‘Survivor’ Runner-Up Charlie Davis to Host ‘On Fire’ Podcast: Jeff Probst Reveals How Fans Made It Happen

Kelli Boyle September 11, 2024, 9:00 am

Charlie Davis for 'Survivor' Season 46 — Robert Voets / CBS

Fans decided that Survivor 50 would be a returning players season earlier this year, and now they’ve also chosen the next co-host of the On Fire podcast. Survivor Season 46 fan-favorite Charlie Davis will host alongside Jeff Probst and Jay Wolff, CBS revealed Wednesday, September 11 along with debuting the trailer for the new audio season (listen below). Here, Probst tells TV Insider how this decision came to be.

Season 4 of the On Fire podcast will continue the tradition of providing an exclusive look behind the curtain of TV’s seminal reality competition series, with perspectives from the man at the helm of it all, Probst, a Survivor superfan (and executive producer of the podcast), Wolff, and a former Survivor contestant, Davis.

Rick Devens previously hosted, as did Season 45 winner Dee Valladares. But for this season, they left it for the fans to decide, prompting listeners to make requests for their ideal cohost in reviews for the podcast. It was overwhelmingly clear that Davis was the top choice. Davis says he’s “buzzing” with excitement to be joining the official aftershow for Season 47.

The runner-up for Season 46, Davis was a fan-favorite all season long and only gained support when his former best friend on the show, Maria Shrime Gonzalez, betrayed him in the final moments by voting for Kenzie Petty instead of her supposed closest ally. Petty won in a 5-3-0 vote. Third-place player Ben Katzman confirmed in exit interviews after the Season 46 finale that had it been a tie between Petty and Davis, which would have made him the tiebreaker voter, he would have voted for Davis. Gonzalez switching her vote from Davis to Petty quite literally cost him $1 million, souring her reputation in the process.

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Given the support fans have given Davis since that painful loss, it’s no surprise that he became their pick for On Fire. Probst says it was a “landslide.”

“Charlie Davis’s name came up more than any other player by such a landslide that it really wasn’t even a big discussion,” Probst tells TV Insider. “He was the person that we knew should be the next co-host because the fans want to hear from him. He’s a great storyteller, and he’s got an interesting story. He made it all the way to the end, and he lost a single vote. So he’s going to bring a slightly different point of view than Dee Valladares, who won her season.”

Probst gives a glimpse into Davis’ hosting skills, saying he won’t disappoint. “Already in our talks with Charlie, he’s fantastic,” Probst shares. “He’s such a good storyteller, and he’s so specific that I’m curious about moments that might not always seem like big turning point moments to get his opinion on why that seemingly small moment was so important, and if he learned anything from playing in his season that he would do differently if he played again.”

The host says that having fans decide Survivor 50’s theme and On Fire Season 4’s cohost is 100 percent fan service.

“We want fans to be happy,” he says. “That’s number one on the list. This is a thank you to fans for loyalty. So we want players that they want to see. We want the kind of twists that they love to enjoy. What we’re slowly starting to put together is, how can we honor Survivor 50 by celebrating it?” Having fans involved in the production process is one way they’re celebrating this major milestone.

New episodes of On Fire will be available immediately after new episodes air on CBS Wednesdays on CBS. Stream On Fire wherever you listen to your podcasts. The two-hour premiere of Survivor 47 airs Wednesday, September 18 at 8/7c on.