Currently, just five players–Deshawn Radden, Erika Casupanan, Heather Aldret, Ricard Foyé, and Xander Hastings–are left in the hunt for the million-dollar prize. But in a season full of blindsides, the latest one came from Jeff Probst, who told the final five they would be going from Tribal Council to a new island, where they would spend the remaining three days, starting over from scratch.
“It’s that final push to the end that forces the players to dig deep into their soul for the last three days,” the Survivor host and executive producer told Parade.com in an exclusive interview. “This was important in the game design because we really wanted the 26 days to be as difficult as 39 days of the old version of Survivor. After watching them deal with this season, I feel pretty good that we accomplished our goal!”
Their time on the new beach should be action-packed, given what’s awaiting the final five in the last few days of the game. They’ll face off in two Immunity Challenges and two Tribal Councils that will leave three finalists. On Day 26, they’ll face the jury, who will then vote for a winner. But for the first time since season one back in 2000, that winner will be revealed right there right then, rather than months later on a live soundstage back in the United States.
The choice to crown a winner on the island was one of precaution for the Survivor production team. Filmed back in April, producers had no idea what the state of live events–or the world–would look like by December. So rather than take the risk of missing out on that million-dollar moment, they chose to read the jury votes live on Day 26. And interestingly, in calling back to that infamous Borneo finale, one of the watershed moments of the series, it’s harkening to the “drop the 4, keep the 1” mentality the show has had this entire season.
While the winner reveal has not happened in a long time, what follows will be a genuine Survivor first. According to Probst, after the votes are read, the finalists and jury members will immediately sit down with him for what’s been coined a “Survivor After Show.” Taking the place of a typical reunion, it will catch the castaways immediately after the game has ended, in what Probst calls a “really candid, raw, unfiltered conversation.”
But no matter who ends up taking the title of Sole Survivor by the end of the night on Wednesday, Probst has nothing but kind words for them, the other finalists, the jury, and the cast of season 41 as a whole. “I have never been more impressed or more proud of a group of Survivor players,” he says, commending their ability to roll with all of the punches thrown their way over 26 eventful days on the island.
For more information on the finale, Jeff Probst’s thoughts on the season, as well as his mindset going into season 42 and beyond, check out our interview below. Survivor 41 airs its three-hour finale and after show this Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
All season long, you’ve thrown in twists and turns to change up the game of Survivor. Have you done anything similar for the finale regarding change in format? The one big twist is that the final five will leave Tribal Council and head directly to a new beach where they will have to start over again with no shelter and only very meager supplies. It’s that final push to the end that forces the players to dig deep into their souls for the last three days. This was important in the game design because we really wanted the 26 days to be as difficult as 39 days of the old version of Survivor. After watching them deal with this season, I feel pretty good that we accomplished our goal!
The live reunion is always a highlight of the finale, and was understandably limited for season 40. Given the state of the pandemic, how did you handle doing an after show this season, and what went into the thinking behind that choice? For context, you have to remember that production for Survivor 41 started back in early April with a mandatory 14-day quarantine in Fiji, before we even began shooting. At that time, no television shows had live audiences, and there was no way to predict where things would stand in December. Nobody loves a live finale more than me. The energy is fantastic, but it simply wasn’t an option. So we had to make the safest and most practical decision, which was to finish the show in the jungle and reveal the votes at the final tribal council. The really fun upside of this decision is it gave us a chance to do something we hadn’t done since season one – reveal the winner in the jungle in real time! It was electric, and it blew the player’s minds.
Then we realized it gave us the chance to do something we’ve never done before, a Survivor After Show! So once we announced the winner, we brought in some pizza and champagne and just kept shooting! We had a really candid, raw, unfiltered conversation while the players and jury were still very much in game mode. I think Survivor fans will enjoy it.
The cast for Survivor 41 has earned a lot of praise from fans, both for its diverse array of stories and exciting gameplay. How do you look at this group of 18 castaways? I have never been more impressed or proud of a group of Survivor players. And that is not to take away from anyone who has played before; I have lots of love for the players of the past 40 seasons! Survivor 41 will always be special to me for a few reasons. Most notably, with the exception of Cook Islands, it’s the most diverse cast in Survivor history. It completely changed the game in a very positive way as we had so many new, rich, fascinating backgrounds and stories.
These players came into Survivor 41 with the world in a state of total chaos. They endured a 14-day quarantine in isolation. Then they were shocked to learn that they were going to birth a totally new, very dangerous version of Survivor with no food and a relentless 26-day pace, and they never blinked. I’ve seen every single day of Survivor, and I can’t think of another group of players who took on more and handled it with such absolute grace and a sense of fun. I enjoyed every single minute of every single day with this group.
As mentioned before, you threw many brand-new twists and types of advantages into the game this season. Looking back, how do you feel about how these new elements played out? The impetus for the Survivor 41 game design came during the height of COVID in 2020. There was so much tension in the world, and it was impacting all of us. We were on a long hold, waiting for a safe time to shoot our next season. During this long period of pre-production, we realized that one thing we could attempt to do with the show was to try and bring some fun and escapism by how we designed the game. So our goal was to launch an entirely new version of Survivor that would focus on dangerous fun and unpredictability.
One of the biggest decisions we made was in regards to how and when we introduced the new advantages and twists. Typically, we only add one or two to a season. For Survivor 41, we decided to intentionally overwhelm the players with more new ideas than any season in the history of our show. Our goal was to make a big impression very quickly to catch them completely off guard.
In essence, everything you thought you knew about the game is gone. So throughout the season, we continued to introduce new advantages and twists with the idea that by the time the season was over, there would be no doubt that all bets were off. This is a new game. And we knew we had to do the same thing with the players in Survivor 42 because they had not seen anything of Survivor 41.
In the pursuit of constantly evolving Survivor, how does the run of the twists in 41, and audience reaction, inform the way you look at making future seasons?
I’ve been blown away by the various responses to this season! Some people love it, and some people hate it! We anticipated there would be lots of opinions. Some fans are very specific about what they want from Survivor, and other fans love that it is in a constant state of flux.
Here’s how we look at it. There is often a learning curve when playing Survivor, and the same thing goes for watching a new version of Survivor. Survivor 41 has so many new elements that it does require a bit of patience, even for my mom, who is die-hard! It’s like if you were just learning to play poker, it might take you a minute to understand that three of a kind beats two-pair, even if that doesn’t necessarily make sense at first glance.
Every twist is designed with one simple goal: to force the players to respond. Regardless of how they respond, it will impact the game in one way or another. That’s what is fun about playing and watching a season of Survivor: Their behavior. And strategically, twists always test your social stability in the game. In this new dangerous version of Survivor, social relationships are more important than ever.
A perfect example is the “Do or Die” Twist. Nobody was forced to participate in that Immunity Challenge. Everybody could have decided to sit it out and give up their shot at immunity, in which case, nobody would have played Do or Die. But the reason Deshawn decided to play was his uncertainty about where he stood in the tribe. His social game was in trouble.
This may sound like a very obvious statement, but for the sake of future players, I’ll say it again. The game design of Survivor is a MacGuffin. Survivor is not about the twists and the advantages. Survivor is about the players. The game design is necessary only in that it forces behavior from those players. It’s also why fans can play along from home. Otherwise, it’s irrelevant. If this sounds confusing, then study it. This is a big key to doing well on Survivor.
Season 41 has been incredibly impactful in reaching outside the game, particularly in talking about matters of race and representation. What was your reaction to the conversations being had in the midst of such a cutthroat game, and the response from fans as they watch? I thought the conversation two weeks ago between Liana, Danny, Deshawn, Xander, and Heather was the most honest, powerful and relevant conversation on race we’ve ever seen on Survivor. I was so honored to be there, to listen, and to learn. I was really impressed with Liana’s comment about understanding that fans may just want Survivor to be fun, but sometimes Survivor and real life collide. This was one of those times, and they often lead to some of our most beautiful and impactful moments.
And if you remember, immediately following that conversation, we played “Do Or Die” with Deshawn. Come on now! It’s one of the best things about the Survivor format; you never know where it’s going to take you. Your best bet is to buckle up and enjoy the ride!
Tease up the finale for us. What can we expect from the final jam-packed days of the game? The game is totally up for grabs. It’s a very fun, dramatic finish followed by an entertaining Survivor After Show and your first look at the players of Survivor 42.
Next, check out our conversation with Survivor 41 player Danny McCray, who was voted out in the most recent episode.
