During a recent interview, Jeff Probst has seemingly confirmed that fans will get to see more former “Survivor” players return for another all-star season in the near future. The reality television series is about to air its anniversary special “Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans” with a cast of fan-favorites from previous installments but viewers may not have to wait long for the next reunion.
Jeff Probst Says ‘We Love Returning-Player Seasons’
Speaking with USA Today in an interview to promote the upcoming 50th anniversary season, Probst was asked about the future of “Survivor.” The interviewer mentioned the fact that the team is already working on both season 51 and 52 but then asked if there will be another returning-player season soon.
The “Survivor” host was pretty emphatic with his answer, indicating that the team likely has some ideas in mind about what they want to do in the coming years.
“One hundred percent,” said Probst. “We love returning-player seasons. The only reason we waited this many years is that you had to find players you wanted to see come back.”
He then continued, explaining why there was such a long wait between returning-player seasons, “After Season 40, we thought, ‘Now we need to go get a new crop of players, and then we’ll do a returning-player season.’”
“I would definitely expect another returning-player season before five years,” the “Survivor” host concluded. “And, yes, there are players we would love to invite back that we would have had in Season 50 if we had room. Hopefully, when we call in the future, their feelings won’t be hurt and they’ll say yes.”
Amanda Kimmel’s Withdrawal Is Jeff Probst’s Biggest Disappointment for Season 50
Amanda Kimmel might well be a name that is high up on the list for the next season to feature returning players. In the same interview, Probst explained her absence from the 50th season is a big regret.
“That was a big disappointment, probably my biggest personal disappointment,” he revealed. “When she initially said yes, I was ecstatic.”
Probst continued, “And then we gave her the shoot date, and she said, ‘I can’t make it happen.’ And she was disappointed.”
Probst also thanked Kimmel for being so quick and open about the fact that she couldn’t compete once she learned the shooting dates. He explained, “But what I loved about Amanda is that she just called us and said, ‘Look, I’ll tell you right now, it’s not going to happen.’ And so that opened up the spot for somebody.”
