Survivor 50 has been a rollercoaster of entertaining chaos, engaging gameplay, a couple of devastating blindsides, and more than a few contentious moments. However, one of the most controversial aspects of the (so-called) "In the Hands of the Fans" season has been the involvement of celebrities throughout it.
As Survivor was reaching its 50th season milestone, fans knew to expect more than a few surprises to commemorate such an epic feat. And while it's indeed celebrated its own history and players, it has also taken the publicity route, with celebrities being involved to varying degrees in the development, rewards, and even potential outcomes of the season.
Singer Zac Brown, late-night host Jimmy Fallon, and YouTuber MrBeast have had their Survivor 50 moment, to, once again, varying results and reactions from players and fans. But one celebrity in particular has been mentioned on the show but hasn't made a physical appearance nor has she mentioned anything about Survivor throughout the season on her social media. Until now, that is...
Billie Eilish breaks her silence about her connection to Survivor 50 on Good Hang with Amy Poehler.
Singer and songwriter Billie Eilish had expressed being a fan in the past, and it seemed a wish had come true for her on Survivor 50 with her involvement via the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol. Whoever found this idol had to bequeath it to another player from a different tribe, and the receiver can only play the idol for themself. If the receiver was voted out, then the idol would return to its original founder (if they were still in the game) and work as a regular idol.
Aside from the name being a mouthful this new twist turned out to be a flop. Firstly, since it was evident that players were forced to say “the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol” every time they talked about one, and later, the players who had originally found them (Genevieve Mushaluk and Christian Hubicki) were the ones who needed them most and couldn’t play them because they no longer had them. Out of the three recipients (Ozzy Lusth, Aubry Bracco, and Rizo Velovic), only Bracco has used her idol and only as a defence tactic to get the target of having one off her back.
Unlike the other celebrities, Eilish had been completely silent regarding her involvement with the show until a blink-and-you ’ll-miss-it commercial during the 10th episode of the season, where the singer only mentioned being a fan and then promoting her new upcoming movie. However, at long last, Eilish has finally (sort of) broken her silence regarding her participation in Survivor 50.
During an interview for the Good Hang with Amy Poehler podcast, actress Amy Poehler asked Eilish about various topics during a lightning question round. Around the 1:11:00 mark, Poehler asks Eilish if she likes the show Survivor, to which Eilish replies that she does and then, while bursting out laughing alongside Poehler, quips, “They have my own Billie Eilish Idol.”
“I just heard that,” Poehler continues while still laughing and asks Eilish if the show named the idol after her. “It’s a Billie Eilish Idol,” Eilish responds while slightly rolling her eyes. She then uses air quotes when she says that she wrote a letter to the contestants telling them about how the idol works, in a semi-mocking tone.
Poehler then asks Eilish what she loves about Survivor. Eilish answers, “Um, I love imagining that I could one day do it...I feel that I could do the physical stuff. I mean, I say that, which who knows, ‘cause it’s so hard.” Lastly, Poehler adds she has defiance disorder, which would result in her quitting after she would be told she would have to do something, and Eilish retorts that she would have the same issue.
While there’s finally an acknowledgement of the Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol and of Eilish’s enjoyment of the show, reading between the lines of this two-minute interaction, it's safe to assume that Eilish’s actual involvement with Survivor 50 was light at best, as she didn’t go into details about how this particular idol worked or how it would impact the game. Most likely, the details were instead finalized with Eilish’s team as opposed to with the singer herself, and while that’s perfectly normal, it would have been nice for production to consider that detail instead of overhyping these idols all season long.
Fans have been vocal on social media about not voting for these celebrity twists throughout the season, as Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans (though that theme is starting to feel incorrect) previously held several voting rounds for fans to vote on what they would like to see during the season. So far, even though Zac Brown’s reward was very dull and controversial for all the air time it took, it was the least impactful one game wise. And the Jimmy Fallon twist resulted in Hubicki’s last nail in his coffin without his own Billie Eilish Boomerang Idol to help keep him in the game—same with Mushaluk.
Die-hard Survivor fans will always have strong opinions about the show’s choices. But when their involvement is featured in the season’s very title, it’s only natural that they’ll care deeply about how their impact and votes are used. We all expected Survivor to go big with the publicity for this milestone season; after all, we want the show to last forever. Still, it might be wise for production to listen to its viewers and keep the players, not the gimmicks, at the heart of the game.
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