Jeff Probst Breaks Down a Historic Departure in the 'Survivor 45' Premiere
Jeff Probst during the 'Survivor 45' marooning.
Describing the premiere of Survivor 45 as all over the place would be an understatement. The opening minutes of the game sent Brandon Donlon into a debilitating panic attack. The "new era" saw its first returnee in Bruce Perreault, only for his second first impression to not go so well. For the first time since introduced, the "Sweat vs. Savvy" challenge resulted in failure. Players like Kendra McQuarrie and Nicholas "Sifu" Alsup have already shown they are here to game in the first few days.
All of that can't hold a torch, though, to how the episode ended. Going into the night, half the tribe's names were out there. Brandon was perceived as the weak link on the tribe, to the point that he at one time declared he'd be playing his Shot in the Dark. Emily Flippen, though, tried to turn the majority onto Kaleb Gebrewold, fearing the pair he and Sabiyah Broderick could become. They, in turn, put the target onto Emily, who had not been well-received with her attitude so far. But the person who ended up leaving was none of the above. Hannah Rose felt over her head from Day 1, reduced to tears. Feeling that everyone in her tribe wanted to be in the game above her, she forced her tribe's hand, telling them to let her quit the game. It was a shocking moment for everyone, and that includes Jeff Probst.
"When Hannah started talking about being uncomfortable back at camp, I sensed pretty quickly that this was not your typical reaction to the pain of sleeping on bamboo, or about being hungry," the host and executive producer tells Parade.com in an exclusive interview. "And with every passing moment, it became more clear she was not going back to camp, period, regardless of what the tribe did regarding the vote. It's why Survivor continues to be so interesting to me just as an observer, because you could never have predicted that on Day One, that Hannah would go to Tribal Council on Day Three and quit."
Related: Everything to Know About Survivor 45
Hannah's departure marks the first time someone has quit the game in eight seasons. It also marks the earliest quit in the game's history. Her leaving also gave, in Probst's opinion, a second chance to Emily. And, in looking ahead at the season, Probst teases that more than one agent of chaos will rise up to shake up the game consistently.
"There's a combination of two types of players this season," he outlines. "There are some very thoughtful players who will tend to take their time and assess the best move. But there's an equal number of impulsive players. And I think it's going to be a little bit of whack-a-mole in terms of who's in charge, and what direction the game is heading. That's what I felt when I was out there. Sometimes the season has a flow, and you can start to see the power taking shape."
Read our interview with Probst below where he gets further into Hannah's quit, and gives his opinions on the destruction of the Lulu tribe, Bruce being called out during the marooning, and more.
I think describing what we just saw in the premiere, "mess" would be putting it mildly. And I'm not just referring to the mud you had them crawl through in the Immunity Challenge. I have to start with where it ends, as Hannah chooses to leave the game after three days. You are typically keep abreast of what's happening on the tribe before they get to Tribal Council so you can discern what questions to ask. So how surprised were you when you all sat down and Hannah decided she wanted to go?
I still kind of remember the way I was feeling. When Hannah started talking about being uncomfortable back at camp, I sensed pretty quickly that this was not your typical reaction to the pain of sleeping on bamboo, or about being hungry. And with every passing moment, it became more clear she was not going back to camp, period, regardless of what the tribe did regarding the vote.
And at that point, my job is to just let it play out and adapt. It is a version of uncertainty for me in that moment, because ultimately, Tribal Council is decided by the tribe. And if the tribe had said, "Sorry, Hannah, we're still going to vote, and we're going to vote somebody else out," then that's what we would have done. I think what kept that from happening is that I think Hannah was giving a heads-up to everybody, "I'm not going back to camp. Do with that what you want. But I'm out." I mean, Mike, it's why Survivor continues to be so interesting to me just as an observer, because you could never have predicted that on Day One, that Hannah would go to Tribal Council on Day Three and quit.
I think that's partially because there was so much else happening on this Lulu tribe. I mean, Brandon has a panic attack in the opening challenge. Emily immediately starts causing paranoia-fueled conflict and rubbing people the wrong way. This tribe is the only one in the new era to end the first episodes without basic supplies. Talk to me about this group, because this may be an all-timer in terms of rough starts.
I think you have to start with a nod to Jesse Tannenbaum and the Survivor casting department. Everything you just mentioned, all of the great moments of that first episode, are because of the players. Not because of any twist. It's because of what the players did with the game. Brandon's been in our casting system for years. And we knew he was an excitable superfan. And the question was, "What will he do with that excitement?" And as we saw, it imploded; it overwhelmed him. And that was a real panic attack. On one hand, I feel for him. And on the other hand, this is what you wanted.
With Emily, the first time I met Emily in casting, I was riveted by her brutal honesty and her assessment not only of herself, but of me, of the show, of how she was going to approach the game. And still, with all of that, I never predicted that one minute into Day One, she would call out Bruce and basically make her first big move. And then the question becomes, "What's the reason for this? Is it really just how she felt? Or was there a motive behind it?" Because Emily's very bright, so you have to suspect a little bit that there's a means to the end. But we don't know at this point. [Laughs.] Emily may have dodged the bullet. Hannah's quit may have saved Emily, and now maybe she gets a second chance, or she doubles down. We'll find out. [Laughs.]
Related: Meet the Full Cast of Survivor 45
Well, let's get to the source of Emily's consternation. I do want to talk about the Bruce in the room. This is the first time you brought back one returning player in a cast of newbies. Bruce puts "returning player" in quotations in that opening mat chat because of how little he's actually played. But Emily brings up what the Survivor fan community was debating back and forth since Bruce's return was announced. What do you think Bruce's chances are given his previous status?
Well, I was impressed by Bruce's reaction to Emily. And I think that's an advantage that Bruce has in that he's already experienced a marooning before, and he knows the adrenaline rush that comes with it. And so maybe he could temper his a little bit. And I think that probably helped him respond calmly, rather than fire back and start a war. So that was a good sign for Bruce.
The difficulty for Bruce will be how the other players see him. Do they welcome him and feel like he deserves a second chance, because he really did only get 12 hours in the game? Or do they feel like, "You've had your chance, and now you're an easy and understandable vote out anytime we want. So mind your P's and Q's, Bruce"? Those are the two things I would think are going through the minds of a player regarding Bruce. And it's going to be on Bruce, how quickly he can read the room in terms of his tribe and how they view him and then adapt to fit in.
The title of this episode is "We Can Do Hard Things," and we see how difficult this premiere is for so many people. From Brandon and Hannah having their respective low moments, to both tribes failing the revamped "Sweat vs. Savvy" challenge for the first time in the new era. I feel like a premiere can often dictate the tone a season will take. So what does the Survivor 45 premiere tell us about what's to come for the next 23 days of this game?
There's a combination of two types of players this season. There are some very thoughtful players who will tend to take their time and assess the best move. But there's an equal number of impulsive players. And I think it's going to be a little bit of whack-a-mole in terms of who's in charge, and what direction the game is heading. That's what I felt when I was out there. Sometimes the season has a flow, and you can start to see the power taking shape. Like with the Tika three last season, it was early on when we started thinking, "Wait is this a three that could actually go all the way to the end?" I did not feel that this season. [Laughs.]
Every time I would show up to a challenge or go to Tribal Council, it felt like the game was resetting. But not because it was out of control. It was because it was a battle. One group made a move, then the next group made a move. And what was really interesting is, the next day, it might be an entirely new group making an entirely different move. You're going to see lots of pairs this season. And within those pairs, there are secrets. And then there's a whole interesting examination of who tells what to whom, and how much of it is true. Information is king this season, and those who have it are going to do better, and those who are on the outside of it are going to be in trouble. [Laughs.]
Next, check out our Survivor 45 preseason interview with Jeff Probst.
