Jeff Probst Reveals Why He Changed His Mind About Mike White Returning to 'Survivor'
Mike White is finally being given another chance to compete on Survivor!
The 55-year-old creator of The White Lotus was the runner-up of season 37 of Survivor. Now, he’s back for season 50 of the reality competition show and host Jeff Probst is thrilled for his return.
The host of the long-running reality show is revealing why he’s excited to have Mike back on the show after all these years.
Keep reading to find out more…
Mike has spent the years since he nearly won Survivor asking for another shot on the show and it seems like it finally worked out! Jeff spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about why he decided to let Mike come back to the island and how it feels to have him play again.
“He’s arguably the single best storyteller we’ve ever had on Survivor,” Jeff said of the filmmaker. “Mike is one of the most peculiar and loving people I’ve ever met. He’s so authentic. He does exactly what he wants on his terms, and the results clearly speak for themselves.”
Jeff said he’s not surprised that Mike wanted to play Survivor again despite being the creator of such a massively popular TV show. According to Jeff, Survivor fits right in with what Mike writes about on The White Lotus.
“I think that’s part of why he does it — he’s out there in a real incubator of human behavior where you never know what’s going to happen, but what you do know is that if you show up to play Survivor, you can study it,” Jeff said of the filmmaker’s return. “And when you watch White Lotus, what are you watching? You’re watching human behavior all day. I think that’s part of the reason Mike is back, and if you don’t understand that, maybe you’re asking the wrong question.”
Although Jeff said he’s a fan of The White Lotus, he said he doesn’t want Mike to write him into a cameo on the show.
“No, Mike should never put me on White Lotus,” Jeff said but went on to praise Mike‘s abilities. He added, “I really love the cameos and how he uses people. And I think that, too, speaks to Mike as a person.”