Other than Kyle Fraser’s medevac in the premiere, episode 5 of Survivor 50 is the first time we’ve seen two players go home in one night.
Since the anniversary season kicked off with an unprecedented number of players, we went into the season assuming there would be multiple opportunities for multiple eliminations in a single night. But it’s already day 11—nearly halfway through the season—and we’ve only seen it happen once.
If this were a standard season, the numbers would be totally on track to end up where they always do. But at this point, we’d need to see at least one elimination every single night to end up at the Final Three on day 26. And with only eight episodes of the season remaining, that’s not likely to happen.
So the only logical explanation is that more opportunities for players to leave the game will start piling up—potentially as soon as the upcoming merge.
17 players is just one shy of a standard new era season, so the fact that we’re about to enter the merge with that many—and remember, if Kyle hadn’t been sent home, it would be an 18-person merge—is almost reminiscent of a new game starting if everyone landed on the same beach. With that many players, we’re bound to see a few going home, especially knowing there’s been a merged double elimination more than once in the new era.
But beyond elimination, there are a few other ways players could still potentially go home this season.
We still know the Mr. Beast appearance is incoming probably by episode 7 or 8 at the latest, and I have a theory of why and how he’ll be integrated into the season. But, it’s also important to remember that one of the key moments in nearly every MrBeast video is the opt out. Jimmy Donaldson always gives his contestants the chance to leave the game for a certain amount of money.
So with that in mind, it’s very possible that when he shows up with that briefcase, it has $1 million in it, and our players will have to decide whether or not they’re willing to leave the game for it via rocks. Because the caveat with that—if it does happen—is that the $1 million won’t just go to the first person to step out of the game; it will be divided between everyone who chooses to take the offer.
While this could happen based on what we know about Mr. Beast, I highly doubt it will. While, yes, our castaways are ultimately there for the money, as returning players, it’s clear they’re here for the title of Sole Survivor, not just the prize money at the end. So I would be shocked if any of our current contestants actually chose to quit the game for a slice of $1 million.
But it’s Survivor 50 and anything can happen! We’ll see what the next big twist is when episode 6 hits our screens on Wednesday, April 1 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+.