Survivor is a very serious game with very serious emotional consequences. Witness the parade of tears we’ve seen from blindsided contestants while having their torches snuffed at Tribal Council.
Similarly, Jeff Probst takes his job as host and showrunner very seriously. He describes challenges with the enthusiasm and professionalism of an announcer calling the Super Bowl. He rocks a penetrating gaze as contestants file into Tribal Council. He even tries his best to keep an even expression when he has to address contestants with monikers such as “Tarzan,” “Troyzan,” “Papa Smurf,” and “Papa Bear.”
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But that doesn’t mean the show and the man who hosts it don’t like to have a little fun. And as evidenced by exchanges that date all the way back to the days of Jonathan Penner, it doesn’t mean that the master of ceremonies does not enjoy mixing it up with cast members at key junctures — especially cast members who may take a good-natured shot in his direction. And it seems like that may be something seen on the screen when Survivor 49 premieres Sept. 24 on CBS.
“One of the most enjoyable parts of being the host of Survivor right now for me is that I’ve been around so long that I think the players trust they can have fun with me, they can make fun of me, or they can use me as a somebody to bounce off of as an improv partner,” Probst tells Entertainment Weekly. “And I really like that.”
But unlike some of the classic back-and-forths of the past Probst would have during challenges with folks like Penner and Parvati Shallow, Survivor 49 will also air interactions that take place on both sides of the contests.
“You’re going to see more of that this season,” Probst teases. “There will be more of those conversations that happen before a challenge starts or after a challenge ends. They’re the kind of conversations we don’t always show, but when those conversations reveal character about the players, then we try to find time to include them in the episode.”
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There are, indeed, a lot of characters on season 49, from the guy who got hit by a car on the day he left for filming in Fiji, to the player “raw-dogging” for three days straight before the game, to the contestant missing the birth of his firstborn child, to the four alternates competing for the $1 million.
As showrunner, Probst wants those personalities to shine through, even if it ends up being at his expense. “I think the impact it’s having is it’s making the audience and the players realize we really are this weird family, and I am that uncle you can make fun of or have fun alongside.”
As for which he prefers — being in on the joke or the butt of the joke — the host cares not: “I’m good either way.”
