition series, I’ve honestly always wondered why it hasn't brought in more famous or semi-famous people. I do know it can be hard to get celebrities on the show in general, as Will Forte and Val Kilmer long wanted to team up for the show before his death in 2025. Scheduling was the major issue for the pair.

In an interview with Page Six, host Phil Keoghan basically confirmed scheduling was also the main problem with an all-celebrity season.

However, there would be several ways to remedy that. I can notably think of two:

• Do a shorter season (tighter windows would mean greater availability).
• Do fewer locations (this goes along with a shorter season and could be like the family season of the series, which took place in North America only, requiring less lengthy travel).

As it turns out, Phil is no dummy and has thought of this. He also explained what would need to happen if there would be a bigger, bolder celebrity lineup down the line.

I mean, c’mon Phil, Sydney Sweeney and Mike White want to team up. Let’s make that happen.

We Have Seen Some Celebrities On The Amazing Race Before

The Amazing Race has always been a place for semi-famous names to crop up. The White Lotus creator Mike White’s popped up. Fellow Survivor alum Boston Rob and Amber Mariano have showed up. Professional athletes have appeared from NFL teams, hockey teams and more, including paired teams like Cedric Ceballos and Shawn Marion or DeAngelo Williams and Gary Barnidge. There was also a whole season of influencers before the show tried the Big Brother season.

There’s also been a faction of people who are famous now who broke out on TAR. That includes names like Stassi Schroeder, who competed with her family back in Season 8. Or Natalie and Nadiya Anderson, who competed on the Phil Koeghan-led show before transitioning to Jeff Probst’s Survivor. Contestants flipping from Survivor to Race and vice versa feels pretty natural at this point.

Phil did also mention the “real people” seasons have anecdotally seemed more popular, but I’d argue a mix of a little bit of everything is better. It can be helpful to have some known faces during early episodes of shows. It’s easier to get to know teams in some ways. Mostly, though, I like it when TAR changes things up. I wish we had more seasons with All-Star or other returning characters. I’d also maybe like to see a mash-up where former teammates compete, but with a new partner from another team. Phil has said a season where the first-elimated teams came back would be the “worst” disaster, so we probably shouldn’t go that route.

Still, variety is the spice of life, and I wouldn’t mind giving some famous faces a go at a race around the world. Or, if Phil Keoghan is right, a race around one easy-to-navigate-in-a-short-amount-of-time continent.

When it comes to the 2026 TV schedule, I decided to do something a little different recently. and watch a legendary show I’d never seen before: Survivor…. starting at Season 50. Was it a crazy idea? Maybe, but I had a blast watching it, and I need to share my main thoughts about it after watching the finale.

I Think I Started At The Right Place…

When I first started the season, I became overwhelmed at first about starting here. There was a whole lot of talk about how legendary each player is in their own right, and mentions of their past seasons without having much context. However, as the season went on, I found it quite fun to see each of them interact in my ignorance of their pasts. It’s actually not unlike how I started watching The Traitors without knowing most of the contestants, and still got hooked.

I don’t regret this introduction to players because when I decide to go back and watch one of the previous seasons, I’ll be working my way backwards. I’m definitely already looking at our list of best Survivor seasons with the intention of putting another one on next. If I had just started from the beginning before watching Season 50, it would have taken me years… and I don’t think I would have ever watched it in real time as I did for Survivor 50.

But, I Immediately Want To Watch A Throwback Season

While I stand by my decision to watch Survivor for the first time over twenty-five years into its run, I absolutely need to go back now and see what the show used to be at the beginning, before it became the show it is today. I’ve heard from other fans that the show has gotten softer as it's gone on, and I need to see its origins in the 2000s and 2010s.

I know that back in the day, it focused more on authentic survival on an island and contestants dealing with living in nature for 39 days, rather than it happening across 25 days as it is now. Also, I'm so curious what the show is like without things like immunity idols, big twists and so forth.

I Like The Complexity Of The Game

I think the reason any of us watch a show like Survivor is that it’s fun to see people put in odd situations and how a range of personalities deal with it. From the distance of not being stuck on an island and competing with others for $1 million, it’s entertaining to see how things play out and what drama ensues. More than any other competition series I’ve watched, I really liked how playing the game requires balancing several types of skills that not everyone is proficient in at the same level.

Some people could skate by on a good social game, while others would prove their worthiness through physical feats. Others were just lucky! I can imagine it would be a very frustrating machine to be in the middle of as a player, but it sure keeps your attention as a viewer and is definitely very unpredictable.

Though, I Had Big Problems With The Challenges

While I get that the challenges are key to Survivor, I thought they got rather redundant after a while. I particularly didn’t like that a lot of them had many of the same elements to them, and relied mostly on physical strength, especially since quite a few of the same players kept winning over and over. Has it always been like this, or was this a flaw of Survivor 50? I'm not sure, but it was a big gripe for me.

Also, how come there were so many puzzles? It felt like every challenge ended with an upright puzzle, and I wish the producers had been a bit more creative. Now, I did really like the solo/exile island challenges because they were each very different and had me on the edge of my seat when they were played.

The Tribals Were Boring To Me Until They Weren’t

Early on, I felt like I wanted to skip through the tribals because boy, did they drag. The segment felt like a lot of rehearsed and empty words from the contestants that made me want to tune out until the actual vote happened. But, as the competition got tighter, tribal became a lot more entertaining to watch. I love the social experiment element of reality shows like this, and seeing how people swayed others to vote someone off the island is really intriguing to me, especially when there were idols and twists in play.

All The Celebrity And Branding Tie-Ins Were Hilarious

Something about Survivor 50 that I have to assume has become more prominent over the years is all the branding tie-ins and celebrity mentions. I know I’m not the only one who found them to be very tacky, random and disingenuous. (Heck, Billie Eilish seemed to even roll her eyes at her own idol).

As someone who works in journalism in the modern age, I totally get the need for diverse revenue streams nowadays, but there’s got to be a better way to implement them in the show. I mean, I read that the Zac Brown episode was the lowest-rated episode ever, and I’m not surprised because it just felt so out of place.

I Want Cirie In Every Season Ever

Finally, I just need to gush about Cirie Fields, because I totally get why everyone was calling her the best to do it left and right. I had seen her win on The Traitors with an expert-level social game before this, and it was worth the price of my Wednesday nights to see her play on this landmark season.

I definitely want to seek out more of her seasons and check out other all-time greats (like Boston Rob and Parvati Shallow) because when someone is as good as Cirie is, it feels like you’re watching someone complete a social magic trick. I’m bummed her game was cut short, but even so, seeing her on Survivor was incredible to watch play out. You can definitely count me as a Survivor fan after seeing my first season, but I have a lot of catching up to do!

Ordinarily, the conversation coming out of a Survivor finale is mostly about how the jury voted and whether they picked the right winner. We’ve gotten some of that after 50 aired its final episode this past Wednesday, but most of the conversation has actually been about the spoiler longtime host Jeff Probst accidentally blurted out. It seems every fan and former player has dropped a snarky take on what happened. I’ve read every single one I could find, and after consuming all of them, I have to talk about the one from multi-time castaway Chaos Kass McQuillen.

The always opinionated castaway, who made the jury on two fantastic seasons (Cagayan and Second Chances), has been a vocal critic of modern Survivor and the way Jeff Probst runs the show in the past. To my surprise, she dropped a tweet defending the show’s figurehead for this particular mistake, but then, because she’s Kass, she also ripped his soul out in a follow-up comment.

Her first message came in the middle of everyone dunking on Probst for his big mistake. During the finale, the show aired the pre-recorded lead-up to the fire-making challenge, then cut to Probst, who blurted out who the winner was prior to the actual fire-making competition being shown. It was confusing and awkward, and while he recovered nicely and made a few funny jokes about it later in the night, it was still not ideal.

For like a forty-eight hour period, it felt like every single person even vaguely related to the show was taking turns twisting the knife. The clowning just wouldn’t stop, and then, out of nowhere, Chaos Kass, one of Probst’s harshest critics, dropped a tweet in his defense. You can check out her quote below…

I’m not saying that’s the nicest tweet I’ve ever seen, but from Chaos Kass, you’re gonna take that if you’re Jeff Probst every single time. She’s one of the least likely contestants in the history of the show that I’d guess would defend Probst, but personally, I’m glad she did. From my perspective, Probst should take his share of the blame as the show’s producer, but he’s not the one directing the show. There are about a dozen other people who should have caught this mistake, either during the rundown or while they were live on the air.

You would have thought this would have been at least a small step to Kass mending fences with the popular reality competition, but someone responded to the tweet asking why she didn’t like Jeff. Let the record show she did not hold back. Look at this savage explanation…

Yikes. There are too many allegations to dive into all of them, but I think it’s worth talking about that last one because it’s become a common theme among some fans. Probst is, in my opinion, one of the greatest reality show hosts of all-time. He really sets the emotional stage during challenges, asks really thoughtful follow-up questions at tribal council and always appears in control. Most fans really approve of him as the actual host of the show.

During the early years of Survivor, he was simply the host, but as time went by, he accrued more and more power behind the scenes. Eventually, he became the loudest and most powerful voice as the lead producer, and the game has really evolved to fit his taste. That taste has led to the show no longer casting villains. It has led to way more confessionals about what players have learned and the emotions they’re feeling. It’s led to mostly casting superfans obsessed with the show and a dramatic increase in twists and advantages.

We’ll see if that changes though. After the recent finale, Probst and company announced the show would be moving away from the so-called New Era and into the next phrase called The Open Era. We’re allegedly going to see a lot of things we haven’t seen in a long time, with much greater variance in structure, theme and direction between the seasons. Who knows? Maybe even Chaos Kass will approve. We’ll see.

Most people weren’t terribly surprised that Aubry ended up with the most jury votes during the Survivor 50 finale. She was getting the winner's edit for awhile, but that doesn’t mean everyone agreed with the decision. Jonathan, who was on the wrong side of the 8 to 3 vote but the right side of that fire-making spoiler, was one of those people.

He’s been open during his exit press about how he thinks he did enough to win the game, and at times, he’s even been pretty direct about his frustrations with the jury. At least one legend of the game, however, doesn’t have a ton of sympathy for him.

An excerpt of Jonathan’s interview with longtime Survivor writer Dalton Ross of Entertainment Weekly was posted on social media in which he talked about how he’s not sure what to take away from his loss. He speculated that he lost, not because he played a worse game but because Aubry has such a storied history with Survivor. You can read a portion of his quote below…

The fan response to his loss and subsequent comments has been mixed. Many did not appreciate his connection to the so-called Honor and Integrity alliance and openly rooted against him during the season. On the whole, that group of fans are happy he lost and feel like he deserved to finish second. Others, especially more casual fans of the show who care about challenges and the more physical elements of the game, however, are still shocked he lost. They feel like Aubry mostly coasted in the background for most of the game and ultimately won because she had more friends on the jury.

Survivor 50 is isn’t exactly the first season where people are asking questions about the jury. Aubry herself knows that from her first loss to Michele in Kaoh Rong, and there are plenty of other former castaways who lost a vote they feel they should have won. Russell Hantz is a good example of that.

The multi-time finalist absolutely dominated his first trip out in Samoa, pushing almost all of the strategy, but he only picked up two jury votes and lost decisively to Natalie White. The next season, he came back out in Heroes vs Villains, and while he didn’t dominate to the same degree, he was still an absolute force and pushed his way into Final Tribal Council again. This time, he got a grand total of zero votes and lost decisively to winner Sandra Diaz-Twine and second placer Parvati Shallow.

Not surprisingly, he doesn’t exactly have a ton of sympathy for Jonathan and made his views clear on social media…

Now, who exactly Russell is talking about here is unclear. We know he’s at least talking about Natalie on Samoa. Russell has been very open in ranting about how he felt like she didn’t deserve to win because she was too passive. He’s never been shy about that opinion.

His views on Sandra have waffled a bit over the years. She’s, of course, one of only two multi-time winners in the history of the game. He’s had some nice things to say about her abilities in the past, but he’s also been critical of her play style, feeling like she coasts and plays a more social-friendly game that endears her to the jury without controlling enough votes. Maybe he was talking about Natalie. Maybe he was talking about both.

Either way, I don’t think Aubry’s win and Jonathan’s loss is going to go down as one of the more egregious examples of a bitter jury. Unlike Charlie a few seasons ago, Jonathan’s closest allies (Coach, Chrissy and Stephenie) actually voted for him. Unlike Russell during Samoa, Jonathan wasn’t overwhelmingly the main character and catalyst for every single thing that happened. Ultimately, he played a good game but lost to someone else who made a few good moves and had more friends on the jury. That’s a tale as old as Survivor.

After more than a half decade of waiting, Survivor finally gave fans another live finale, and as you may have seen by now, it did not go as planned. Jeff Probst accidentally revealed the results of the fire-making challenge before it aired, and the resulting cringeness will be referenced, memed and laughed about for as long as the show is on the air.

Last night, we got a chance to hear from the host himself, who recovered and poked fun at the incident several times throughout the rest of the episode, but now Rizo Velovic, the castaway who awkwardly shared the stage with him when it happened, has entered the chat with his perspective.

The fourth place finisher, who was the spoiler in question who lost to Jonathan, told People that, like everyone else, he was very confused when it happened but is happy that they were able to play it off and make a joke about it later in the night. Here’s a portion of his quote…

The roots of what happened last night can be traced all the way back to a decision Jeff Probst and the producers made about the live finale. Fans voted before the season to bring the reunion back for 50 (which hasn’t happened since Season 39 Island Of The Idols), but those involved in the show decided to do things a little differently. Instead of airing the episode and then speaking to the contestants during the finale about what happened, they decided to break up the finale with interspersed live segments.

In practicality, that meant they would show a sequence of prerecorded events and then cut back to the live finale to talk about what happened. So, when Tiffany was voted out, as an example, we came back to a segment that included Tiffany talking about her experience. Then we went back to the final four.

That format worked out fine enough for the early portion of the evening, but it all went south ahead of the firemaking challenge. The show gave us the entire lead-up to Jonathan and Rizo being put into fire, but before they actually aired the competition, they cut back to the live finale where Jeff introduced Rizo and offered his condolences about losing fire. Rizo and some of the nearby contestants awkwardly told him that the footage hadn’t aired yet, and a confused Probst sent the feed to commercial to figure out what happened.

As Rizo said, the host recovered nicely and owned up to what happened. He made a few funny jokes at his own expense and then aired the actual firemaking challenge, which he hilariously introduced by telling people they could tune in and watch Rizo lose. It was a nice moment of comic relief, but it didn’t stop the mess from going mega-viral.

According to Velovic, the original plan was to show the lead-up to the fire segment, then show the actual fire segment and then bring him on stage. Unfortunately, they only showed the first part and jumped the gun by bringing him on stage.

Fans are going to roast what happened, but ultimately, I think the mix-up will be joked about and remembered in a fond way for as long as Survivor is on the air. Weird things happen on live television, and as SNL shows every year, sometimes the best moments are unplanned bits of chaos. That being said, I probably wouldn’t hold my breath on getting another live reunion next year. They’re expensive, and as we saw, very difficult to control.

Regardless, Survivor 51 recently finished filming, and Probst announced last night that the show is going to transition into the Open Era. Expect everything to be less formulaic than it was during the New Era and to incorporate twists and random ideas that have been on seasons in the past. Also, expect to see another returnee season sooner rather than later. Ratings were up this season, and while fans were mixed on some of the twists, they were clearly happy to see so many legends back.

Spoilers ahead for Survivor 50's finale.

CBS' Survivor changed the world of TV forever, and it remains wildly popular to this day. Arguably one of the best reality shows of all time, fans were recently treated with its whopping 50th Season on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription). Last night's finale had plenty of memorable moments, but arguably the biggest was when host/showrunner Jeff Probst accidentally revealed that Rizo lost the Fire Making challenge to Jonathan... before that segment had actually aired. Twitter exploded, and both fans and players offered some A+ responses.

Even the cast of Survivor 50 was gagged when Jeff spilled the beans about Rizo's elimination, with Cirie being the one to break the news to Probst. While usually fans at the finale are concerned about who is taking home the Survivor prize money, this time the biggest question was WTF happened with that giant spoiler. Fans sounded off on twitter, including Survivor 49 finalist Sophi Balerdi, who posted:

She's not wrong. These type of TV blunders have a way of going viral, and Survivor has once again made history as a result of Probst's mistake. And the fact that he did it it in front of a live audience of fans who called him out made things even more awkward. We'll just have to see if this ends up making In The Hands of the Fans one of the best Survivor seasons.

The Big Brother community also clocked this blunder, with Jimmy Heagerty tweeting out:

That GIF of Cynthia Erivo has been made into countless memes since arriving online, and this is another one of the greats. It pretty accurately describes what it was like watching the Survivor 50 finale and seeing Jeff reveal Rizo's elimination before we even got to see it on our screens.

Gordon Holmes, who is known for doing Survivor press including exit interviews, also tweeted out an A+ response, referencing one of the most iconic blunders of the show's tenure on the air. It reads:

Of course, fans know this is a reference to Erik giving away his Immunity Necklace during Micronesia, and then promptly being voted off by the Black Widow Brigade. It's one of Cirie's most famous manipulations, so it's good timing to invoke Erik during the finale of Survivor 50.

Jeff's mistake is being compared to lots of live TV moments, and another one that's being invoked on Twitter is Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars. As a fan tweet put it:

Another funny meme invoked the infamous note from Jersey Shore, with a conspiracy theory someone tried to sabotage Jeff during the live reunion. Check it out below:

While the above tweet might mostly be a joke, there are conspiracy theories circulating around online about Jeff's snafu at the finale. One claims Probst did this on purpose so he could point to it as a reason why Survivor should never do live reunions again. After all, they've been missing since before the pandemic. Check it out:

The live reunion was something fans vote on for Season 50. We wanted to see the cast reflect on their experience after watching the show, rather than the reunion happening in Fiji directly after the winner was revealed. Although in the end we didn't really get sparks and drama, and instead live segments were peppered in throughout the episode and a very short ending discussion with the three finalists (and Coach).

Survivor 50 is now streaming in its entirety over on Paramount+ as part of the 2026 TV schedule. The 51st season will premiere in the fall, featuring a cast of new players. We'll just have to wait and see what the "Open Era" has in store for us.

If you’ve watched America’s Culinary Cup, the newest series hosted and produced by former Top Chef star and lingerie designer Padma Lakshmi, you’ll know it’s still finding its feet. The show has a lot of great stuff going on: a-tier talent, an entertaining judges panel, and a fun premise with some interesting and unique challenges. Yet, like every fledgling series, it hasn’t fully figured it out, yet. I’m definitely going to need one tweak if the show gets renewed rather than canceled by CBS.

I Have A Love/Hate Relationship With One Culinary Cup Formatting Ploy

One thing Padma notes early on in Season 1 of Culinary Cup is that she was inspired by the train schedules at Grand Central Station when she created the leaderboard for the show. In theory, this choice is inspired. We get to see letters shifting until the settle on the rankings of the contestants after each challenge. It’s a little confusing to explain, but it looks like this.

In theory, I should love this. It’s a creative way to create suspense with the contestants but also the viewers competing. Tournament of Champions does something similar with its bracket reveal, but the flipping is more engaging in America’s Culinary Cup. So, what’s the issue?

In practicality, it drives me completely bonkers, particularly during early to mid episodes of the first season. In the video above, you can see we are down to three contestants, so when the letters click into place, it’s easy to see who is in first, second and third place. However, when there are more than 3-4 contestants left on the CBS reality series we don’t get enough time to see the contestant order and really let it sink in.

Instead, we get a quick shot of the leaderboard, and I’m constantly having to pause my screen to see who landed in the top, middle and bottom during a given round. It’s especially egregious given how long the series spends showing us all of the letters flipping and churning and working themselves into place. And then we just get the teensiest of result shots? I had no idea something so minor could be this infuriating.

I honestly got into this show a little late, so I’ve been watching it on my computer with my Paramount+ subscription. Ergo, I am perfectly able to pause my screen and sort of see what’s what with the standings before moving forward. That’s still annoying, but I have no idea if people are getting the full story if they watched the show live on the 2026 TV schedule.

Anyway, America’s Culinary Cup was a really interesting experiment for CBS to get into a cooking show. I know it hasn’t done nearly as well as Survivor 50 in the Wednesday slot, but listen, even this iconic Survivor season has had some down moments. In addition, I know some other viewers have not loved how much of the show is devoted to the judges panel and some other minor formatting quirks. However, with a few tweaks, I do think it could be really good. We’ll have to wait and see whether it makes the list of canceled shows this TV season.

CBS' Survivor changed the TV world when it premiered back in 2000, and it's still going strong today. Arguably one of the best reality shows on the air, generations of fans have been tuning into season 50 on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription). The fandom is still in mourning over Cirie Fields being betrayed by Rizo and voted out on Day 23, and Rob Cesternino spoke to CinemaBlend about how it was Ozzy's blindside that ultimately tanked her game.

The cast of Survivor 50 included both legendary players and New Era contestants, and the results were pretty explosive. Ozzy not using his idol during the split vote resulted in his elimination, and two-time player (and founder of the Rob Has a Podcast Network) Cesternino spoke to me about how Cirie's game was ultimately sunk as a result of her #1 being voted out. In his words:

There's a reason he's a Survivor know-it-all and the show's premiere voice in podcasting. This assessment definitely makes sense, and might explain how Cirie once again was robbed of Survivor's prize money. It's just too bad that she and Ozzy were kept separate during the split tribal; she was shown helping to inform his strategy a number of times throughout Season 50.

I've been speaking with Rob weekly about each new episode of Survivor, and back in April he predicted that Cirie might be vulnerable in her alliance with Ozzy and Rizo. Ultimately the latter betrayed her, likely because he never would have been able to beat the Traitors winner at Final Tribal. Later in our chat, Cesternino shared more about what he thinks would have happened if Ozzy stuck around, telling me:

Is anyone else's FOMO through the roof right now? There were plenty of fans hoping that Survivor 50 was finally Cirie's time to pull out a W, but she was voted off in the season's penultimate episode. And it seems quite plausible that she could have made it to the end if Ozzy hadn't been voted out on Day 21 during the split tribal council. No wonder Rizo has been getting so much hate from fans online.

You can check out my conversation with Rob Cesternino below:

The final five will face off this week on Survivor 50's 3-hour premiere, and it should be fascinating to see who pulls out the W. I'm personally hoping to see either Aubry or Tiffany take the title of Sole Survivor, but all of the returning players are hoping to make their way to Final Tribal. We'll just have to see what goes down, and how spicy the live reunion is.

Survivor airs new episodes Wednesdays on the 2026 TV schedule. As for Rob Cesternino, his new book The Tribe And I Have Spoken is out now, and he's even touring around the country to promote the New York Times Best Seller. Go to https://robhasawebsite.com/events for more information!

Richard Hatch has a strange Survivor legacy. The show’s first ever winner has been at times, celebrated and at other times, blacklisted by the show and its producers who never seem quite sure what to do with him or how to talk about him. Now we can add yet another weird chapter to the weird relationship.

Earlier today, Hatch took to social media to claim he was not invited to Survivor 50's live finale coming up later this week. Reports had been running around that every former winner had been asked to appear, but he tweeted directly at Gayle King who mentioned the invites on CBS Mornings and said no one had reached out to him. Here’s one of several tweets he sent out commenting on it…

Not surprisingly, that tweet and a few similar ones ran around the Survivor community very quickly, as fans debated why host Jeff Probst and the producers decided to exclude him. Within a few hours, his allegation also got picked up by a bunch of mainstream sources, which caught the attention of CBS. It turns out the network has a completely different story.

CBS refuted Hatch’s claim to Page Six and said he was invited, along with every other former winner. Here’s the super blunt rebuttal…

To be honest, I have no idea what’s going on here. It’s hard to imagine CBS would invite every former winner but him and then lie about it later, but then again, it’s also hard to imagine Hatch would get invited, say no and then claim the exact opposite on social media. The simplest explanation is the network reached out and didn’t get a hold of him, but nothing about Hatch’s relationship with Survivor has ever been simpler.

More than fifty million people watched Hatch, the scheming, openly gay, frequently naked leader of the show’s first alliance, win a million dollars. The producers had been hoping Rudy Bosch, a 72-year-old former Navy Seal would win. Probst and company worried Hatch’s manipulative behavior and cutthroat gameplay would stop fans from watching another season, but the opposite ended up being true.

Hatch’s alliance building and gamification of the outdoor challenge became a lightning rod for fans watching the show to argue about. Future players emulated his style, and he became a well-regarded legend of the game until it all got really complicated.

He returned for All-Stars in Season 8 but was involved in an uncomfortable moment where, while naked, he brushed against another contestant during a challenge. She felt he acted inappropriately and quit the show. He was quickly voted out and has not been back since, not even for Winners at War, though he has appeared on other shows. He also went to jail for allegedly not paying the taxes on his winnings and has not always had the kindest things to say about the show or where it has gone in the past.

But you can’t talk about Survivor without talking about Richard Hatch. The popularity of the show and the strategic gameplay behind it both trace their roots back to him. He’s a central part of where the show started and how it evolved. Sometimes those involved with the show are very content to talk about him, and sometimes it feels like they’re trying to avoid the topic entirely and let his legacy become a little more out of focus.

I can’t speak for all fans, but personally, I’d like to see Hatch at the Survivor 50 finale. To me, if we’re going to be honoring all the former winners, he should be a part of that. Whether he was invited or not, I hope he gets on the same page with CBS and mends the fence enough to attend. I won’t hold my breath on that Last Gasp challenge though.

With twenty-four players on Survivor 50, the edit was always going to be a challenge. There’s just not enough screen time to tell the story from that many perspectives, especially when you throw in celebrities. Some castaways were always going to get the dreaded purple edit, which is the Survivor fanbase code for mostly being a background character. With only five players remaining, however, it’s now very clear that the show missed a huge opportunity to give one of those purple players a bigger edit, and the consequences of not doing so will have a direct impact on the finale.

The player in question is Tiffany, and during the past few episodes, it’s become clear the other players look at her as a threat to win the game. She was everyone’s agreed upon target prior to her winning immunity during the last vote, and the players seem to be implying they’re planning to get her out ASAP this week. There’s a sense that she has a strong relationship with many jury members and that she’s a real threat to win the game if she’s around at the end. In theory, that’s not a surprise given her strong people skills and strategic abilities, but in real life, it’s a huge shock since the edit has barely shown us any of that.

During the first five episodes of the season, Tiffany got a whopping 2 confessionals. During that same stretch, Christian, Ozzy, Genevieve, Coach, Mike White, Rizo, Emily, Rick Devens, Aubry, Joe, Cirie, Stephenie, Colby, Charlie, Q and Savannah all got 10 or more. Jonathan, who is also one of the five players currently remaining in the game, got 8. Tiffany was the lowest of any player, and the second lowest (Chrissy) got more than twice as many during that same stretch.

Those first person confessionals go a long way in shaping how we view what’s going on as an audience, and they go a long way in helping people decide who to root for. By repeatedly not showing Tiffany, the edit implied that she’s a background character and not someone to be taken seriously. Even worse, it prevented us from understanding what was going on in her head or seeing any of the relationships she was building.

Early on, we got a little bit of her and Aubry and a little bit of her and Dee. Later, we got one bonding scene with Joe and more recently, a fair number of conversations with Cirie. That last bit has been sorta nice, but it’s hard to get too excited when we got so many more confessionals of Cirie directly talking about her relationships with Ozzy and Rizo. It’s hard to get too excited when we’ve gotten so many more confessionals and explanations and perspective content from everyone else left with the possible exception of Joe.

Now, to be clear, I don’t think the Survivor edit owes anyone anything. I’m not one of those fans who thinks every player should get an equal amount of screen time. You need to provide entertainment value or be key to the storyline to get shown. This isn’t a charity. The thing is though, it’s quite clear that, at least at this point in the season, Tiffany is very key to the storyline. In fact, if she had gotten more screen time and been given more confessionals throughout the season, we might be looking at her as a real threat to win this game, which would make the upcoming finale way more interesting.

With five players left in the game, Aubry is the clear frontrunner and has gotten a ton of recent narrational content where she’s outlined her strategy. Most fans are very confident the edit is setting her up to win the game. Why? Well, mostly because it doesn’t really seem like anyone else can win the game, except maybe Jonathan. Fans think she’s going to win basically through a process of elimination.

We cannot totally write Jonathan off because he’s been a steady and consistent presence throughout the season. He’s been given credit for several big moves, and we’ve always known what he’s been thinking and why he’s acted in specific ways. Like Aubry, he’s been a key character that’s been central to how the story has been told. He’s a viable winner. Unfortunately, we’ve also seen him do things like lick uncooked rice in front of everyone and be called easily manipulated in other people’s confessionals. Those aren't winning vibes.

He looks like a better bet than the other three though because yikes. Rizo has been a funny and RizGod-y, but the other players have also dunked on him a lot in their confessionals. Aubry has basically said she thinks he can’t win a jury vote at the end and would like to sit next to him, which is a terrible sign. Throw that in with all the talk about him being young and lazy around camp, and the edit has not presented him like someone we should take seriously.

Joe looks dead in the water too. He’s been a bit more of a consistent presence on the show, but we haven’t seen him push any of the strategy. We’ve also seen a lot of other players complain about how rigidly he plays the game. He’s basically been depicted as a strong challenge performer who is pretty well liked but is kind of just there and told how to vote most of the time. The edit wouldn’t make any sense if he won.

That brings us to Tiffany. The other players clearly think she can win. They’re desperate to vote her out. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to take her seriously when she’s been a background character for most of the season. It’s impossible to take her seriously when we haven’t explored most of these alleged great relationships with the jury. It’s impossible to take her seriously when the editors, through how they have apportioned screen time, have told us not to take her seriously. And that sucks because there was clearly a better story to tell.

Tiffany has been funny and full of life in the confessionals we've seen. She provided one of the season’s more entertaining moments when she told off Coach in the confessional booth, and her performance was great in many of the challenges. I wish we would have seen more of her. Yes, it would have meant we missed a confessional or two from Christian or Ozzy or Coach, but it also would have given us a finale in which we had more than one presumptive winner, one longshot and three people the editors have implied can't win.

Survivor changed the TV world forever when it debuted back in 2000, and it remains one of the best reality shows on the air. The competition series (which is streaming with a Paramount+ subscription) has gone through a ton of changes over the years, including some controversial format changes. Case in point: the 13th season Cook Islands, which separated tribes based on race. And legendary players Parvati Shallow and Ozzy Lusth recently reflected on being on that cast back in the day.

Ozzy and Parvati have been on some of the best Survivor seasons, with the latter even winning Survivor's million-dollar prize for Micronesia. But they both made their debuts in Cook Islands, and in Variety's story about the show's history, they broke down the show's controversial focus on race. Shallow recalled her first reaction, saying:

The cast of Cook Islands didn't know that Survivor was going to have this change of format, with the tribes separated into four tribes based on their ethnic background. It's a concept that seems truly insane through a 2026 lens, but that wasn't necessarily the case when the season aired back in 2006.

While Parvati was put on the Rarotonga tribe with white folks, Ozzy was on Aitutaki with Latin contestants. Although Cook Islands was originally segregated and pitted racial groups against each other, these lines became more blurred thanks to swaps and even the chance to mutiny and change tribes. Lusth recalled how things went down during that wild season, offering:

Points were made. While in the New Era Survivor made specific goals to make casts more diverse, that wasn't the case in the early days. And as a result, oftentimes people of color were targeted, highlighting the implicit bias that some folks had. But Cook Islands' controversial format resulted in way more Black, Asian, and Latin contestants being cast than the show's previous seasons.

Despite Parvati's initial reaction to the Cook Islands twist, she went on to share why she actually ended up being a fan of the format change. In some ways she echoed Ozzy, saying:

She's not wrong. While the twist might feel icky, Cook Islands was an iconic season that ended up introducing a ton of iconic players to the franchise. In addition to Parvati and Ozzy, Season 13 also introduced us to returning players like Jonathan Penner, Candice Woodcock, and Yul Kwon. Plus, who could forget Billy Garcia saying he and Candice were in love... despite being on different tribes and not really interacting much. History was made, people!

Survivor airs new episodes Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. If you want to go back and re-watch Cook Islands, it's streaming over on Paramount+... complete with its controversial twist.

Survivor is one of the best reality shows of all time, and it's showing no signs of slowing down. The 50th season is currently airing on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription), and there's been plenty of drama. Although exit interviews from eliminated players have revealed a big plotline that hasn't been addressed on the show at all (so far).

The cast of Survivor 50 is stacked, and have also been revealing BTS tea as they get voted off the island. While many fans wonder how much Survivor contestants make, other want the drama that we aren't shown on TV. Case in point: Chrissy Hofbeck's exit interview with Men's Journal, where she revealed that Rizo was actually quite ill while competing. While explaining her strained relationship with the Survivor 49 player, she revealed:

Honestly, I had no idea. While Survivor is a notoriously grueling game, the 50th season hasn't showed Rizo being ill. Although given the fact that he only had a few days between seasons, it makes sense that his body was broken down. But now I'm wondering why the show hasn't addressed this (so far).

Chrissy revealed that she expected Rizo to have some loyalty to her after taking care of him, but that wasn't the case. And she ended up being voted out alongside Coach via the pair twist.

Chrissy isn't the only player who has talked about Rizo's health issues during Season 50. Fan favorite Emily Flippen revealed that part of the reason Cirie pushed so hard for big portions during #RiceGate was because she thought that Rizo needed the fuel. As we know, he was one of the Survivor legend's closest allies during 50.

Survivor 50 airs new episodes Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. Only time will tell if it becomes one of the best Survivor seasons, or if Rizo's health issues are eventually shown.

Spoilers ahead for the most recent episode episode of Survivor.

Survivor changed the TV world forever when it debuted in 2000, and is still one of the best reality TV shows on the air. The long-running series (which is streaming with a Paramount+ subscription) is deep into its whopping 50th season, with the 11th episode featuring a double elimination. Five-time player and Survivor legend Ozzy Lusth sadly went home, although Rob Cesternino defended his reputation... while also revealing where he went wrong this time around.

The cast of Survivor 50 includes some beloved players, and Ozzy has competed on some of the best Survivor seasons ever. He once again went home with an Immunity Idol in his pocket, but Cesternino doesn't think he deserves all the flak he gets from the fandom. The two-time player and founder of the Rob Has a Podcast network spoke to me about Ozzy's reputation, offering:

Points were made. While Ozzy may be known for his incredible athleticism and good looks, the concept that he's not a keen strategist may be a bit of a stretch. He made it all the way to Final Tribal in his first season Cook Islands, and also could have taken home the $1 million Survivor prize money if he won that last Redemption Island challenge in South Pacific. Plus, he made it deep into the game in Micronesia before Parvati and the iconic Black Widow Brigade took him out.

During our chat I thought that perhaps Ozzy was too distracted during jury management to see how precious things were on Episode 11, but Cesternino once again too up for the legendary player, while also offering a point of criticism. Rob told me:

Survivor 50 has had a ton of twists, and one of them happened in Episode 11 when the remaining players were split into two smaller groups, with Jonathan Young being the only one who could vote in both mini-tribal councils. Everyone was more exposed as a result, and Rob C seems to think that is the time when players should use their advantages and idols.

Cesternino has been touring for his newly released book The Tribe and I Have Spoken, and there's an entire segment of it focused on how to play in a split tribal. He compared Ozzy's decision to not play his Immunity Idol with Cirie Fields' double-vote move, telling me:

Cirie has had a brilliant game in Survivor 50, and her timing on using the double vote advantage is just the latest example. Ozzy could have saved himself from his elimination if he went ahead and used his Immunity Idol, but instead was unanimously taken out by the rest of his split group. Still, you can't take away just how much he's accomplished in the game over his five seasons.

Survivor 50 airs new episodes Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. Rob Cesternino is currently touring with his new book The Tribe and I Have Spoken, check https://robhasawebsite.com/events/ for more information.

Survivor is one of the best reality shows of all time, and it is responsible for changing the TV world forever. The hit competition series (which is streaming with a Paramount+ subscription) is in the midst of Season 50, titled In The Hands of the Fans. Singer Billie Eilish got an Immunity Idol named after her, and while some fans have been hating on the twist, she's been hearing very different feedback.

The cast of Survivor 50 has been grappling with a new Immunity Idol format throughout this season: the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol. Unfortunately, the twist didn't really pan out, leading some fans to hate on the "Birds of a Feather" singer's involvement in the show. But during an interview from ET's TikTok, Eilish revealed what she's been hearing from people. In her words:

There you have it. While some of the hardcore Survivor fans might not love the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol, there are plenty of folks who are coming up to the Grammy-winning pop star and saying the opposite. It's proof that you can't please everyone, and also how much of a Survivor fan the "What Was I Made For?" singer truly is. It's just too bad she couldn't show up at Fiji like MrBeast and Zac Brown.

The reception around Billie Eilish's involvement in Survivor 50 seems to be largely negative because of how things shook out on the island. The Boomerang Idol's rules were a new twist; when they found a Hidden Immunity Idol, they had to send it to another player. And if that individual ended up being voted out, it would then boomerang back to the person who originally found it.

Fan favorite contestant Genevieve Mushaluk found not one but two of the Billie Eilish Boomerang idols, which she sent to Ozzy and Rizo. But then, when Genevieve was voted out on Day 13, there was no chance of us seeing the twist reach its full potential. If the idols actually did boomerang back to someone, then viewers might feel differently.

Survivor 50 airs new episodes on Wednesdays as part of the 2026 TV schedule. The two most recent episodes have seen Billie Eilish make a cameo during the commercials, so we'll have to see if this continues moving forward.

If you’ve been watching the landmark Survivor 50 on the 2026 TV schedule, you’ve heard Billie Eilish’s name on the show more than you probably expected thanks to The Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol being part of the show. And for the first time, the pop star has finally commented on the whole thing. Let’s talk about it.

Billie Eilish Comments On Her Idol On Survivor 50

Billie Eilish has been promoting her 3D movie with James Cameron in recent weeks, but The Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol only just came up when she guested on The Good Hang With Amy Poehler. Check out what she said about her infamous idol during the chat:

BREAKING: BILLIE EILISH MENTIONS HER IDOL ON SURVIVOR from r/survivor

During a “lightning round” moment toward the end of the interview, Amy Poehler asked the Grammy magnet what she thinks about Survivor, which earned a slight “yes” before she called out her immunity idol with a little chuckle. She then went into giving the SNL alum an explanation, using air quotes when saying she wrote a letter to the contestants, complete with a little eye roll and shrug when discussing it all.

Reddit has a lot of thoughts about how she talked about it:

• “'It’s like I ‘wrote a letter’ to the contestants” she’s borderline mocking it and barely knows what it is lmfao” @goldteamdowntown
• "Oh she does not give a shit at all. The eye roll killed me 😭" @reasonable_fun3170
• "she seems like she totally does not give a rat’s ass about it 😭 she does not mention the word 'Boomerang' or '50' once" - @bahscohs
• "She has such contempt for it hahah. I wrote a 'letter' to the 'contestants'" - @kakahuhu
• "She dgaf im dead 😭" @21tcook

Now, of course these are perceptions of Billie Eilish based on a one-minute video, so we can definitely take their comments with a grain of salt. But, it’s definitely worth talking about the way in which the celebrity cameo element of Survivor 50 has gone this season, and how much the celebrities with their names on different aspects of the game really tie back to them that much or at all.

Why Her Eye-roll Reaction Totally Makes Sense To Me

Back in March, Jeff Probst revealed how The Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol was created to People. Here’s what he said:

So when Billie Eilish uses quotes to say she “wrote a letter” she means that she didn’t actually write it from the heart. She was likely asked to be involved in Survivor 50 because she previously wrote a song that references the series and Probst took notice.

While she had some say in which affect her idol would have on the game, ultimately it doesn’t seem like Eilish had very much to do with it. Therefore it seems like it's as much this funny thing to her as it is to fans.

Other than the Barbie singer, Zac Brown was on the lowest rated episode of Survivor when his appearance overshadowed the whole episode. Then, Jimmy Fallon was also named in Survivor for his twist called “One In The Urn” a couple of episodes ago and there was a MrBeast Super Secret Beware Advantage during last week’s tribal that ended up changing the stakes for the contestants in a very big way.

With three episodes left, we’re certainly curious how other random celebrities will shake things up on Survivor 50 including The Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol.

Uh oh. After the craziness of the Mr. Beast beware advantage, I was thinking Survivor might give us a more relaxed 90 minutes this time around, but the upcoming episode description is worrying, to put it nicely. In fact, it’s causing some Survivor fans and journalists like this one to brace themselves for a possible worst case scenario.

Before I get into the specifics, you should decide whether you want to go down this road. There’s a possible spoiler in the episode description, and earlier this season when we had a possible spoiler, it wound up being very accurate. This one is a little more vague, but there’s still an obvious takeaway that may or may not be true. Read on at your own risk.

Anyway, the next episode is entitled “Everyone Will Be Shooketh.” To hype up what’s ahead, the show put out the official three sentence description to tease everyone, and the last sentence is a potential bombshell. You can read the whole thing below…

Clearly, the big concern here is a medical evacuation. We unexpectedly lost Kyle, who had put himself in a great position, early in the game, and it would be emotionally devastating to lose another person. That would be the clearest example of a “shocking incident,” and it would also help explain why we still have nine people left in a spot where it feels like we should have eight.

Given the producers historically have had no issue teasing big moments in less than subtle ways in these descriptions, there’s a real chance this could be nudge nudging us that we're about to see a medical evacuation too. Whoever writes these has not earned the right to be trusted.

In fact, earlier this season, one of these descriptions told us in advance that Rick Devens was going to go for the fake idol at Tribal Council. It obviously didn’t say that directly, but the description said a player makes a “theatrical risk” at Tribal to cast doubt on a vote. Anyone who watches the show knows exactly what that’s referring to.

Thankfully, this “shocking incident” that’s being teased for next week is a little more vague. It sounds like a medical evacuation, but it could mean a big argument or a taunt that goes wrong or a twist the players don’t see coming. Some snarky fans on social are even joking the shocking moment could mean Cirie winning the immunity challenge, Sick burn.

With only three episodes left in the season, it seems like most fans are relatively positive on Survivor 50. There’s been a lot of backlash around a few of the twists, as well as the over-the-top celebrity involvement, but most of the cast members have really delivered with personality content. There have also been some fun twists that did work, as well as a few wild moments at tribal that will be remembered for a long time.

Collectively, it hasn’t been enough to displace Heroes vs Villains as the consensus all-time great returning season, but it’s been good enough that I think most fans would put it in the top half. Hopefully that means we’ll get a few more seasons with returning favorites over the next few years, as host Jeff Probst has teased.

You can catch new episodes of Survivor on Wednesday nights on CBS or you can stream on Paramount Plus.

Spoilers ahead for the 10th episode of Survivor 50.

Survivor changed the TV world forever, and remains one of the best reality shows on the air. We're getting deep into Season 50, which is airing on CBS and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription. It remains to be seen if it ends up being considered one of the best Survivor seasons, but its various celebrity cameos have been getting a big reaction from fans. Two-time player Rob Cesternino spoke to CinemaBlend about why the MrBeast cameo worked... and how easily it could have gone wrong.

The cast of Survivor 50 has been putting in the work, but they've been aided by Billie Eilish, Jimmy Fallon, Zac Brown (who was in the lowest rated episode), and now MrBeast. Rob Cesternino, aka the founder of the Rob Has a Podcast network, is speaking with CinemaBlend weekly about each new episode, and got real about how this latest celebrity cameo worked. In his words:

He's not wrong. While MrBeast being on Survivor (and even attending Tribal Council) got some hate from fans, it ultimately resulted in a thrilling episode of TV. The MrBeast Super Beware Advantage ended up being a coin toss, where someone could either win and get immunity (plus increase the prize money), or simply be eliminated before any votes were cast. Scene stealer Rick Devins was the one who flipped the coin, and it all worked out. But think about how anticlimactic it could have been if he didn't pick correctly?

Survivor 50 has been chock full of wild twists, to varying degrees of success and acceptance by the fans. The ones that hit seemed to have exciting results, such as the pair eliminations and now Rick's coin toss. But if all that build-up happened for nothing, fans might be singing a different tune. You can see my conversation with Rob Cesternino below:

While many fans wonder how much money Survivor contestants make, MrBeast's cameo means that the winner of the season will now be awarded a whopping $2 million. The only other time this has happened was during Winners at War, presumably in order to convince the cast to come back. So the stakes have just gotten much higher.

New episodes of Survivor air Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. Rob Cesternino's book The Tribe and I Have Spoken is out May 5th, and the Survivor and Traitors star is doing a book tour. Visit robhasawebsite.com/events for more information!

The Survivor community is currently melting down because there may or may not be a spoiler going around. More specifically, there may or may not have been an implication that a certain player is going to lose later in the season, and a lot of fans are in their feelings about it. Let’s talk out what happened and figure out what we should and shouldn’t be taking away from it.

Before I get into the specifics of the possible spoiler, I want to say very directly out loud that we might be talking about a spoiler here. Not speculation, a spoiler. So, if you’re the type of person who wants to avoid any possible leaked information, then you should go ahead and bail on this article. We’ll also be talking very directly about episode 10 (“A Side Dish Of Chaos”); so, if you’re not caught up, that’s another reason to bail.

OK. Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s talk about it. Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, of course, got her torch snuffed this past episode. She seemed to be in a pretty good place to make a deep run or even make the finals, but after Jonathan floated a possible Ozzy vote and Cirie found out, it was eventually flipped back onto Stephenie, who went home.

She’s been doing exit press over the last day or so and is clearly not a happy camper about how everything went down. She’s talked repeatedly about how she felt she was playing a good game and how getting eliminated this time was, by far, the most upsetting of the four times she played. During those conversations, the subject of Cirie obviously came up, and not surprisingly, she’s frustrated with her long time frenemy. From her perspective, she never seriously floated Cirie’s name and wasn’t planning on turning on her, but once again, she’s the one who went home, despite allegedly having many conversations about how they were planning to play together.

All of that talk is obviously fine and exactly what we’re all looking for out of exit interviews, but during her conversation with longtime Survivor journalist Dalton Ross over at EW, she may have taken things a bit too far. She told a story about an unaired moment that happened at Tribal Council, and based on the way she phrased it, many think it may foreshadow something that’s going to happen later in the season.

Apparently during the chaos of Tribal Council, Stephenie approached Cirie and Ozzy and essentially threatened them. She confronted them about floating her name and said it was in their best interests to keep her around. Here’s a portion of the quote…

Now, the quote on the surface isn’t that bad. People doing exit press or talking on social media essentially tell fans they’ll need to watch to see how it plays out all the time. The goal of exit press is for the player to explain what they were thinking and how it all went down up to that point. Stephenie essentially does that, but in the interview when she says let’s see how it pans out for her and Ozzy, she’s got a big smile on her face like it’s Christmas morning.

To be very clear, there is not universal agreement in the community about whether her quote means anything or is a spoiler at all. There are some fans who feel like she didn’t say anything wrong. She told a very relevant story about a moment that happened at Tribal Council and told people to tune in to figure out whether betraying her is going to cost Cirie again, as it did in Heroes vs Villains. Then again, there are others who absolutely think it’s a spoiler and that she’s implying Cirie is going to lose again and part of the reason is because she cut Stephenie too quickly.

It’s worth noting that Ross posted the clip on social media, and a strong case could be made that he has as good or better access to Survivor players than any journalist in the entire community, with the possible exceptions of Mike Bloom and OG legend Rob Cesternino, who we've been having weekly convos with. It’s hard to imagine he would intentionally post a clip on social that he thought was some huge spoiler, but if you look at the comments, it’s filled with people yelling about how they think this is a spoiler and it should be taken down.

Personally, I don’t really know what to make of the comment. I went into this season thinking Cirie had a major uphill battle to win because every single player is aware she’s probably going to clean up at Final Tribal Council if she gets there. I was never confident she was going to get to the end, and this doesn't really change my perception of that.

It certainly doesn't change my feelings about Ozzy. Yes, he's included in the comment, but she was clearly talking more about Cirie and their history together. He was included since he was part of the conversation, but I'm not really going to take it as a spoiler on his end. But even when it comes to Cirie, I don't know how seriously to take this. Stephenie was definitely smiling when she said we’ll see how it pans out for them, but we do a dozen or so interviews a week here at CinemaBlend and body language and vibe don’t always come across on camera.

Sometimes I’ll talk to one of our editors who did an interview and say it seemed like someone was in a great mood or a bad mood, and having been in the room, they’ll have a very different impression or they'll read a comment made in a different way. So, if Stephenie and Dalton, the two people who participated in the interview, didn’t think it was a spoiler and CBS hasn’t asked anyone to take it down, maybe it’s not a spoiler.

There are three episodes left in Survivor 50. Fans have had a lot to say about all the twists, some of which have worked and some of which haven’t, but it’s been undeniably great to see so many legends of the game back and up to all their shenanigans. You can catch new episodes on CBS on Wednesday nights or stream the show via Paramount Plus.

There are a lot of hardcore Survivor fans who watch the edit very closely. They track confessional counts, analyze the tone players are getting and try to figure out why certain storylines and alliances are either included or omitted. For weeks, they’ve been convinced there were only four players left with real winner potential, but after episode 10, many are quickly backtracking and suddenly convinced a surprise fifth player might be the winner.

The player in question is Aubry Bracco, and to say she’s received an unusual edit would be an understatement. She’s gotten at least one confessional in every episode (which is true of every winner since Survivor 42), but a lot of the content she’s gotten has been negative. We’ve been shown a bunch of confessionals about how she was ready to start playing the game or ready to make big moves, only to not be involved in whatever move was actually made that episode. Throw in how her weird feud with Genevieve was depicted early in the season, and the overall picture has been kind of hapless and impotent.

That edit has caused both casual viewers and most people in the so-called Edgic community that track everything in more sophisticated ways to basically write her winner potential off, but not so fast. Despite once again not really doing anything, Aubry was edited in a really curious way during “A Side Dish Of Chaos.”

We got a full backstory about her previous controversial loss to Michelle Fitzgerald in Kaoh Rong. She talked about how the thing she learned is that you can win Survivor by making big moves later in the season. In a way, it recontextualized all of her previous confessionals about stepping up and making a big move and made it look more like she’s biding her time and less like she’s flailing around.

On his podcast after the episode, Phil from Survivor Specialists said he’s now convinced Aubry is going to win the entire season. His co-host Will didn’t go that far but said he thinks she’s now among the small group of potential winners. They’re not the only ones shouting that either. Numerous fans hit up social media to talk about how it suddenly looks like Aubry is getting a winner’s edit, with many pointing to her confessional about Kaoh Rong as potentially the defining story of redemption related to her original season.

A win or at least a deep run would explain why she’s been on the season so much, even when she hasn’t really been involved in the primary action. She’s gotten at least one confessional in every episode and gotten 2 or more in 8 of the 10 episodes. That’s normal for people like Coach and Q who are wacky over-the-top characters up to shenanigans at camp (or during pregame), but the Survivor editors have shown they’re perfectly fine not featuring Aubry during other seasons. On Game Changers, as an example, she was in 9 episodes where she got 1 or 0 confessionals.

In theory, any of the 9 remaining players could win Survivor. There’s no rule that the show needs to edit its winner in a certain way, but most casuals and experts have written off Tiffany, Joe and Emily. They’ve each been underedited or they’ve been shown in such a way that makes it feel like they don’t have sway or influence over any of the other players, which would be an odd way to tell the story of the winner. That leaves Rick Devens, Jonathan, Aubry, Rizo, Cirie and Ozzy.

I think, of those six, Rick is probably the least likely. His only remaining ally is Emily, and he suddenly has a huge target on his back because of all the nonsense he’s pulled at Tribal Council. If he somehow got to the end, people might be impressed enough to vote for him, but I think it’s pretty unlikely he gets there. I’ll keep him in the longshot pile, but I wouldn’t bet money on it.

Heading into this week, I would have put Aubry in that same group with Rick. I never one hundred percent wrote her off since she was regularly getting content, but it just seemed ridiculous that we’d keep getting these confessionals about how she was about to start playing, only for that not to happen. I honestly thought the show was dunking on her and trying to make her look stupid, but now it feels like that might be part of a wait-wait-wait-wait-NOW narrative that the editors have put in the work to build.

I’m still going to put my money on Ozzy. He’s gotten a consistently great edit throughout the entire season, and if he’s sitting next to anyone that’s not Cirie at the end, I think it’s likely he’s going to win the game. I also think Jonathan and Cirie are really viable options (even if they got a 0 confessional episode), but to me, Aubry is probably next in line, even ahead of Rizo who has been viewed by many as the fourth winner option. My perception of Aubry has completely changed, and judging by the fan reaction since Episode 10 aired, I’m definitely not the only one changing my buff.

We're getting deep into the 50th season of Survivor, which is arguably one of the best reality shows of all time. The season, which is streaming with a Paramount+ subscription, is full of returning players, and has been a wild ride so far. Two-time player and Survivor know-it-all Rob Cesternino has been speaking with me weekly about each new episode, and went in an A+ rant about one "pet peeve" he has about the game.

The cast of Survivor 50 has been duking it out in Fiji, and numbers are finally dwindling in the merge. Cesternino, who is the founder of the Rob Has A Podcast network, was talking to me about Episode 9 when he revealed one thing he never enjoys even in the best Survivor seasons: the naming of the merge tribe. As he put it:

He's not wrong. While there has historically been a ton of discourse about what to name the merged tribe, host Jeff Probst doesn't actually refer to them by that name. Instead it's usually just "merged tribe." It's only when there are two or more tribes that the Emmy-winner uses their names in order to provide thoughtful commentary during challenges and Tribal Council.

Survivor 50 skipped over the naming of the merge tribe, which is Manulevu. Instead that title unceremoniously appeared in the chyron during Season 8. I have to say that I disagree with Rob's assessment. I personally like the name being chosen (and flag being painted)... mostly because it so often results in argument. I'm thinking about Worlds Apart naming their tribe "Merica", Gabon calling it "Nobag", and Philippines calling theirs "Dangrayne". While I love this opportunity for conflict, Rob Cesternino seems to think it's a bit of a waste of time. The Traitors Season 4 cast member went on to say:

Points were made. Although since this scene was cut out of Season 50, fans are left wondering how the cast landed on their merge name. And aside from how much money Survivor contestants make, that might be one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the current season. Luckily for Rob, his biggest pet peeve was sidestepped this time around.

New episodes of Survivor 50 air Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 movie release list. Rob Cesternino is releasing a book called The Tribe and I Have Spoken on May 6th, and is doing a book tour as well. Visit robhasawebsite.com/events for more information!

There’s been a lot of on-screen talk during Survivor 50 about fan favorite Ozzy Lusth potentially setting the record for most individual immunity challenge wins of all-time. We’ll have to wait and see if he gets there, but during this past episode, he quietly set another record that the show isn’t exactly hyping up. The Jungle Boy turned Jungle Man now stands in first place with the highest number of total votes received at tribal council in the history of the show.

Ozzy is, of course, still in the game, but during episode 9 (“I Deserve All Of This”), he received two votes from Emily Flippen and Rick Devens. Their plan to blindside him and save Christian from his ridiculous disadvantage failed, but it did add two more career votes to his resume, which bumped his total up to a whopping 37 according to Survivor-Reference. That was enough to pass Andrea Boehlke, who had been sitting in first place since Game Changers with 36.

So, how does a person get to 37 career votes? Well, playing a bunch of times helps. On Ozzy’s first season Cook Islands, he only got 1 vote against him during the entire game, which, it should be noted, came from well-remembered pre-merge standout Billy Garcia. He came back to make another deep run on Micronesia and picked up 9 votes. In South Pacific, he got a total of 17, largely because he was voted out three different times thanks to returning on multiple occasions from Redemption Island. He picked up another 7 on Game Changers, and he’s picked up another 3 votes on Survivor 50. 1+9+17+7+3=37.

In case you were wondering, the only other players with more than 30 career votes against them other than Ozzy and Andrea are Kellie Wentworth (35) and Ciera Eastin (33). Aubry Bracco has 22 and is still alive on Survivor 50; so, there’s a chance she could get there too if she’s the victim of a pile-on vote or she starts repeatedly catching strays at some upcoming tribal councils as the back-up plan. I don’t really think she’s going to catch 15 though; so, Ozzy’s record is likely safe, until at least the next returnee season.

I think there’s a chance we’ll see either Kellie or Ciera play again, but if we’re looking for the New Era player most likely to break Ozzy’s record eventually, I’d probably pick Q Burdette. I’m not sure there’s a single Survivor fan that doesn’t want to see the confessional machine play again, especially after he was swap screwed on 50. He’s already picked up 18 votes in just two appearances, and I think there’s a good chance he could end up playing four or five times before he’s all said and done.

Regardless, I don’t really think this record reflects that poorly on Ozzy. As I said, it’s a sign of playing a lot of times, and it’s also a sign of being looked at as a threat during his seasons. Plus, he asked his own alliance to vote him out on South Pacific so he could make sure another player went home at the Redemption Island duel. They did. He won the duel and got himself back in the game. Those votes aren’t a scarlet letter, as an example, they’re a reflection of being a legend.

I have no idea what’s going to happen the rest of the way on Survivor 50. Ozzy recently won his 8th individual immunity challenge, which puts him one behind Boston Rob’s all-time record of 9. Maybe he breaks that later this season. Maybe he doesn’t. Maybe this is finally the season where Ozzy picks up his win and outlasts this all-star cast. Maybe it’s not. We’ll have to see how everything plays out, but if nothing else, it’s already been a great reminder of why he’s one of the all-time great characters in the history of the show, even if he doesn’t exactly have Sandra Diaz-Twine’s ability to push the votes onto someone else.

Survivor is one of the best reality shows of all time, and it's current season has proven why. Season 50 has been airing weekly on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription), and fans have been obsessed with Cirie Fields' incredible strategic game. Two-time player Rob Cesternino spoke to CinemaBlend about how she's using her Traitors-winning strategy in the her latest turn on Survivor.

The cast of Survivor 50 includes some legendary players, including Cirie, who has starred in some of the best Survivor seasons. I've been having weekly chats with Cesternino, aka the founder of the Rob Has a Podcast network, about each new episode. During our conversation the Survivor know-it-all made an observation about Fields' gameplay, offering:

Honestly, I see it, particularly now Rob put it out there. In Episode 9 "I Deserve All Of This," Cirie laughed about the fact that she had an alliance with almost all the players still on the island. In addition to her alliance with Rizo and Ozzy, she's got a relationship with Joe, Tiffany, Stephanie, and Emily. She also had an alliance with Devins and Christian, although she eventually went with the majority to vote out the latter.

Although she's been methodically voting out anyone who goes against her plans for the game as a whole, people don't seem to have caught on. We saw this when she got back form exile and everyone wanted to talk to her right away.

Later during our conversation Cesternino, who was part of the cast of The Traitors Season 4, went on to draw more of a comparison between Cirie's strategy on both Survivor 50 and the Emmy-winning Peacock series. As he put it:

This strategy seems to be working so far, and I have to wonder if it'll get her all the way to the end of the game. Fans are hoping that Cirie finally gets a W on her latest Survivor game, especially after how much bad luck she's had in seasons like Micronesia and Game Changers. She managed to win the very first season of The Traitors, so perhaps that game-winning strategy will pay off this time around as well.

New episodes of Survivor air Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. Rob Cesternino is releasing a book called The Tribe and I Have Spoken on May 6th, and is doing a book tour as well. Visit robhasawebsite.com/events for more information!

Fan-favorite Christian Hubicki has a lot of thoughts about the big Jimmy Fallon twist and the role it played in his Survivor 50 downfall, but it’s pretty clear from all of his exit press he’s a lot more frustrated about a gameplay mistake than his decision to go on the journey. In many of his interviews, he’s pointed to one conversation he thinks was the catalyst that sent him home.

During this past episode, the show gave us a scene where Christian was talking to Rick Devens and Cirie. During that conversation, he talked about Ozzy playing both sides and said, given he also has an idol, he’d be an ideal person to go home. Cirie, of course, immediately told Ozzy, who is her close ally, and from that point forward, there was a big cloud of smoke around Christian.

Of course, that smoke only got bigger and smellier when Christian won a series of rock, paper, scissors games and got to go on a journey. During the journey, he, of course, didn’t complete the puzzle in time and had to read a note to the entire tribe saying he’d lost and as punishment, would be forced to vote for himself at Tribal Council. The fanbase has been screaming at each other about the twist and whether it was fair in the days since.

To be clear, Christian has some negative feelings about it too, but it’s the Cirie conversation that really bothers him. He told TV Line throwing Ozzy’s name out was the “original sin” and then explained why…

Christian said similar things during his interview with Mike Bloom over at Parade, too. He talked about how he’s not going to say he was screwed by the twist because he was the one who threw Ozzy’s name out. He said he should have known better because there had been rumblings throughout the game that Ozzy and Cirie were close, but he “lost track” of how close they really were.

Here’s the portion of the interview where he once again admits the mistake…

It’s been refreshing to see how honest and willing to own that mistake Christian has been during his post-game interviews, but from his perspective, the twist definitely played a role in him going home, as well. He told Survivor legend Rob Cesternino during a Rob Has A Podcast interview that he only went on the journey because he wanted to make sure other players didn’t get an advantage. Obviously, it resulted in him getting a big disadvantage, but it’s not the losing his vote or voting for himself part that bothers him. It’s having to tell everyone at camp part.

Obviously, not finishing the puzzle and having to vote for himself was a disadvantage, but having to tell everyone else exactly what happened without a chance to lie is what sealed his fate. If he’d been able to maneuver, things may have been different, especially because there was another target.

Christian said in several interviews that judging by what we saw in the show and conversations he’s had with other players, there was some legitimate momentum around swinging the numbers to Emily instead of him. That still would have put him in a less than advantageous position for a long-term run in the game, but sometimes Survivor is just about making it past one vote because you never know whether someone will pop up as a bigger target next. Because everyone knew he had one vote against him, however, it was too easy to just pick him.

Regardless, Christian will go down as one of the biggest standouts of Survivor 50. He was clearly the main character of several episodes and the leading confessionalist (at least to this point in the season) by a wide margin, which is no small feat given the larger than life personalities on this epic cast. It definitely wouldn’t be a shock to see him play again at some point in the future.

If you care about Survivor, I’m sure you have a lot of thoughts about Jimmy Fallon’s so-called One In The Urn twist. The whole community is currently screaming at each other about it on social media, as the reaction has been very mixed, but it turns out we didn’t actually get a full explanation of what the twist even was. There was a lot more to that note Christian got on the barge that we didn’t get any narrational content addressing. Let’s talk about it.

Obviously we’re going to get into very direct spoilers. So, if you haven’t watched episode 9 of Survivor 50 (“I Deserve All Of This”), then continue reading at your own risk.

Let’s walk through the basic sequence of what happened. After the immunity challenge, Christian and several other players volunteered to go on a journey. Christian won a series of rock, paper, scissors matches to beat the other castaways and took a boat to a barge. Once there, he was told if he completed a puzzle before the time ran out, he’d get a big advantage, and if he didn’t complete it in time, he’d get a big disadvantage.

Watching the episode for the first time, my understanding of the advantage was that if Christian won, he would get to put a vote in the urn for any player, essentially casting a secret extra vote against someone. If he lost, he would have to read a note at camp, which turned out to be a scarlet letter saying he had to vote for himself at the next tribal council. All of that is accurate, but it’s actually not the whole story.

Survivor gave us a brief camera shot during the episode that revealed most of the note, and there was more to the advantage if Christian won. After dropping a vote into the urn for whoever he wanted on the barge, he would then be given a secret choice of whether to vote at that night’s tribal council. If he elected not to vote, he would bank the extra vote to use at a future tribal council of his choosing. Check out a picture of the note below…

Now, obviously, none of this had any effect on what happened. Christian didn’t complete the puzzle in time and lost his voice. He had to read his note of shame back at camp, and since his name was already out there, everyone decided it was the perfect time to get rid of him. It’s likely that even if he didn’t have to vote for himself, he would have gone home because the players would have just rearranged their votes to give him an extra one since they split between him and Rick Devens.

From an analyzing whether it was a good twist or not standpoint, however, this extra wrinkle is very important. One of the biggest complaints from fans on social media was that the positive and negative outcomes seemed very imbalanced. One vote in the urn that you can’t even consult with your allies on isn’t that powerful, but having to tell everyone you are voting for yourself is a massive disadvantage. The choice to bank an extra vote that no one knows about to use at a later tribal council makes the positives a little more positive and at least shrinks the difference somewhat. It doesn’t balance the sides, but it comes a little closer.

Even Knowing The Nuances Now, I Still Have One Big Issue

My biggest issue with the twist is the whole having to tell everyone about it part. I want to see Survivor players have some room to maneuver. Would he have told people he was hit with a disadvantage to lower his threat level or would he have pretended that he won an advantage to try and keep people from voting for him out of fear? Would he have told his closest allies? Would Emily have spilled his secrets at camp? I would have loved to see Christian’s mind work. Instead, he just had to walk to his fate.

Fans have been mostly enjoying Survivor 50, but almost everyone would agree there has been an overreliance on twists. The show gave fans the ability to vote for whether they wanted advantages and twists prior to the season, but the vague wording essentially allowed the show to do whatever it wanted. Host Jeff Probst and the producers have jumped into the deep end and dropped something wild on a near weekly basis. Some have worked. Some have not.

You can catch new episodes of Survivor 50. The show is already teasing a huge beware advantage next week that involves Mr. Beast; so, expect for the entire fanbase to once again be arguing about whether a big surprise worked or not. Maybe it will. Maybe it won't. Either way, I'd rather be talking about all the returning players and watching them actually play Survivor. We know these people can and will create great television, whether they're being filmed or not. The show should trust them to do that.

Survivor is one of the best reality shows of all time, and fans are currently in the midst of its whopping 50th season on the air. New episodes are airing weekly on CBS (and streaming with a Paramount+ subscription), and there's been plenty of twists and turns. Season 50 brought back the great Cirie Fields, and two-time player and Survivor know it all Rob Cesternino spoke to CinemaBlend about how she's been able to fly under the radar.

The cast of Survivor 50 saw the OGs and New Era players combine, to explosive results. Cirie Fields is one of the most beloved players of all time, and despite her accomplishments on Survivor, Big Brother, and the winner of The Traitors, she's not being targeted. Rob Has a Podcast founder Rob Cesternino is chatting with me weekly about each episode of Season 50, and he offered his perspective on Cirie's incredible social game. In his words:

While Cirie isn't trying to be seen as a leader, that's exactly what she's been doing. Just look at what went down when she returned from Exile Island. While the votes were seemingly going toward Aubrey and Devins, she convinced her many allies to target Coach and Chrissy instead. And that's exactly who was voted in the double elimination.

Fans are curious about how much Survivor contestants make, but I've been shocked to see how little Cirie's name has been brought up throughout Season 50 (so far). But she's been able to make a ton of allies, including Rizo, Ozzy, Tiffany, Devins, and Emily. And seemingly none of them are trying to turn on her... yet.

Later in my conversation with Cesternino, he spoke more about the position Cirie is in after Coach and Chrissy's eliminations in Episode 8. As he put it:

While Cirie doesn't have an idol like Rizo and Ozzy, it looks like she might be able to stay under the radar for the immediate future. We'll just have to wait and see if the tides turn and her allies try to betray her.

It remains to be seen if Season 50 becomes one of the best Survivor seasons of all time, but it's definitely been making headlines. Although if Cirie finally pulls off a W, fans might end up falling in love with the season as a whole. After all, she's beloved.

Survivor airs new episodes Wednesdays on CBS as part of the 2026 TV schedule. Rob Cesternino is releasing a book called The Tribe and I Have Spoken on May 6th, and is doing a book tour as well. Visit robhasawebsite.com/events for more information!

Much of the conversation about last week’s epic Tribal Council has been about Rick Devens for obvious reasons, but apparently, there was another little situation that the show decided not to air. One castaway allegedly had to be called back to the voting booth because the producers felt he didn’t follow the rules. Once there, they apparently made him cast another vote and throw out the first one.

Warning: we’re about to get into some very direct spoilers for episode 8 of Season 50. If you’re not caught up, continue reading at your own risk.

The contestant in question is Joe, and apparently, producers decided they weren't going to count his original vote because he refused to write Coach’s name down. The castaways were told they needed to vote for a pair and write down both names onto the parchment, but he initially only wrote Chrissy’s name down because he didn’t want to betray Coach. That’s apparently why we saw him say that he wasn’t going to write down Coach’s name during the chaos of the live Tribal.

The story came out this week during Coach’s exit press. He told his old buddy Tyson on The Pod Has Spoken that he initially felt betrayed by Joe but felt better after hearing the whole story of what happened. Here’s a portion of his quote…

Not surprisingly, Tyson was amused by the semantics of the whole thing. By writing Chrissy’s name down, Joe was effectively voting against Coach, even if he didn’t physically write his name down. Tyson called it an “integrity loophole.” Coach was highly amused by the turn of phrase but said it helped him get over the betrayal he felt initially.

The betrayal in question, of course, relates to the so-called Honor And Integrity Alliance. Coach, Chrissy, Jonathan, Joe and Stephanie seemed poised to work together for the entire game, but the big twist this past episode, which forced players to work in pairs and go up for elimination in pairs, ended up being a death sentence for Coach and Chrissy, especially after Rick Devens pulled out a fake immunity idol at Tribal Council.

Ozzy, Cirie and Rizo, who were on the outskirts of the alliance, decided to vote for Coach and Chrissy. That put Joe, Stephanie and Jonathan in a position of having to decide between standing by their allies or betraying them in order to align with the players that would still be left in the game.

Stephanie decided to align with Ozzy, Cirie and Rizo, though she apparently told Coach he was going home and should play his shot in the dark. Joe tried his little scheme where he voted for Chrissy but not Coach initially, and Jonathan decided to ride or die and go down with his fallen allies. We’ll see if it costs him later in the game.

Regardless, it was a sad but fitting end for Coach Wade 4.0. The Dragon Slayer is, without question, on the Mt Rushmore of fun Survivor characters of all-time, and whether you personally love to root for him or against him, it’s undeniable that he always brings so many fun emotions out of the other players. If this is the last time on Survivor, he will be missed. Fingers crossed we at least get to see him on Traitors.