Can you imagine Survivor without the man, the myth, the legend, and host with the most, Jeff Probst?
Well, for a short time, it looked like that was a very real possibility. According to a new piece from Variety about the history of Survivor, Jeff Probst was ready to walk away after the first decade on the hit reality series.
Around the 2010s, Probst admitted that he approached producer Mark Burnett and CBS' CEO at the time, Les Moonves, about quitting as host of the series.
"I didn’t like the stories we were telling, and I was losing my joy of the format, therefore my joy of the job, therefore my joy of life. I didn’t want vitriol and who can be the meanest, most spiteful person.”
According to Probst, Burnett took Probst's words to heart and instead of letting him walk away, Burnnet came to the conclusion that Probst needed "more responsibility" on the show, which opened up the door for Probst to become the showrunner in addition to his hosting duties.
Apparently, what seems like a no-brainer now wasn't at the time to CBS.
“CBS was initially horrified. They didn’t want stars to be given showrunner status. But I was so argumentative and sure that it was the right thing to do that I convinced them. It was the best move I’ve made in my career.”
Needless to say, the rest is history. Probst officially took over as showrunner of Survivor before season 21 in 2010, and the game changed drastically from that point, with some of the show's best seasons taking place between 2010 and 2020.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced Probst and the gang behind the scenes at Survivor HQ to change the game again, as Survivor has entered its new era and never looked back.
Obviously, it hasn't been entirely smooth sailing for Probst at the helm of Survivor's ship. There have been a lot of interesting choices and mistakes made along the way. There's been a lot of criticism of Probst and the series over the years from fans who haven't enjoyed where the show has gone at times, especially about players playing on other reality shows and how the show has treated the women who have played this game.
With those criticisms, to me, Survivor, as a whole, is a better product with Probst in control. They don't always get it right, but they care deeply and completely about this franchise and the gameplay. No one can question that aspect of his leadership.
With Survivor 50 winding down, it's going to be interesting to see what happens from here on out with Probst and Survivor. Obviously, we know he's back for Survivor 51 and 52, which are shooting this spring and summer in Fiji.
In an interview before Survivor 50, Probst told Entertainment Weekly that he's not leaving the show anytime soon, but he does know that the show will go on without him at some point.
“Okay, here's my honest truth. I absolutely, 100 percent know this show will go on without me, because it's the format. The key would be who's going to be producing and who's going to be hosting and what point of view are they going to bring to it.”
Well, it's not today, and that's all fans should be concerned about.
Watch Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans come to an end on Wednesday, May 20, on CBS!
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