While “Survivor 48” prepares to air its three-hour finale episode on Wednesday, May 21, production for the show’s landmark 50th season is ramping up, but not without a few last minute additions courtesy of the fans. Over the course of Season 48, fans were given several opportunities to vote on key game elements for Season 50, with the final fan vote going live during the season’s penultimate episode, which airs tonight (Wednesday, May 14) at 8:00 pm ET on CBS.
‘Survivor’ Puts Season 50 ‘In the Hands of the Fans’
The landmark season has been dubbed “In the Hands of the Fans,” and will feature a cast of returning “Survivor” castaways from past seasons. So far fans have voted on a total of 10 different categories that will affect the forthcoming season.
Some of the categories focused on the aesthetics of the game, giving fans the ability to vote on the tribes’ buff colors and the design of the season’s individual immunity necklace, while other categories allowed fans to vote on key “Survivor” aspects like whether or not a tribe swap will occur and how much power advantages will have throughout the season.
“Survivor” fans will have the power to impact Season 50 from the very start, having previously been able to vote on whether or not the castaways will receive rice and supplies, such as a pot, machete and flint, at the beginning of the competition or if they’ll have to earn these items in reward challenges.
Other fan votes won’t come into play until the end of the 26-day competition as viewers have been given the opportunity to determine the Final Four immunity challenge, whether or not the Fire-Making challenge, which has been a staple since Season 35, will remain, and whether the season’s winner will be announced in Fiji at the end of the competition or during a live reunion show in Los Angeles.
CBS Reveals the Final ‘Survivor 50’ Fan-Voting Category
The final round of fan voting will take place during tonight’s penultimate episode of Season 48. A statement from CBS ahead of the episode informed fans, “Idols are a big part of today’s game and responsible for some of the most dramatic moves in ‘Survivor’ history–but for ‘Survivor 50,’ YOU get to decide: IDOLS or NO IDOLS.”
Hidden immunity idols have been a staple of “Survivor” since they were first introduced in Season 11, allowing castaways to save themselves from elimination even if they receive the most votes during Tribal Council if played correctly. Immunity idols have led to some of the series’ most iconic moments, including an instance on “Survivor: Game Changers” when Tai Trang played two idols to save himself and his ally, Aubry Bracco, during the season’s Top 6 Tribal Council.
That being said, fans have oftentimes criticized the show’s over-abundance of immunity idols on seasons like “Ghost Island” and “Island of Idols,” which saw idols being introduced in nearly every episode with varying longevity. “Survivor 39,” for example, boasted a whopping 12 hidden immunity idols in addition to a number of other advantages.
While the results of fan voting won’t be revealed until the season airs next year, “Survivor 50” could potentially be the first season in 20 years to lack hidden immunity idols depending on how tonight’s voting goes.
Fans will be able to cast their votes on whether or not “Survivor 50” will feature immunity idols during tonight’s penultimate episode of Season 48, which is set to air at 8:00 pm ET on CBS.
