‘Survivor’ Fans & Alums React to Season 50 Cast: ‘Should Have Let the Fans Vote’
The Tribe Has Spoken
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The Survivor 50 cast has been revealed, and Survivor alums that aren’t competing in the milestone season are reacting to the news on social media, alongside fans. Some former Survivor players are cheering on their fellow alums, while others are calling out the series for what they feel is a disappointing roundup of players, noting that players from earlier seasons have been largely excluded. One ex-contestant Kelley Wentworth said on Instagram on May 28, “Should have let the fans vote on the cast.” Some viewers agree with Wentworth’s take that the show shouldn’t have excluded players from Seasons 19-31.
“There are more players from the last 5 years than from the 15 years before 2020 … and no players from season 19-30 something,” one fan commented on Survivor and CBS Mornings casting announcement Instagram post. Another commented, “How do you not pick anyone from 19-31 when that was the prime time Survivor.”
The Survivor 50 theme is “In the Hands of the Fans.” Earlier this year, fans voted on key elements of the game, including “Idols or No Idols,” “Final Four Fire Making: Keep It or Lose It,” and “Live Finale and Reunion Show in L.A. — or Keep the Winner Reveal and Aftershow in the Jungles of Fiji.” The players won’t know what the fans voted for until they are competing on the island.
The most shocking part of the “In the Hands of the Fans” cast is the fact that there are two players fans haven’t even met yet. Two contestants from Survivor 49, set to premiere this fall on CBS, are part of the Survivor 50 cast, but their names won’t be revealed until later as the 49 cast is still under wraps (for the most part — fans did get a glimpse of the cast in the Seasons 49 teaser trailer in the Season 48 finale on May 21).
The Survivor 50 cast has players from Season 1 through Season 49, and two competitors — Cirie Fields and Ozzy Lusth — are returning for their fifth seasons (“Boston” Rob Mariano holds the record for the most seasons played with six). The White Lotus creator Mike White is coming back as well, and three players from 48 (including winner Kyle Fraser) are returning. Some early-era players are Jenna Lewis-Dougherty from Season 1 and Colby Donaldson from Season 2. Both of them competed in the first all-stars season, Season 8. See the full Survivor 50 cast list here.
Survivor alums are posting up a storm about the Season 50 cast on X/Twitter and Instagram. Owen Knight from Survivor 43 posted the Glen Coco scene from Mean Girls with Survivor-themed onscreen captions and said it was “Christmas morning.”
“Happy for my friends who made it, sad for my friends who didn’t,” Knight added in another tweet. “Confused by the amalgamation of true legends, legends we don’t need to see again, winners, and people we don’t know yet. 1 from 41-44 and 11 from 45-49 is wild. Sad there’s little Asian rep. We’ll see … No offense to the 49 people but it’s literally impossible for us to be excited about them when Jesse, Omar, Rob C, Sean Rector, Malcolm, Carolyn, Shan, Frannie, Jerri, Abi, Amanda, etc are sitting at home.”
Kellie Nalbandian from Season 45 said she wants to see her former cast mate Emily Flippen drink wine with Mike White, as both players had memorable scenes with a glass of vino in their respective seasons.
Wentworth had less favorable things to say about the returning players lineup. “Snubbing the 20s [seasons] completely but adding five people from the last two seasons when this is meant to be a *celebration* of the entire series is wild work,” she wrote on her Instagram Story. “Should have let the fans vote on the cast.”
Wentworth also posted a video on Instagram calling out the casting decisions. She said that Survivor should have planned a second-chance style all-stars season for new-era players for Season 49 in order to make space for more older-era players in the Season 50 cast. See the video below. Three-time Survivor player Jerri Manthey commented on the post thanking her for mentioning her in the video and agreeing with Wentworth’s take. She said, “WHY Colby and not me?” Manthey and Donaldson both competed three times and in the same three seasons to boot (Seasons 2, 8, and 20).
“OMG I love you! thank you… and yes.. it makes NO SENSE and it doesn’t feel like a celebration whatsoever,” Manthey commented. “And don’t get me started on WHY Colby and not me..?? uh uh…. and can you IMAGINE…. Abi, Maria, and I on the same season???? OMG. Rob C is a true legend as well… not OK. Penner? Are you kidding? Seriously one of the best…. THANK YOU for your words of support and your mention. I love you.”
View this post on Instagram
In the comments section of the CBS Mornings post, some fans wished that fans could’ve been involved in the casting process.
“But as fans we wanted to have a say in the cast,” one said, while another chimed in, “It would have been cool if people could have voted for who they wanted to come back.”
Survivor 43’s Jesse Lopez, a fan-favorite to win that season before his heartbreaking defeat in the fire-making challenge, said not being cast in Season 50 “stings.”
“To be real, it stings. But my kids still run around telling people I’m a Survivor all star with or without 50,” he wrote on X/Twitter. “Gonna keep doing sh** to impress my kids & get that money baby!”
Eva Erickson, who made it to the final three in Season 48, commented on Survivor‘s Instagram post teasing that she “hopes Kyle doesn’t piss his pants out there again, that would be tragic.” She also commented, “Hyped for my homies Kyle, Kamilla, and Joe repping S48.”
See more Survivor alum reactions to the Season 50 cast announcement below.
Happy for my friends who made it, sad for my friends who didn’t. Confused by the amalgamation of true legends, legends we don’t need to see again, winners, and people we don’t know yet. 1 from 41-44 and 11 from 45-49 is wild. Sad there’s little Asian rep. We’ll see ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
— Owen Knight (@they0ungknight) May 28, 2025
No offense to the 49 people but it’s literally impossible for us to be excited about them when Jesse, Omar, Rob C, Sean Rector, Malcolm, Carolyn, Shan, Frannie, Jerri, Abi, Amanda, etc are sitting at home
— Owen Knight (@they0ungknight) May 28, 2025
Christmas morning #Survivor50 pic.twitter.com/W06AYpeGHX
— Owen Knight (@they0ungknight) May 28, 2025
Need this wine reward linkup on #Survivor50 pic.twitter.com/LESXSbfbkb
— Kellie Nalbandian (@kellienalb) May 28, 2025
What could have been…..#Survivor50 pic.twitter.com/3YPlFJvr3l
— Kendra Ruth✨ (@kendraruthless) May 28, 2025
…It’s not me yall 🥲
…but thanks for all your love and support #Survivor50 👇👇👇https://t.co/vdN2bLqwSI pic.twitter.com/uVHFqr7bJZ
— WheresDavie (@WheresDavie) May 27, 2025
After FTC of 47 wrapped I walked around the set and told each and every producer “thank you for putting me on the same season as Genevieve” .. so happy she’ll be representing our season on #Survivor50
— teeny (@teenychill) May 28, 2025
Me watching the Survivor 50 cast of 12 new era players get revealed. pic.twitter.com/DwkvsJjTV6
— Jesse Lopez (@Jesse_L_Lopez) May 28, 2025
To be real, it stings. But my kids still run around telling people I’m a Survivor all star with or without 50.
Gonna keep doing shit to impress my kids & get that money baby!
— Jesse Lopez (@Jesse_L_Lopez) May 28, 2025
Top three players I am most excited to see?
Christian, Chrissy and Angelina!Absolutely gutted that the closest to never win, Dom, isn’t getting a shot. He deserves it and I’d love to watch him play again. Total miss IMO (I’m biased but IDC!)#Survivor50
— Kellyn Bechtold (@thekellynb) May 27, 2025
What do you think of the Survivor 50 cast? Sound off in the comments section below.
Survivor, Season 49 Premiere, Fall 2025, Season 50 Premiere, Spring 2026, CBS
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