Survivor In The Media

[peachmangosteen]

1 hour ago, Eolivet said:

I think this live reunion show is all but canceled, unless they're going to do 20 Skype interviews.

I'd like to see them try that. It could be hilarious.

[AncientNewbie]

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I'd like to see them try that. It could be hilarious.

 

"No, Rob, you're on mute...No, still can't hear you. Get one of the kids to come fix it. We'll be back after this..."

[LadyChatts]

11 hours ago, Jextella said:

Do you know when the finale is scheduled for?

I think May 20th.  

[LadyChatts]

Whoever won this season probably already knows it anyway, so it'd only be a surprise to the audience.  So Jeff could just reveal the winner from the comfort of his living room via webcam and be done with it. 

[Guest]

I'm going to be optimistic and say that things will be different enough by May that they'll be able to throw something together. And if not, just tell us the winner, show them celebrating remotely and call it a day. No great loss, honestly.

[Lantern7]

Looks like I was wrong about Erik drawing Spy Shack v3.

 

[Lantern7]

Erik brings up tokens again . . .

Is Yul supposed to look remotely sinister? Ever? Even him staring into the fire in a contemplative manner might be a bit overkill. Seriously, though, Erik is killing it this season.

[simplyme]

6 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

Is Yul supposed to look remotely sinister? Ever? Even him staring into the fire in a contemplative manner might be a bit overkill. Seriously, though, Erik is killing it this season.

My first thought on seeing this was that this was alternate world Yul as an evil vizier.

[Lantern7]

2 minutes ago, simplyme said:

My first thought on seeing this was that this was alternate world Yul as an evil vizier.

Maybe if you give him a thick goatee and an eyepatch? Seriously, Michele-with-one-L and Nick look shook to their cores.

[grandmabegum]

I would imagine there is little to no chance of there being a live finale. All of the studios are locked down. The show I work for didn't even finish the season and the rest of post was done from home (except the editor and show runner who had to deal with final cuts -- but the still had a rushed schedule). Normally we have a return date at the end of the season, but there was absolutely no discussion of that. It was basically get out. And even if they didn't do an audience you still have a ton of crew that would be together on stage.

And aside from the stage being an issue, there would also be the issue of travel, which is supposed to be on lockdown except for emergencies.

[LadyChatts]

The finale I think is May 20th, and a lot can happen between now and then.  However, at this point, I do think it's unlikely they would do a live reunion show.  Which has me wondering how they will reveal the winner, and if there will be any kind of reunion show.  It's not like they can go film a special and talk with the cast that way.  It kind of sucks that this is such a milestone season, and all winners (some of whom returned for the first or second time, after a long hiatus), so it would have been nice.  

On the other hand, I don't care to see Jeff talk to the newbies that were just recently on my screen, or to Cochran in the audience (you know he'd be there), or replay Erik's dumb move for the gazillion time of giving his necklace away and getting voted out for a throwback moment (much dumber moves have followed show, including this season).  

With everything being shut down in production, I'm also curious what this means for the fall seasons of shows.  Even reality shows like Survivor are being delayed in filming, although they could probably get that whipped up and aired almost on schedule if things start going back to normal in the next few months.

 

[grandmabegum]

53 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

With everything being shut down in production, I'm also curious what this means for the fall seasons of shows.  Even reality shows like Survivor are being delayed in filming, although they could probably get that whipped up and aired almost on schedule if things start going back to normal in the next few months.

 

This article doesn't exactly answer your question, but I can't remember what site I was looking at earlier that had more specific info. Deadline has been constantly updating so specific info might be in an article when the news of a show getting postponed/canceled dropped.

It's also hard to say because it used to be that shows would wrap around this time and then everyone would shift over to pilot season. That's not the case anymore with the rise of cable and streaming shows schedules changed severely. I can only really speak from my experience and department but we'd typically wrap around this time, hop on a pilot until the end of April/beginning of May and start back up (on original show) mid June.

It seems that the industry is trying to stay positive and have writers working remotely from home so that when the all clear gets sent down they can jump back into production as quickly as possible. So writers are working over Zoom or the like. It's pretty bleak, but I certainly have had my fair share of chuckles over the new "writers' uniform." The stereotypical uniform is jeans and a hoodie, probably wrapped in a blanket. It has now been downgraded to pajamas with the uncertainty if the other people in the chat have pants on or not.

[LadyChatts]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-update-cbs-postpones-next-survivor-season-as-coronavirus-spreads/

I stand corrected about the finale date.  This article (from March 11th), has this quote from Probst:

Quote

Probst added that he intends for production to begin on May 19, after the live finale for the current season airs. CBS still plans to produce season 42 as well, he said.  

So I guess that means the finale will be May 13th, since May 19th is the following Tuesday.  

[Eolivet]

This article is so sad to read. Non-essential international travel is banned. Fiji has local transmission, and no matter how friendly they are with the U.S. government, there's no way they're going to want 50 or so Americans from the new COVID-19 epicenter of the world.

Unless they're going to shoot in August or September (in rainy, colder Fiji like Australian Survivor), I have a hard time thinking we will see Survivor until 2021. Maybe fall 2021.

Edited March 28, 2020 by Eolivet

[LadyChatts]

2 hours ago, Eolivet said:

This article is so sad to read. Non-essential international travel is banned. Fiji has local transmission, and no matter how friendly they are with the U.S. government, there's no way they're going to want 50 or so Americans from the new COVID-19 epicenter of the world.

Unless they're going to shoot in August or September (in rainy, colder Fiji like Australian Survivor), I have a hard time thinking we will see Survivor until 2021. Maybe fall 2021.

I think we could get a season in the spring of next year, worst case.  And I don't know what kind of contract they have with Fiji for filming (if any), but maybe they could go to another location?  I know TPTB are stuck on Fiji for various reasons, but if CBS had the opportunity for film the series elsewhere, and wanted a fall season, they might do it.  For arguments sake, I went back to look at earlier seasons that premiered in the fall (and usually filmed in the summer before it aired).  A lot of the seasons filmed from late June-early August, or early June-mid July (which is a similar schedule our spring seasons film on).  So it's possible we could still get a fall season on time.  We could get a delayed Survivor season in the fall, but it could still happen.  Throw together some two hour, double boot episodes, and they could still pull off a December finale.

 

Edited March 29, 2020 by LadyChatts

[Eolivet]

2 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

I think we could get a season in the spring of next year, worst case.  And I don't know what kind of contract they have with Fiji for filming (if any), but maybe they could go to another location?

But where? This disease is in over 150 countries, but the U.S. is now the undesirable location. American citizens are the ones spreading disease. What country is going to let a bunch of U.S. citizens in now?

And from everything I'm reading about how deeply CBS/Viacom are in debt, I don't think they have money to throw around to move locations for Survivor. I'm guessing it's Fiji or nothing.

I'd be curious to get @grandmabegum's perspective on this, as I cannot imagine any show being cleared to film, even in June. I cover conferences for a living, and those scheduled in July are going virtual. Unless they can do some quick fall filming, I can't see it happening.

I don't want to get too far off topic, I just want to be prepared for the very real possibility we will not have Survivor next year. For me, it's better to accept it now than be disappointed later.

[LadyChatts]

24 minutes ago, Eolivet said:

But where? This disease is in over 150 countries, but the U.S. is now the undesirable location. American citizens are the ones spreading disease. What country is going to let a bunch of U.S. citizens in now?

And from everything I'm reading about how deeply CBS/Viacom are in debt, I don't think they have money to throw around to move locations for Survivor. I'm guessing it's Fiji or nothing.

I'd be curious to get @grandmabegum's perspective on this, as I cannot imagine any show being cleared to film, even in June. I cover conferences for a living, and those scheduled in July are going virtual. Unless they can do some quick fall filming, I can't see it happening.

I don't want to get too far off topic, I just want to be prepared for the very real possibility we will not have Survivor next year. For me, it's better to accept it now than be disappointed later.

A lot can happen in the next few months.  That's why I say, if Fiji was still reluctant to let the show film there, another country might offer their location.  Although frankly, I think they should just film Survivor in Hawaii and let that be the permanent location from now until whenever the series ends.  It's still a tropical island, they can film year round without it getting cold, and they make the rewards like a mini club med anyway, so they could scale back on any effects to the environment if it was an issue.  

I think we'll get a season in the spring, if we don't get one in the fall.  I think a lot of whether we get a fall season depends on the 'what if'.  I work in the hospitality industry in a very touristy area, and aside from college graduations, and some events that can't be postponed, a lot of what's going on here is doing just that-postponing.  Without knowing what's going to happen next week, let alone in a couple months, I can see why some places might be preparing alternative ways to still hold or put off events if possible.  

Right now I'm most disappointed that I might not get a summer season of Big Brother.  I'll really miss that train wreck if it doesn't happen.  Oh well, maybe CBS can finally air The Amazing Race season that's been sitting on the shelf for a year.  TV is going to be a very interesting landscape when all the pre-recorded shows (reality and otherwise) end.

Edited March 29, 2020 by LadyChatts

[grandmabegum]

12 hours ago, Eolivet said:

'd be curious to get @grandmabegum's perspective on this, as I cannot imagine any show being cleared to film, even in June. I cover conferences for a living, and those scheduled in July are going virtual. Unless they can do some quick fall filming, I can't see it happening.

I would think the season would get pushed for several reasons and this is all speculation.

1) I don't know what their pre-production schedule is like (I've never worked in reality, only scripted). But if they haven't already cast/aren't planning on another returning players season then they are way behind. And with a lot of studios/offices in LA/NY shut down for shelter at home it would be hard to hold a casting session and I would also imagine pretty hard to get contestants to fly into 2 of the countries biggest hot spots for auditions.

2) As stated above by someone, with US cases rising, countries that aren't infected/have fewer infected I'd imagine they'd want to keep people out (not just contestants, but crew as well). I don't know what Fiji gets paid for them shooting there, but I imagine it wouldn't be worth risking your citizens.

3) This is the furthest stretch, but still a possibility -- with the virus spreading still, I doubt that CBS would press to shoot until they got an all clear. With symptoms not always showing and testing limited I wouldn't want to be the person pushing to put people on an island away from medical attention who pretty much sleep on top of each other unless I felt pretty good about their health and safety.

So, IMO, it seems like they'd delay filming.

Edited March 29, 2020 by grandmabegum
typos though I'm sure there's more

[LadyChatts]

8 hours ago, grandmabegum said:

I would think the season would get pushed for several reasons and this is all speculation.

1) I don't know what their pre-production schedule is like (I've never worked in reality, only scripted). But if they haven't already cast/aren't planning on another returning players season then they are way behind. And with a lot of studios/offices in LA/NY shut down for shelter at home it would be hard to hold a casting session and I would also imagine pretty hard to get contestants to fly into 2 of the countries biggest hot spots for auditions.

The had already cast for the upcoming season, however, it’s possible they may need to do some recasting when they actually start filming.  Since people make arrangements with work, kids, and other commitments to be gone for the designated time frame, with that time frame now changing, some people may not be able to leave.  My guess is they’d either call the alternates, recruit, or maybe change the format to a returning player season of some sort if casting is greatly effected.

[Kromm]

5 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

The had already cast for the upcoming season, however, it’s possible they may need to do some recasting when they actually start filming.  Since people make arrangements with work, kids, and other commitments to be gone for the designated time frame, with that time frame now changing, some people may not be able to leave.  My guess is they’d either call the alternates, recruit, or maybe change the format to a returning player season of some sort if casting is greatly effected.

Grim as it is to admit it and actually say it, it's at least possible if Coronavirus winds up killing 200,000 people in the US, like they fear, that someone cast could either die or if in the large group just getting sick, have ongoing health issues and not be able to go hang out in the jungle.  So add that on top of the people who's availability simply changes.  Heck, with all the enforced time off for people, some may simply not be able to take a few months extra off on top of that.

[ByaNose]

6 hours ago, Kromm said:

Grim as it is to admit it and actually say it, it's at least possible if Coronavirus winds up killing 200,000 people in the US, like they fear, that someone cast could either die or if in the large group just getting sick, have ongoing health issues and not be able to go hang out in the jungle.  So add that on top of the people who's availability simply changes.  Heck, with all the enforced time off for people, some may simply not be able to take a few months extra off on top of that.

Yeah, already casted people real life jobs might hinder their time to play Survivor in the change of the dates. I’m sure they all had schedules their time off but now with the quarantine and work schedules might change everything. Heck! I even think the person who was destined to win the season might not win it now. One small change in time changes everything. 

[kav]

21 hours ago, grandmabegum said:

 

1) I don't know what their pre-production schedule is like (I've never worked in reality, only scripted). But if they haven't already cast/aren't planning on another returning players season then they are way behind. And with a lot of studios/offices in LA/NY shut down for shelter at home it would be hard to hold a casting session and I would also imagine pretty hard to get contestants to fly into 2 of the countries biggest hot spots for auditions.

 

The cast for the next two seasons is already final.  

[ByaNose]

24 minutes ago, kav said:

The cast for the next two seasons is already final.  

It might be final now but a lot of things could change within the next few months. Hopefully, whoever has been cast for the two seasons are the same people when they actually go out there to play. It would be a bummer to wait (some try for years) all this to play Survivor but then “real life” gets in the way. I guess we won’t know what’s gonna happen in another month or two. 

[Kromm]

9 hours ago, kav said:

The cast for the next two seasons is already final.  

I think its a safe assumption that's it's only final if they have enough alternates. 

[LadyChatts]

2 hours ago, Kromm said:

I think its a safe assumption that's it's only final if they have enough alternates. 

And that’s assuming the alternates can play.

My guess is if they can’t do a newbie cast, they may just randomly throw together a returning player season.  It would probably be easier to do that than start from scratch with fresh casting.  They could even do another fans vs favorites if they had enough newbies to form one tribe.

[fishcakes]

Honestly, I'm okay if this is the end. An all-winners cast is a great way to go out, and except for the occasional good season here and there, the show hasn't been consistently great for over a decade.

[kav]

What I think might be cool for the fall season if we have no season ready is to continue to celebrate 20 years of Survivor by having specials about different topics that are connected to Survivor like what it is like to be a kid to someone on the show, how survivors have helped different communities through charities,  love stories formed from the show, a special about the 5? contestants who have passed away, and how former contestants helped keep people safe during this epidemic.

 

........Or just put the TAR season from last year in the fall Survivor spot.

[LadyChatts]

23 hours ago, fishcakes said:

Honestly, I'm okay if this is the end. An all-winners cast is a great way to go out, and except for the occasional good season here and there, the show hasn't been consistently great for over a decade.

I know the day will come when Survivor ends.  And with every passing season, we get closer to that point.  But I'm not ready.  I do agree that since HvsV, seasons have been very hit or miss.  I blame a lot of factors for this, and watching older seasons again, it reminds me how much better this show use to be when it went to different locations, and was less about idols, advantages, twists, and "big moves", and people using this show as an audition for future return appearances and other reality show opportunities.  Still, I'm sad to think of the show ending.  And even though I blame Probst for a lot of these changes and being so stuck in his own mind that he's right about everything, and anyone who disagrees is so wrong, I still couldn't imagine him not hosting the show.

Quote

 

What I think might be cool for the fall season if we have no season ready is to continue to celebrate 20 years of Survivor by having specials about different topics that are connected to Survivor like what it is like to be a kid to someone on the show, how survivors have helped different communities through charities,  love stories formed from the show, a special about the 5? contestants who have passed away, and how former contestants helped keep people safe during this epidemic.

 

........Or just put the TAR season from last year in the fall Survivor spot.

 

I actually wonder if they will put the TAR season they have already in the can on in the fall vs the summer.  I guess it might depend whether they have anything ready to go for fall or not.  

I'd be in favor of these specials.  I remember back when Survivor got 15+ million viewers, and CBS (along with other networks), aired different specials related to it and other reality shows.  Those use to be kind of fun.  I would have loved a 'where are they now' type special for the shows 40th.  

[Eolivet]

10 hours ago, kav said:

What I think might be cool for the fall season if we have no season ready is to continue to celebrate 20 years of Survivor by having specials about different topics that are connected to Survivor like what it is like to be a kid to someone on the show, how survivors have helped different communities through charities,  love stories formed from the show, a special about the 5? contestants who have passed away, and how former contestants helped keep people safe during this epidemic.

Here's my problem with that: part of what makes Survivor special is these are ordinary people. They're not famous, except for being on Survivor. They have real jobs, for the most part. After the game is over, most of them go back to real life. I doubt many of them get recognized anymore (except among fans). So, these stories end up being stories about anybody. Not that I wouldn't love an hour-long special about all the former Survivor contestants who wound up as roommates, but ...

Australian Survivor aired its finale and offered a potential preview of things to come: the host was in Los Angeles, while one of the finalists was also not in the studio. Australia clearly doesn't have as stringent guidelines about gatherings of more than 10 people, because they had the cast and the other finalist, plus family, and a substitute host. No audience, and no hugging among contestants (though they sat too close together). It was bizarre, and I kept thinking about how much they were failing at social distancing.

I maintain there's absolutely no way they will have a live finale here, but it will be interesting if Jeff goes live from LA (or if he's in his house in Fiji? Can he even get back to the U.S.?), and then has the finalists onscreen. I would think the logistics would be too much to do a full reunion show, but I guess we'll see. Conventional wisdom is these guidelines could be extended another month through May.

[LadyChatts]

55 minutes ago, Eolivet said:

I maintain there's absolutely no way they will have a live finale here, but it will be interesting if Jeff goes live from LA (or if he's in his house in Fiji? Can he even get back to the U.S.?), and then has the finalists onscreen. I would think the logistics would be too much to do a full reunion show, but I guess we'll see. Conventional wisdom is these guidelines could be extended another month through May.

I think it will end up being something via teleconference.  Jeff might just talk with some individual contestants, while not inviting others on (so basically ignoring them as usual, they just won't be on stage as seat fillers).  It might be a short reunion, too.  

I did think that maybe they'd just invite the finalists on and announce the winner without an audience, and interview them.  But at this point I don't think that'll happen. 

[EllenB]

13 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

I think it will end up being something via teleconference.  Jeff might just talk with some individual contestants, while not inviting others on (so basically ignoring them as usual, they just won't be on stage as seat fillers).  It might be a short reunion, too.  

I did think that maybe they'd just invite the finalists on and announce the winner without an audience, and interview them.  But at this point I don't think that'll happen. 

Most of them are invisible anyway at the reunion, but that might be more difficult with them all being previous winners - in normal times.

[Lantern7]

I’m sure Denise is a person of multiple layers . . . but in the context of the show? This is totally her. 😜

 

[simplyme]

Hahaha! I started to try to identify who was who, and only then did I see Tyson hiding under the table. Erik is really talented.

[Guest]

And I notice Sophie has a bow and arrow. Eliminating people from afar, so no one knows who's responsible...?

[Jextella]

On 3/30/2020 at 3:22 PM, fishcakes said:

Honestly, I'm okay if this is the end. An all-winners cast is a great way to go out, and except for the occasional good season here and there, the show hasn't been consistently great for over a decade.

I agree with this.   The timing is so wierd.  If S40 is the last, the only think that would have made it better for my tastes would have been to include Tina and Richard for a total of 22 players.

None of the other winners interest me. 

[Lamb18]

On 4/2/2020 at 4:48 PM, simplyme said:

Hahaha! I started to try to identify who was who, and only then did I see Tyson hiding under the table. Erik is really talented.

I was wondering who that was under the table.  I wish he would have stayed there.

[Lantern7]

Oh, Adam.

I don’t think Erik would cop to loving Adam’s move, even as he climbs down one rung on the Worst Moves Ever ladder.

[LadyChatts]

Oh, I don't think it was a bad or stupid move on Adam's part.  As he said, it was worth a shot.  If he'd been right, he would have been spared another 3 days.  It would have made all the chaos leading up to the vote worth it.  Nick would have pouted and gone home.  Who knows, it might have turned the game around for Adam completely. 

Probst said in his Entertainment Weekly interview that the whole reason they don't hide idols at TC is because of what Adam did-they don't want the set getting ransacked.  However, I still say Adam probably planted some sort of seed.  They may plant one in the future, just not in a spot where someone would literally have to rip something apart to retrieve it.

Edited April 9, 2020 by LadyChatts

[Eolivet]

1 hour ago, LadyChatts said:

As he said, it was worth a shot. 

It was worth a shot to see if that medallion could be removed, I agree. Once it was clear it could not be removed, trying to play the podium for himself was, to me, nearly as stupid as Erik's giving up immunity. Erik's move at least relied on the idea maybe you could trust other people. Adam's move relied on ... principles of reality that heretofore never existed in Survivor (The Immunity Podium! Point to it and immunity is yours!)

That turned the move from "why not, Adam, what do you have to lose?" to "Adam, were you dropped on your head as a small child?", which I think Erik captured perfectly here.

[LadyChatts]

Eh, I still think Erik's move was dumber.  The guy was guaranteed immunity, and likely would have continued his streak.  He knew the girls had an alliance and were picking the guys off.  Adam already knew he was going.  Maybe he thought it was stuck in there.  Probst didn't help with his "who said this isn't an idol" talk.  I'm sure if he could have broken out into a happy dance at what Adam was doing at that moment he would have.  He's right that it's never been done before, but there's a first time for everything.  

Still, I think there's one former Survivor winner not present in this season who trumps everyone when it comes to stupid moves.

Edited April 9, 2020 by LadyChatts

[seacliffsal]

I think Sandra's move of giving her immunity idol to Denise is right up there with "bad/ stupid" Survivor moves.

[LadyChatts]

Preview for this week, and it's the loved ones visit (I'm honestly shocked they didn't show it at the end of the episode this week).  Looks like they are bringing the whole family in for this!

[SVNBob]

5 hours ago, LadyChatts said:

Looks like they are bringing the whole family in for this!

Now we know what they did with the money they saved on Ponderosa.

[LadyChatts]

Oops, I meant to post that in the preview thread.  

[DEL901]

There will be a virtual finale May 13 th  

 

https://ew.com/tv/survivor-winners-at-war-virtual-reunion-finale/

[Hanahope]

Article indicates that filming S41 and 42 are in peril because of the virus.  

[Lady Calypso]

1 hour ago, Hanahope said:

Article indicates that filming S41 and 42 are in peril because of the virus.  

Which is why it's unlikely that Survivor 41 airs this fall. It's more likely to air in 2021 than in the fall, just because I don't think they'll be able to travel to Fiji by July in order to film. 

[LadyChatts]

Yeah, at this point I think it’s unlikely we’ll have a fall season, although never say never I guess.  If they are able to get the virus more under control, I could see them doing a fall season of Big Brother (since it doesn’t sound like one is happening this summer), and then airing Survivor in the spring.  I won’t be surprised if they have to end up re casting, at least somewhat.

[Jextella]

On 3/30/2020 at 3:22 PM, fishcakes said:

Honestly, I'm okay if this is the end. An all-winners cast is a great way to go out, and except for the occasional good season here and there, the show hasn't been consistently great for over a decade.

I feel the same, and they've crammed so much into it now-a-days that "strategice game play" is barely there and when it is, it is barely discernable.  It's all about EOE, and sheer luck with stupid things like idol nullifiers and such.  They need to retool the whole game play end of things. 

There is some ironic timing with Winners at War.  If this is the end for Survivor - or even if its the end for a few years - it was the best possible way to go out.  And, including kids in the family visit - and even for EOE players - is just as ironic given the rest of the world is isolated from friends and loved one.  It is was a lovely moment and a good reminder to all how important family is.  The timing for this has been really odd.

Edited April 16, 2020 by Jextella

[Lantern7]

I need to find out how long it takes Erik to churn out his “recap.” Apparently, he can go from concept to finished product pretty quickly. This week, he goes past the love-in and zeroes in on Jeremy.

BTW, if you go to an IG page and click a picture, you’re prompted to log in. Super annoying. But if you open the pic in a new tab, then there’s no problem.