Survivor 50 came to a close on May 20 with a special three-hour season finale that brought back a beloved element that has been missing from the show since 2020: the live reunion!
Once a staple for Survivor, the live finale reunion was scrapped from the show after Survivor: Winners at War (Season 40), which aired in May 2020 and featured a virtual reunion as a result of safety protocols in place for COVID-19. For the historic season, the live reunion made its triumphant comeback with an incredible celebration that reunited the entire cast of Survivor 50... well, almost every player.
While every member of the Survivor 50 cast returned for the live reunion, there was one legend who missed the live finale: Mike White.
That's right, Mike White was the only member of the Survivor 50 cast who failed to appear at the live reunion special, and he had a very good reason for skipping the in-person festivities. While White was able to compete in Survivor 50, he was unable to attend the live finale taping in Los Angeles, as it conflicted with filming on The White Lotus season 4.
Season 4 of HBO's Emmy-winning series is currently underway in France, and White was unable to fly back to LA in order to attend the finale live. It was certainly unfortunate timing, but White did make an appearance via Zoom so that he could at least be a part of the finale in some capacity.
It was definitely a bummer not to see White attend the finale in-person with the rest of the cast, but at least he was a part of the finale in some way. It's also honestly a major feat that CBS was able to get everyone but White back for the live finale, which was really special to see. While we knew the final five and jury would all need to be present, it was great seeing those voted out early join the rest of the cast to reflect on the season and reunite with their Survivor 50 players to help crown the winner of season 50.
And honestly, it's incredible that White was able to return for Survivor 50, as he did so at the expense of The White Lotus. In order to compete in the historic season, White delayed production on HBO's Emmy-winning series and wrote the show right after being voted out while he was off the grid during the production window for Survivor 50.
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