Jeff Probst explains why there aren't more older contestants on “Survivor”
The host wants older fans to apply, but there's a caveat.
For the second straight week, Survivor 45 featured a brutal endurance showdown on Wednesday night between the two oldest players of the season — Julie Alley (49) and Bruce Perreault (47). And for the second straight week, Bruce emerged victorious and won the coveted immunity necklace.
It was another impressive performance by two players who are more than a decade older than the next oldest contestant — making it an opportune time for host Jeff Probst to discuss the topic of age and why we don’t see more older contestants on the show. And he did exactly that on the latest episode of his On Fire podcast.
“I get the question a lot: How come there aren't more older people on Survivor?” the host says on the podcast. “Well, it's reflected in the smaller percentage of older people who apply. We get a lot of younger people applying, which is great because they're discovering the show and they're coming of age to apply and they've got that energy of ‘I could do this, I could win that game.’”
CBS
Jeff Probst calling a challenge on 'Survivor 45'Probst says the casting process — which we went behind the scenes on in our recent EW cover story — has uncovered many diamonds in the rough since the break for Covid, but producers would like to extend that process to older fans. “We also have a lot of diverse types of stories who are applying, which has been incredibly inspiring. So the good news is, if you're over 40 — which is old on Survivor —and you want to apply, we are looking for you.”
There is already movement on his network proving that to be the case. The same casting team that works on Survivor put together a noticeably older cast on CBS’ recently completed season 25 of Big Brother. That cast featured four different contestants 45 and older: Felicia Cannon (63), former Survivor legend Cirie Fields (53), Bowie Jane (45), and Hisam Goueli (45). Not only that, but the cast also featured five people in their 30s. Big Brother host Julie Chen Moonves was a fan of the greater age diversity, telling EW, “We used to have one older person, who was middle-aged plus, maybe every other season along with a bunch of young hotties."
While the network, casting team, and Survivor host all seem open to putting together older casts, Probst warns that age alone will not get someone on the show. “Here's the caveat,” he notes. “We're not going to put you on just because you're older. That would be a wasted spot. And in the same way that sometimes an 18-year old is lacking a little life experience to make them ready for the show, I meet a lot of people in their fifties who are so locked into who they are that it's also equally not interesting on the other side of the spectrum. There's no layers to them.”
CBS
Bruce Perreault on 'Survivor 45'Luckily for the show, Survivor’s two current challenge beasts have plenty of layers. “That's clearly not the case with Julie and Bruce,” says Probst. "Both are very interesting, very compelling. We would put both of them back on the show today.” Maybe Bruce — who also appeared (albeit briefly) on Survivor 44 — just keeps coming back over and over again for every season. I’m sure Katurah would be absolutely thrilled!
For much more inside intel from Probst on the latest episode — including all the fallout from last week’s blindside — check out On Fire: The Official Survivor Podcast.
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