Older may mean wiser, but older can also mean reinvigorating a longtime reality competition franchise. The Bachelor experienced a surge of renewed interest when it staged its first Golden Bachelor season in 2023. It followed that up with The Golden Bachelorette last year and is now airing season 2 of The Golden Bachelor on ABC.
Seeing such success over in the mansion, would Jeff Probst ever consider staging a Golden Survivor season on the island? The Survivor host and showrunner was asked exactly that on the latest episode of his On Fire with Jeff Prosbt podcast.
It’s an interesting question, seeing as how Survivor has actually gotten a bit greyer lately, certainly when compared 2018’s Ghost Island season, when 14 out of 20 contestants were under the age of 30 (including one teenager in the form of 18-year-old Micheal Yerger).
Last season’s installment of Survivor 48 featured only three players under the age of 30. And of those three, Justin Pioppi (29) and Star Toomey (28) were on the high end of the decade, while the youngest member of the cast (Eva Erickson) was not even all that young at the age of 24. The current Survivor 49 has more than doubled that number of players under 30 to seven, but has also included contestants that are 52 (Matt Williams), 49 (Annie Davis), and 47 (“Rad Dad” Nate Moore).
So would Probst and CBS ever consider going full AARP with a Golden Survivor edition? That was the question from a 65-year-old fan named Jim.
“You know, I hear this idea from time to time,” Probst replied on the podcast. “I’ve certainly heard it more since The Bachelor did it.”
He then launched into his answer. “Here’s the truth as I see it. Based on the number of people over, let’s say 50, who apply and who we believe are interesting and compelling enough to be on the show and we believe can truly handle the intense physicality — I think if you just limited it to 50-and-over casting, it would be difficult to do two times per year. You’re looking at 40 people. I just don’t think it would work, personally.”
Robert Voets/CBS
Want to be kept up with all things Survivor? Dig deep and sign up for Entertainment Weekly’s free Survivor Weekly newsletter to have all the latest news, interviews, and commentary sent right to your inbox.
Probst’s other issue — beyond the unsaid yet obvious fact that the network wants plenty of young, attractive, half-naked people on a beach — is that a strictly older cast would eliminate the diverse cross-section of society that Survivor is supposed to represent.
“I would miss the layers of complexity that come with somebody like Rizo dealing with somebody like Nate,” says Probst as an example. “I think that’s part of the fun. In the same way that I would miss it if one gender wasn’t on the show and we just did all women or all men. I think it’s that clash and the collaboration, the unexpected partnerships and learning about each other, that’s a big part of our format.”
But while Probst does not see a senior citizen version of the franchise on the horizon, all is not lost for older fans who still want to test their mettle out in the jungles of Fiji. “Jim, this is my way of saying don’t wait on Golden Survivor,” Probst finishes. “Apply now to be on this Survivor.”
For more from Probst on the latest episode of Survivor 49, check out the On Fire podcast.
Source link
