John Powell – Binge News
Back in February of 2024, Survivor host/producer Jeff Probst made it clear that he and the other producers no longer welcome villains on the show. Probst believes villains bring “negativity” to the show.
On the RHAP show, Probst had this to say: “By merely changing the type of twists we put into the game, we can create negativity. It’s a manipulation, and it’s, what’s the conceit of the show? I’m not interested in [the negativity] anymore, and I think it’s a direct reflection not only of where the show was but of how it needed to evolve. “In the hands of somebody else, I can tell you, for sure, there would be more ‘villains,’ more negativity, more yelling at each other. It’s just not going to happen when I’m part of the show. I’m just not interested in it. There’s too many other things we could do and still have fun.”
This shocking decision and revelation is why many fans and those in the media who cover the show believe that Probst has lost his edge and is molding Survivor into something it wasn’t meant to be especially when you compare it to other franchises like Australia, UK and South Africa. It is like Probst wants Survivor to be a family-friendly-PG sitcom, like Young Sheldon or Full House on an island instead of the cutthroat competition series it was when it started in the USA and around the world. The conflict between ‘good’ and ‘evil’ is what elevates the drama of any narrative of any story. Despite Probst’s best effort to limit what he calls the “negativity”, villains still emerge on the series whether through their own actions like Ricard Foyé, Jesse Lopez, Rome Cooney and others, or through the perception fans have of the players themselves.
That perception is what has turned Joe Hunter and Eva Erickson into villains in the eyes of some fans. Some say it is just a case of success breeding envy and envy breeding hate combined with the push they have been getting on the show. Others see their dominant behavior such as Eva complaining about Mary eating coconuts when she has gone on a zillion food rewards or Joe imploding over anything that might threaten his game to be entitled and arrogant conduct. So, despite Probst’s best efforts fans will still have and share their opinions over who they think is villain and why.
Me? I think that every hero is only as strong as their opposing villain. Without that dichotomy or contrast, we are left with a story that far less compelling on many levels especially when a show is framed around a competition or a game.
Before we get into the stock report, there seems to be one misconception that has been floating around. At the end of this week’s Tribal Council, David stood up as Mary was having her torch snuffed. He wasn’t protesting. He wasn’t expressing his anger. He was in fact showing his respect and honoring his closest ally in the game. It was nothing more and nothing less.
In our conversation, Mary told me:
John Powell: Speaking about David, I’ve been covering Survivor for most of its run. I’ve watched it from third episode of the first season. I have never seen anyone stand up and acknowledge someone’s exit like that. What does that mean to you?
Mary Zheng: It made him call me ‘clingy’ in his exit press all right…It was really, really nice to feel appreciated, because honestly, when I was on that boat going back to Ponderosa, I thought I was going to be like Venus — like, not go to any watch parties, not have any friends — because I felt really ostracized during my last few days out there. Nobody really looked at me. And, you know, you can’t tell from the edit, but I felt incredibly alone.
I also want to say that I have a lot of grace for the people I played the game with. Everybody was playing for the first time and everyone was making the moves they thought were best for them. I can’t fault anyone for the way they played out there.
At the same time, I felt incredibly alone and while I knew in my head that it wasn’t personal – that they probably just saw me as a threat, which people did confirm after the game – there’s a lag between your head and your heart and in my heart, it just felt like nobody wanted to talk to me.
But later on, people were like, Hey, we’re sorry we didn’t talk to you or try to get to know you. We didn’t want to sit next to you at Final Tribal Council because you survived Vula, and we saw you as a threat. We knew we wanted you out, so why get to know someone you’re trying to vote out?
You can check out my entire interview with Mary here:
My written interview for Global TV is here.
On with this week’s Survivor Stock Ticker:
She should be commended for not only playing from the bottom for the entire game but making it so far without many true and loyal allies.
She continues to seal the fractures forming in Muscles R’ Us and piling on those advantages, food rewards which are crucial in making it to the final phase of the game.
Her position in the game hasn’t really improved much, she hasn’t made any great strides. She is just kind of there and nothing more. Even Kyle realizes it might be time to cut her now.
Who’s next to go?
It is finally her time to leave unless there is a move to push out Kyle. She has the least connections and is on the outskirts of the core alliance.
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