‘Survivor 50' spoilers: Jeff Probst on the ‘competitive, dramatic' first challenge and what the 24 players told him at the marooning

Yahoo

10-06-2025

On Friday, some juicy Survivor 50 spoilers were revealed from the host and showrunner himself, Jeff Probst.
"OK, it is about two hours after we just started Survivor 50," Probst announced on social media. "We had our marooning challenge this morning. So, this is what I know so far."
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The four-time Emmy winner teased, "We have 24 players who had an incredible attitude. Every single person basically said the same thing: 'I want to play hard and I want to have fun.' That was a big theme because a lot of returning players said, 'You know, I've gotten so caught up in the game that I forget that I'm having this incredible adventure, and I want to do both.' If that's true, that bodes really well."
Probst added, "The other thing that impressed me is they went full tilt on that first challenge. It's competitive. It's dramatic. It comes down to a close finish. But regardless of who wins, what I saw in all 24 players is pure desire. We have players going back 25 years, and we have players who just played, and it's everything in between, and it was very exciting. It's hard to get me more excited than I already am about Survivor, but this morning did it. I'm looking forward to a really fun season!"
CBS
The cast of Survivor 50 was unveiled on May 28, about a week before they officially started filming in Mamanuca Islands, Fiji. This is the first all-stars cycle since Season 40's Winners at War in 2020, so fans were understandably excited to see who was returning to the island.
With 24 total contestants, this is officially the show's biggest cast ever. Here they are:
Jenna Lewis-Dougherty: Seasons 1 (Borneo), 8 (All-Stars)
Colby Donaldson: Seasons 2 (The Australian Outback), 8 (All-Stars), 20 (Heroes vs. Villains)
Stephenie Lagrossa Kendrick: Seasons 10 (Palau), 11 (Guatemala), 20 (Heroes vs. Villains)
Cirie Fields: Seasons 12 (Panama-Exile Island), 16 (Micronesia – Fans vs. Favorites), 20 (Heroes vs. Villains), 34 (Game Changers)
Ozzy Lusth: Seasons 13 (Cook Islands), 16 (Micronesia – Fans vs. Favorites), 23 (South Pacific), 34 (Game Changers)
Benjamin "Coach" Wade: Seasons 18 (Tocantins – The Brazilian Highlands), 20 (Heroes vs. Villains), 23 (South Pacific)
Aubry Bracco: Seasons 32 (Kaôh Rōng – Brains vs. Brawn vs. Beauty), 34 (Game Changers), 38 (Edge of Extinction)
Chrissy Hofbeck: Season 35 (Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers)
Christian Hubicki: Season 37 (David vs. Goliath)
Angelina Keeley: Season 37 (David vs. Goliath)
Mike White: Season 37 (David vs. Goliath)
Rick Devens: Season 38 (Edge of Extinction)
Jonathan Young: Season 42
Dee Valladares: Season 45 — Winner
Emily Flippen: Season 45
Quintavius "Q" Burdette: Season 46
Tiffany Nicole Ervin: Season 46
Charlie Davis: Season 46
Genevieve Mushaluk: Season 47
Kamilla Karthigesu: Season 48
Kyle Fraser: Season 48 — Winner
Joseph "Joe" Hunter: Season 48
Player No. 1 from Season 49 (premiering fall 2025)
Player No. 2 from Season 49 (premiering fall 2025)
SEE: The Survivor 50 cast photos
The 50th season is subtitled In the Hands of the Fans, and viewers voted throughout Survivor 48 for certain aspects of gameplay, including advantages, Buff colors, abundance of food, final four fire-making, and whether the winner will be announced at a live reunion show or on-location at tribal council. The returning contestants won't know the results of the various votes until Probst tells them on the island.
Survivor 49 airs this fall on CBS, and Survivor 50 will debut in the spring of 2026.
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