Survivor Renewed For Two More Seasons; Jeff Probst to Return
Jeff Probst
CBS has renewed Survivor for two more seasons with Jeff Probst returning as host, the network announced Wednesday.
The deal will keep the longest-running reality competition series on TV through 2012. Survivor is in its 22nd season with Redemption Island. It moved from its longtime Thursdays at 8/7c berth to Wednesdays at 8/7c in September.
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"Survivor is a program franchise that continues to stand the test of time," said Jennifer Bresnan, CBS' executive vice president of alternative programming. "Each season delivers new faces, exotic places, the ultimate social experiment combined with game play, and one of the most engaged audiences anywhere on prime-time television."
Probst, 48, who has hosted the show since its debut, has also signed on to return as host and executive producer for Seasons 23 and 24. He has won the Emmy for Outstanding Host of a Reality Series the past three years.
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Probst's return comes amid speculation about his future. After years of signing on for two years at a time, he renewed his contract for just one more year last February.
It also remains to be seen whether Season 23 or Season 24 will be Survivor's first celebrity edition. Probst has been lobbying for the idea in recent weeks, inviting everyone from Rachael Ray to NCIS' Pauley Perrette to participate. On Late Night with Jimmy Fallon last month, Probst said he would re-up his contract if Fallon signed on.
According to Probst, the celebrity edition would only run for seven days and would allow players the chance to communicate with their fans for one hour a day. Series creator and executive producer Mark Burnett also said he would be open to the idea in a February conference call with reporters.
Are you happy Probst is returning? Do you want to see a celebrity edition of Survivor?