CBS has made the announcement we had come to expect: Survivor will return for seasons 37 and 38 starting this Fall 2018 and ending Spring 2019.
Although we had heard rumors for casting future seasons of Survivor, including another viral star to counter Will Sims’ Worlds Apart Final Three appearance, CBS has previously been quiet on their 2018-2019 primetime television season. Only The Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon, Mom, NCIS, SEAL Team and S.W.A.T. were picked up for seasons next year.
Thankfully, any fleeting last-minute concerns are for naught, as CBS has announced in a press release that Survivor has officially been renewed for Fall 2018 and Spring 2019. Surprisingly, The Amazing Race also got picked up for more seasons next year, giving Survivor the perfect programming lead-in both this summer and in January 2019.
Ratings for Survivor Ghost Island have stayed fairly consistent year-over-year, staving off the decline in ratings for broadcast television programming that happens naturally. There are more television program-viewing options than ever before in 2018, especially with the advent of more streaming options outside of CBS All-Access, including YouTube and Twitch online streaming programming.
Despite the increase of options, Wednesday nights has consistently seen the Probst-hosted competition reality show win in ratings anytime Empire isn’t airing, and second place when it does. Still, because of its appeal to families and older generations, Survivor continues to draw the most viewers on Wednesday nights for live + same day viewership, although the pickup in PVR/DVR viewings up to the week after is less dramatic of an increase due to the spoiler nature of player eliminations.
Next: Survivor: Ranking all 35 seasons
It will be interesting to see how CBS handles the evolution of Survivor going into these next few seasons. Currently, the show should be filming its 37th season as we speak, as members of the press have flown out to interview the players to be for coverage. With a reported slate of newbie players, could the show be building up for special seasons in 39 and 40?