Rumors have been swirling around for months that a "well-known celebrity" could be making their way to Fiji for Survivor 49. Specifically, fans believe all clues point to country singer Dierks Bentley.
Well, in a recent conversation with TV Line, Jeff Probst has confirmed that those rumors are... not true.
"We did reach out to him." The host and executive producer mentioned of the gossip, "We said, ‘Man, we’d love to talk to you if you’re interested,’ and he said, ‘Maybe one day.’ I genuinely think he meant it, but he said not right now.”
Fans took to social media after it was mentioned in an episode of On Fire With Jeff Probst that someone well-known was going through the casting process. While they looked for clues of who it could possibly be, the Grammy-nominated singer posted about being a fan of the show which caused a flurry of speculation that only grew when it was discovered there would be a break in the musician's tour schedule during the time Survivor 49 was set to film.
The pieces all seemed to line up, but alas, we didn't put together the right puzzle...
So while we won't see Bentley this year, who knows what might happen after the big Survivor 50 celebration? And there's still a chance the rumor of a celebrity castaway for season 49 could be true, just not who everyone suspected.
"I’m open to celebrities being on the show, provided they’re good for the show," Probst added. "Like Mike White, arguably the best storyteller we’ve ever had on the show. He was fantastic. Some people say he could’ve won had he pressed the gas pedal a little more at the end. We didn’t put him on because he’s Mike White. We put him on because he’s super interesting, so that’s the barometer for that.”
Survivor has a history of famous faces sporadically appearing on the show. Most notably White, whose time on season 37 (Survivor: David vs. Goliath) was so meaningful he continues to sprinkle Survivor easter eggs and cameos into his latest award-winning project, The White Lotus.
From former athletes like Scot Pollard (Survivor: Kaoh Rong) and Brad Culpepper (Survivor: Blood vs. Water; Survivor: Game Changers) to actors like Lisa Whelchel (Survivor: Philippines) and Jonathan Penner (Survivor: Cook Islands; Survivor: Micronesia; Survivor: Philippines) and many professions in between, being a celebrity does not automatically put a target on your back in this game, which means there's always a possibility to see some more in the future.
If we were to get the announcement of a different well-known celebrity joining the Survivor 49 cast, who would you want to see take to the beach? We'd love to hear some celebrity picks for new seasons!
Watch Survivor 48 on CBS and Paramount+ beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 26. New episodes will be released on Wednesdays all season long. Survivor 49, on the other hand, will film later this spring and be released on CBS in the fall of 2025!
Stay tuned for more casting news about future seasons of Survivor!