The highly-anticipated live finale of “Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans” is just hours away from hitting CBS screens nationwide tonight, Wednesday, May 20, at 8:00pm ET.
During the three-hour event, the milestone season’s Final Five castaways – Aubry Bracco, Jonathan Young, Tiffany Nicole Ervin, Joe Hunter and Rizo Velovic – will battle it out to earn a coveted seat in the Final Three. Then, at Final Tribal Council, the Jury – which currently consists of Dee Valladares, Chrissy Hofbeck, Benjamin “Coach” Wade, Christian Hubicki, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Emily Flippen, Ozzy Lusth, Rick Devens and Cirie Fields – will cast their votes for which finalist they believe has most successfully managed to outwit, outplay and outlast the competition.
The finalist, alongside the other 19 castaways who have already been eliminated from the competition, will reunite in Los Angeles alongside their friends, family, and the lucky fans who earned tickets to the taping by unearthing Hidden Immunity Idols scattered across the country as part of CBS’s promotional “Survivor 50 Challenge” earlier this year.
While countless former “Survivor” alumni will also be in the audience during tonight’s finale, CBS has since revealed their plans to make the event truly historic by inviting all 47 former series champions to attend as well.
‘Survivor’ Winners Parvati Shallow, Boston Rob & More to Attend Season 50 Finale Tonight
CBS/Getty“It’s the live finale of ‘Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans’ and we’re excited to reveal that all of the winners from the previous 49 seasons have been invited to attend,” reported “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday.
According to the network, the attendance of former series champions like Tina Wesson, who won Season 2 – “Survivor: The Australian Outback” – and Ethan Zohn, who won Season 3 – “Survivor: Africa.”
GettyThey’ll be joined by iconic “Survivor” power couple “Boston” Rob and Amber Mariano, who emerged victorious from 2010’s “Survivor: Redemption Island” and 2004’s “Survivor: All-Stars,” respectively.
CBSViewers can also expect appearances from fan-favorite champions like Parvati Shallow (“Survivor: Microneisa”), John Cochran (“Survivor: Caramoan”) and Natalie Anderson (“Survivor: San Juan del Sur”), amongst others.
GettyOf course, Dee Valladares, who won “Survivor 45,” Kyle Fraser, who won “Survivor 48,” and Savannah Louie, who most recently won “Survivor 49” last December, will also be in attendance, having returned to compete on Season 50.
We also know that “Survivor 44” champion Yam Yam Arocho, who recently appeared on Season 4 of Peacock’s “The Traitors,” will also be in attendance, having posed for a photograph with Tina Wesson on Instagram while attending “Survivor”s Emmy’s FYC event on Tuesday evening.
First-Ever ‘Survivor’ Winner Richard Hatch Claims He Wasn’t Invited to the Season 50 Finale
CBSThat being said, there’s one “Survivor” winner who’s claiming he wasn’t invited to attend tonight’s finale – the original “Sole Survivor” – Richard Hatch.
“CBS Mornings lied this morning saying all ‘Survivor’ winners were invited to [the] Season 50 finale!” Hatch, 65, wrote on X on Tuesday, adding, “I’m the Original Winner, and I WAS NOT INVITED!”
Hatch, who appeared on the first-ever season of “Survivor” in 2000, later returned to compete on 2004’s “Survivor: All-Stars” before seemingly being black-listed from the competition series.
His victory on the inaugural season, while historic, has since been defined by his villainous tactics and desire to be naked as often as possible, despite knowing that dozens of cameras were capturing his every move for the American public to see.
GettyOn “All-Stars” his nudity once again led to controversy as fellow contestant Sue Hawk quit the game after Hatch rubbed against her while participating in a challenge naked.
Richard’s absence was most notable during 2020’s “Survivor: Winners at War,” during which 20 former series champions were invited back to compete head-to-head for the ultimate $2 million prize. As the first-ever winner, fans reasonably expected Hatch to appear on the milestone season.
GettyAt the time, however, longtime “Survivor” host Jeff Probst said he “didn’t feel comfortable” asking the OG castaway to return.
“Given his history on our show, it did not seem appropriate,” Probst told US Weekly in 2020. “We were in a different time and different culture back then and we would never let him run a challenge naked now. Looking back on it, it just didn’t seem to fit.”
CBS has since confirmed that, despite Hatch’s statement, “All winners were invited to the Survivor 50 finale to celebrate the show’s legacy.”
When & Where to Watch the Live Finale of ‘Survivor 50’ Tonight
At present, it remains unclear as to whether or not the returning winners will have some sort of role to play in the finale, or if they’ll just be there to usher the latest “Sole Survivor” into their elite winner’s club.
Regardless, their presence will add yet another layer of excitement to tonight’s live three-hour finale in Los Angeles, which will similarly feature an all-new reunion format, the reveal of the winner of the $100,000 Sia fan-favorite award, and, of course, Probst reading out the results of the Jury’s Final Tribal Council votes.
Be sure to tune in to CBS tonight, Wednesday, May 20 at 8:00pm ET to make sure you don’t miss a single second of the “Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans” finale.
