Jeff Probst Reveals Major ‘Survivor 51’ Twist — and It Could Change the Game for Years (Exclusive)

Jeff Probst promised that Survivor ’s Open Era would mean anything can happen, and he wasn’t kidding. Ahead of the Survivor 51 premiere on Wednesday, the longtime host and showrunner spoke exclusively with The Hollywood Reporter below about the future of the game, why players can no longer rely on the patterns of the past, how long the show could continue on and whether Survivor still has anything left to prove. And if that wasn’t enough, he also revealed a new recurring twist that could eventually put millions of dollars on the line and change the game forever.

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Before we get to season 51 , I have to ask about the transition from 50. After such a massive milestone season , did you feel any pressure heading into 51?

Enormous pressure. 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, “Okay, 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.

The Open Era doesn’t necessarily mean that every twist or mechanic is coming back. It just means everything is on the table. With that in mind, is there anything from Survivor history you’d still be reluctant to bring back or that it would need a significant tweak if you did?