Jeff Probst Addresses If He’d Ever Be A ‘Survivor’ Player
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Jeff Probst has been the host of Survivor since the beginning. It’s unlikely that anyone has seen more of the show than him (Yes, that includes you, superfan). But how would Jeff actually fare if he were to play the game himself? Would his decades of experience observing every minute of the show work to his benefit? Or would he crack under the pressure? Well, recently Probst had a conversation with the Survivor casting director to find out if he could even get on the show at all. The results are more than a little interesting.
Probst On Survivor
The conversation about Jeff’s eligibility for Survivor comes from his new podcast On Fire with Jeff Probst. Jeff responds to a fan question about whether or not he could get on the show if he was a “normal guy”.
“Normal guy” means not the guy who has been the host of the show since the beginning. Sorry, Survivor fans, Jeff’s proximity to the show is also what makes him pretty much ineligible to ever play it in the future. Jeff, nonetheless, gives some interesting speculation concerning the question. He says he’d likely have an advantage in being an older guy, a demographic that’s a bit tougher to find for a show like Survivor.
Probst follows this up by calling the casting director for the show, Jesse Tannenbaum, to see what he thinks about Jeff’s chances. Tannenbaum gives what can best be described as a polite decline.
“I think you might be thrown into a pitch meeting, let’s just say,” says Jesse in a phone call with Jeff.
A Celebrity Season?
Jeff Probst’s status could easily put him in a celebrity season of Survivor if there ever was one. The idea is one that fans have asked for in the past, and even Jeff himself has pitched around. Major celebrities like Neil Patrick Harris have apparently in the past spoken to Jeff about joining on to play the show. One of the main reasons it likely hasn’t happened as opposed to Celebrity Big Brother is the physical toll. It’s unlikely many agents would allow their clients to put themselves in danger like many Survivor contestants put themselves in. It’s probably even one of the things preventing Probst himself. CBS wouldn’t want to risk the face of the show falling off of a rock.
That doesn’t mean it won’t ever happen, though. Certain celebrities have been in the game in the past. Players like Jimmy Johnson from Survivor: Nicaragua or Lisa Whelchel from Survivor: Philippines. They may get a full roster going at some point in the future. Jeff probably won’t be there as anything but the host.
New episodes of Survivor Season 44 continue to premiere every Wednesday.