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Jeff Probst broke his silence on the rumors circulating about him retiring as the host of Survivor.
Probst has been the host of the reality TV show for 26 years since it premiered on CBS in 2000.
Jeff Probst Has a Lot More Left in the Tank
“I don’t see an end in sight right now,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “I think the format is one of the greatest formats in TV. I think we’re a good team producing it. I think we’re really good storytellers.”
Probst Speaks on the Show’s Longevity
The longtime host believes the show’s success comes from the way they are able to tell creative stories. “One of the hallmarks of Survivoris we’re not like any other show,” Probst said. “And it’s deep, rich storytelling where you take conflict, and you create suspense, and you have tension. And then you resolve it, and then you do it again.”
He added, “I think it could go for a while. I really do.”
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Not Ready to Put Out His Torch
Although Probst has no plans to retire anytime soon, the 64-year-old said he doesn’t think he’ll be the host forever. “Maybe I’m not there for season 100, although I don’t know,” he said. “If I had a guy behind me, say I’m in a bit of a walker or wheelchair.”
The Introduction of the ‘Open Era’
This season of Survivorcomes with a recurring twist called the “Open Era,” which refers to the period beginning with Season 51 (2025), when the show loosened its previous casting rules and once again allowed former players to apply for and potentially return in regular seasons.
“We felt pressure before we shot 50. We were already feeling like, ‘What are we going to do after 50, even though we have not even produced 50?’ And I think that pressure was really good because it focused us on 50, and the minute 50 was over, everybody was thinking, ‘OK, what’s next?’ That’s really what led to this idea of the ‘Open Era’ — the pressure of needing something new to really birth us into the next decade,” he shared.
“Not understanding that if you think of Survivor from season one to season 50, there’s an evolution and you could say, ‘Oh, the first idol came into the play in Guatemala. There’s always idols.’ And then they did fire-making in 35. There’s always fire-making. Then they did this other thing and they had beware advantages and they have journeys,” he said of any misconception. “So as a new player playing in say season 45, you could come in going, “Beware advantages are probably in the game. Journeys are probably in the game. It’s going to be three tribes of six. It’s going to be a final three.” And you would generally speaking, be kind of right.”
He added, “You cannot think that now. You have no idea. And just because in 51 we have 21 players and two tribes of 10, doesn’t mean in 52 we’re going to do that. It might mean in 52 we do the exact same thing. Just because you have an idol on your beach doesn’t mean they have the same idol on their beach.”
Survivorairs on CBS on Wednesdays for its 51st season.
