PREVIEW: Survivor: San Juan del Sur + Twisted Explained
Survivor: Cagayan concluded by declaring a winner and sole survivor after 39 days of some of the most intense gameplay this show has ever seen. But the live reunion special went one step further by revealing the twist for Survivor Season 29. It's a familiar twist, but one that's a bit different on this go-around.
Yes, Survivor will return in the fall for the 29th season with Survivor: San Juan del Sur: Blood vs. Water.
Indeed, Blood vs. Water is coming back, although not in the way people expect. As Jeff Probst revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly after the finale, despite the Blood vs. Water twist making its comeback, this won't be a season of returning castaways. Instead, it will be a season of all-new players doing battle against their own loved ones. Check out the official logo, along with the official preview:
Credit: CBS
Probst explained the thought process in making the decision to return to Blood vs. Water for Survivor: San Juan del Sur, but with new castaways: "We really listened to people saying, 'Oh my gosh, we love new players again. This is so fresh and it feels so good,'" said the host. “And we went down the road with a couple of different ways to do Blood vs. Water, and we started casting it, and started finding really good people, and then more good people, and then it became a very easy decision to go with a completely new cast."
Probst notes the challenge ahead in getting viewers invested in loved one relationships between players they don't already know. However, he claims the show has "something out of the gate that will help with that a little bit." Probst also feels they have a varied, memorable cast, such that this won't be a problem when Survivor: San Juan del Sur eventually airs.
But, naturally, the return of Blood vs. Water means we're also getting the return of (ugh) Redemption Island.
"Yes, Redemption Island is back," Probst explains. "And there wasn’t even a consideration to not bring it back because so much of our drama came from that explosive energy at Redemption Island when the tribes were already there and then the competitors walk in and it’s the first moment that the other tribe gets to see who was voted out and then you have a loved one going, 'Oh, man, it was my wife! Are you kidding me? Who did that?' And I think that was really the cornerstone for a lot of story that came from it."
Probst does note, however, that there will be a new twist in the way Redemption Island is implemented in the coming season. He didn't explain the new twist, but he insisted it would be "a little different" from last year.
So what do you think of the twist? Love it or hate it? Are you stoked for Survivor: San Juan del Sur? Sound off in the comments!
Via: Entertainment Weekly