Last week,the official cast of returning playersofSurvivor 50was revealed, and two of the most beloved castaways in the show’s history are not happy about it. AlthoughJeff Probstpromised that the landmark season would honor all eras of the show,over 50 percent of the cast features New Era players,all of whom have competed in the last five years. This led former contestantsKelley WentworthandCarolyn Wigerto air their frustrations about the cast, stating that not enough deserving players were included.
Kelley Wentworth Calls Out Jeff Probst
Although Wentworth has no aspirations of appearing onSurvivoragain, she’s continued to create content for the show, especially about Season 50, where she’s outlined the importance of givingworthy castaways a second chance. Following the cast reveal, Wentworth explained on social media that she has respect for all the former contestants who were chosen to compete in the landmark season but feelsSurvivormissed the mark with most of their selections. The three-time player first complained about the number of New Era castaways returning from the same seasons, asmultiple contestants were chosen from the 46th, 48th, and 49th editions of the show.
She also took issue with two former winners participating in Season 50, asDee ValladaresandKyle Fraserare returning after just recently being crowned sole survivor.However, Wentworth’s biggest concern with Season 50 was the promise thatSurvivormade to their fans, which they didn’t honor,stating onInstagram: “Jeff has been telling us for months that this season is going to be a celebration of the entire series, of 25 years of us watching this show. And so I’m thinking, this is like legends. Full-on legends, the biggest names we’re going to see.”
Along with feeling betrayed by Probst,Wentworth also pointed out thatnot one contestant from Seasons 20-29 is included inSurvivor 50,proving that the celebratory season is not a true representation of the entire series. The 38-year-old claimed that the theme ofSurvivor 50should’ve been “New Era versus everyone else” to temper the expectations of both fans and herself. To close her argument, Wentworth noted thatfan favorites such asJerri MantheyandRob Cesterninoshould’ve been cast in Season 50 instead of the abundance of New Era contestants that will be playing.
These Legendary ‘Survivor’ Contestants Were Snubbed From Season 50 — and It’s an Absolute Betrayal
‘Survivor’ made a huge mistake by cutting these former contestants from season 50.
Carolyn Wiger Individually Criticizes Cast of Season 50
When Probst revealed thatSurvivor 50would feature returning players earlier this year,Wiger was one of the first New Era players that fans deemed worthy of another opportunity in Fiji,but she was unfortunately not selected. Following the cast reveal, Wiger decided to briefly provide her thoughts on every announced player for Season 50 onInstagram,claiming that she was pleased to see castaways likeGenevieve MushalukandChristian Hubickireturn but was dissatisfied with most of the other names revealed. Wiger specifically called outThe White Lotuswriter and directorMike White,stating that he’s “Too famous to be there” despite his impressive run on the show during Season 37. Similarly to Wentworth,Wiger is also frustrated that two former sole survivors would be returningand feels that players from Seasons 48 and 49 shouldn’t have been selected because of how recently they competed. Additionally, she expressed her contentment with legends likeCirie FieldsandChrissy Hofbeckreturning, but other long-time fan favorites, such asBenjamin “Coach” WadeandOzzy Lusth,she felt had played onSurvivorenough and didn’t deserve another chance.
Although it could be argued that Wentworth’s comments are hypocritical due to playing three times or that Wiger is just upset because she wasn’t selected forSurvivor 50,both women seem to share similar opinions with the audience. Fans wanted Season 50 not to include players who have already been given multiple opportunities and failed,or to feature an over-representation of New Era castaways. They were craving to seeformer contestants who were inches away from winning the million-dollar prizeget a second chance at rewriting history. As Wentworth mentioned, Probst andCBSset the bar too high by promising the audience a season that would be a tribute to all eras ofSurvivor,with the inclusion of too many New Era players and overuse of legends, leaving a poor taste in the mouths of fans and former contestants.
Survivoris available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
