Even if a player doesn’t go to Edge of Extinction this Survivor season, there will be no interviews from the players until after the season ends.
So much of what we know about Survivor will be changed dramatically due to the format of Edge of Extinction. Considering that most players voted out will be out on Extinction Island, if it pushes past the merge, we will likely see a reduced, or completely removed, Ponderosa experience. We still have no idea what the jury situation will look like. Now it appears as though another huge change will see another feature disappear for the season.
As revealed during Rob Has a Podcast’s cast preview, Survivor: Edge of Extinction will not feature any exit interviews until the season is over. Yes, even in the case where someone outright quits and is removed from the game entirely, they will not be given the go-ahead by CBS to be interviewed until the season is completely over.
Considering how some of the David vs. Goliath jury members almost gave outright spoilers or hinted at who was still in the game at future points, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a mixture of protecting the season’s story as well as keeping the focus on what’s happening in the game. However, it shows just how much a format change can impact the outside appreciation of Survivor.
I’m a bit conflicted about how the show is handling the mysteries surrounding Survivor: Edge of Extinction. For example, not only do the players have no idea how long hanging out at Extinction Island lasts, but neither does the audience nor how they will get back into the game. Compare that to the rule explanations from Jeff Probst for Redemption Island and it’s clear that this is unprecedented secrecy.
While it’s possible that the show wants to keep a secret and have it pay off as a surprise, this has literally never happened before with any twist in Survivor. The fact that CBS doesn’t want to talk about the twists, nor wants anybody during the season talking about the twists, doesn’t exactly scream confidence in the format knowing how the season turns out.