The countdown to the premiere of “Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans” has officially begun!
With fewer than 50 days left until the milestone season makes its long-awaited CBS debut on Wednesday, February 25, Entertainment Weekly’s dedicated “Survivor” reporter Dalton Ross has started dropping the first pre-game press interviews for the installment, including a January 9 video in which he asks the season’s record-breaking cast to cast their votes for which of their competitors they’d like to see leave the competition first.
While some players used the opportunity to target big threats straight out the gate, others capitalized on the ability to settle old scores and new rivalries.
Without further ado, it is – in the words of longtime host Jeff Probst – time to vote! Here’s a closer look at who the largest-ever “Survivor” cast wanted to send packing before Season 50 even began.
4 Votes for Rizo ‘Rizgod’ Velovic
CBSIf there was ever a time that “Survivor 49” finalist Rizo Velovic – better known as “the man, the myth, the legend RIZGOD, baby!” – needed a Hidden Immunity Idol, it’s now.
With four votes cast against him – by Joe Hunter, Kyle Fraser, Tiffany Nicole Ervin and Benjamin “Coach” Wade – Rizo received the most pre-game votes of any Season 50 castaway and, if this had been a real vote, would be the first player eliminated from the upcoming season just weeks after making it to the Final Four of Season 49.
All four of Rizo’s votes were cast for the same exact reason: He’s an unknown in the game.
“It’s not personal, but I’m voting you out because I don’t got any game tape on you, okay?” said Season 48 winner Kyle Fraser, adding, “You know everything about me, I know nothing about you. But I know you’re out here for a reason.”
Season 46 alum Tiffany Nicole Ervin echoed the statement, telling EW, “Unfortunately, the devil you know is a little easier to deal with than the devil you don’t.”
It was Benjamin “Coach” Wade, returning for his fourth “Survivor” appearance on the cast of Season 50, however, who explained just how dangerous a variable like Rizo can be in a returning players season.
“Look, I’m having flashbacks of Russell [Hantz],” said Coach. “Rizo, I’m not sure if you are [like] Russell, but you know what? I remember going into [“Heroes vs. Villains”] and nobody knew who Russell was, but he knew who everybody was. It was a huge advantage.”
“I got some sneaky, shady vibes going on with you, brother,” Coach added. “So you gotta go.”
3 Votes for Benjamin ‘Coach’ Wade
CBSRizo countered Wade’s takedown with a shot of his own leverage at the so-called “Dragonslayer,” albeit with an entirely different motivation.
“There’s only room for two self-proclaimed nicknames on this beach: Coach vs. Rizgod,” said Velovic, adding that “the man, the myth, the legend is slaying the ‘Dragonslayer’ and sending [him] to ‘Survivor’ retirement.”
Jenna Lewis-Dougherty, one of the original “Survivor” castaways, similarly took issue with Wade’s copious nicknames, calling her first vote a “no-brainer.”
“I am a 47-year-old woman who reads a lot of ‘romantasy’ books,” she said. ‘[Coach] calls himself the ‘Dragonslayer’ and I am firmly in Camp Dragon. Those things are ancient and majestic – Leave them alone!”
“Survivor: The Australian Outback” runner-up Colby Donaldson sent a third vote in Wade’s direction, but failed to provide a specific reason. That being said, it could have something to do with the Dragonslayer’s previous comments calling Colby the “biggest chauvinist” in “Survivor” history in a 2022 tweet.
3 Votes for Kyle Fraser
CBSAfter Rizo and Coach, the cast of “Survivor 50” set their sights on eliminating previous winners next, with castaways like Mike White, Cirie Fields and Ozzy Lusth all choosing to cast their votes for “Survivor 48” champion Kyle Fraser.
At the time of filming, Fraser was the most recent player to walk away from the competition with the “Sole Survivor” title, making him an easy target for the returning favorites.
“Kyle, you just won a million dollars yesterday!” exclaimed returning five-time player Cirie Fields. “And you’re back already?”
Cirie added that Fraser’s hasty return showed that he had “something to prove.”
“Not on my watch, Kyle,” concluded the former “Black Widow.”
“No hard feelings, I’m sure you’re a great guy, but you just won,” echoed “The White Lotus” creator Mike White, adding that Fraser’s “lockstep alliance” with his Season 48 co-stars Kamilla Karthigesu and Joe Hunter makes him too big a threat to keep around.
“You played too good of a game,” added fifth-time returnee Ozzy Lusth. “You’re a challenge beast and you’re savvy…I gotta get rid of you ASAP.”
3 Votes for Dee Valladares
CBSKyle wasn’t the only former winner catching votes during EW’s pre-game experiment however.
Dee Valladares, the “Sole Survivor” of Season 45, similarly received three votes against her, cast by castaways Quintavius “Q” Burdette, Rick Devens and recent Season 49 champion Savannah Louie.
Devens, who served as the co-host of “On Fire with Jeff Probst,” the official “Survivor” aftershow podcast, during Dee’s original season, knows her game inside and out. And that’s exactly why he wants her gone as soon as possible.
“I had to pay really close attention [during your season],” said the “Edge of Extinction” finalist. “You are easily the best winner of the new era. You’re just better at ‘Survivor’ than I am. You’ve gotta get out of here.”
Savannah echoed Devens’ statement, albeit reluctantly, delivering her vote for Valladares with the message: “I love you. I would love to be your friend in real life, but ‘Survivor’ is not real life.”
Louie conceded that she modeled her own winning strategy after Dee’s performance on Season 45, but when challenged with competing against her head-to-head, she balked, saying, “Now that I know how big of a threat you are, how crazy of a physical and social and strategic game you can play, I do not wanna be anywhere near you when I’m playing this game.”
“You gotta go first before you can make it too far in this game and win again,” Savannah added. “Because if there’s gonna be a two-time winner on this season, it’s gonna be me.”
Season 46 fan favorite Q Burdette had a different – and laughable – reason for voting out Valladares, however. One that only came about once the entire Season 50 cast had gathered on the beaches of Fiji ahead of the game.
“I looked at your feet and your toes are big,” Q reasoned. “I don’t like that… Maybe you should wear shoes on the beach. Don’t wear sandals around me. Good luck.”
2 Votes for Savannah Louie
CBSDespite being a relative mystery to everyone on the cast except her fellow Season 49 returnee Rizo Velovic, Savannah Louie still managed to earn two votes during the pre-season EW vote.
One of those votes came from Tiffany Nicole Ervin, who actually split her vote between both Savannah and Rizo for the same “the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t” reason.
The other vote comes from “Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers” fan favorite Chrissy Hofbeck, who caught wind of Savannah’s winner-status, even though her victory wouldn’t be confirmed until months later.
“I heard a rumor she won Season 49,” said Chrissy, adding, “We don’t need winners here.”
2 Votes for Colby Donaldson
GettyDespite being a domineering physical threat on all three of his past “Survivor” appearances, both of the votes leveraged at castaway Colby Donaldson were cast for personal reasons – some more valid than others.
“I’m voting you off because at the airport you took the stairs instead of the escalator,” said Dee Valladares. “We all judged you for it…because you’re a ‘pick me.’”
Dee was joined by “David vs. Goliath” finalist Angelina Keeley, who took aim at Donaldson for allegedly calling her “chaotic” during their pre-season quarantine and press interviews.
“I heard you were talking some smack about me, saying I was ‘chaotic,’” she said, showing the EW cameras her parchment with Colby’s name written in bold letters. “Mess around and find out, Colby.”
2 Votes for Quintavius ‘Q’ Burdette
CBSQ Burdette, known for his controversial and chaotic gameplay on “Survivor 46,” also received two “revenge” votes from Stephenie LaGrossa-Kendrick and Aubry Bracco.
Stephenie, returning to Season 50 for her fourth series appearance, said she wanted to eliminate Burdette after he slid into her DMs.
“He messaged me on Instagram a bunch of times and never said anything about the game, just said weird stuff like ‘Happy Mother’s Day!’ and, ‘How hot is it in that sauna?’ reported the “Survivor: Guatemala” runner-up. “[But] since I’ve been here he hasn’t even looked at me, so I think he’s shady.”
Fourth-time player Aubry Bracco also had a bone to pick with Q, saying, “You voted off Moriah [Gaynor] because you said she was like me. I’m just returning the favor.”
2 Votes for Charlie Davis
CBSQ isn’t the only “Survivor 46” alumni catching votes, however, as both Christian Hubicki and Jonathan Young cast their votes for former finalist Charlie Davis.
“This man has everything in this game to win,” explained “David vs. Goliath” fan favorite Hubicki. “You might say he’s handsome, he runs marathons, he’s a Harvard lawyer, he’s charming, he’s nice, he’s humble, he’s all those things. But most of all, what makes him a threat is that he’s normal; he comes across normal.”
Christian, a robotics professor with a penchant for all things ‘quirky,’ justified his vote for Charlie, telling EW, “the greatest threat to someone like me are people who blend into the background.”
“Survivor 41” challenge beast Jonathan Young similarly cast his vote for Davis, albeit primarily to avoid a season-full of Taylor Swift references.
“I’m sorry, Charlie, but I don’t know anything about Taylor Swift,” said Young. “And I think we’re complete opposites.”
1 Vote for Joe Hunter
Robert Voets/CBS“Survivor 48” finalist Joe Hunter received only one vote during EW’s pre-game experiment, from Season 47 alum Genevieve Mushaluk.
“I think Joe is the best-positioned player coming into Season 50,” she said. “He is on everyone’s mind because Season 48 just aired and he has proven himself to be extremely strong, very charming and social, and he played a loyal game, which is going to appeal not only to the new era players, but definitely to the old era players, which means I think he’s gonna be one of the hardest people to vote out of this game. So, as much as I love him, if I had it my way, he would be the first one to go.”
1 Vote for Genevieve Mushaluk
CBS/GettyMushaluk herself also received a vote from Joe’s fellow Season 48 finalist, Kamilla Karthigesu, who argued, “There’s only room for one Canadian puzzle, lying queen, and it’s me.”
Kamilla and Genevieve both made history as the first Canadian players to compete on two seasons as they joined the cast of “Survivor 50.”
1 Vote for Jonathan Young
CBS“Survivor 41” alum Jonathan Young also received a singular vote from Season 45 fan favorite Emily Flippen.
“I just don’t see a world in which the two of us can ever work together,” argued the 31-year-old investment analyst.
1 Vote for Rick Devens
CBSFinally, castaway Charlie Davis issued the final vote of EW’s experiment against Rick Devens, solely because they’ve both served as co-hosts of the “On Fire with Jeff Probst” podcast.
“There’s not enough room for this many ‘On Fire’ co-hosts on this beach,” said Charlie.
Watch the entire “Survivor 50” cast their first votes with Entertainment Weekly here, and be sure to catch the milestone season’s epic three-hour premiere on Wednesday, February 25 at 8:00pm ET on CBS.
