Season 49 of Survivor is officially underway on CBS, and fans might be curious to know about the two alternates this season.
If you don’t know, the casting process always brings out 18 castaways to Fiji for pre-production, and they also fly out one male and one female “alternate” should any situation arise where an originally selected contestant can no longer compete.
This season, both alternates ended up replacing contestants who were going to compete.
We know have some clues about why.
Keep reading to find out more…
Host Jeff Probst gave some insight previously and shared that something happened during the sequester period before production began, “when all of the cast lie in wait for the game to begin, forbidden from talking with one another.”
Jeff told Parade, “The result is a reminder that we take this game very seriously. We want you to have a blast when you play. But we do have rules, and they have to be respected, and if they’re not, we will take action. And we did, and I’m sure it will send a seismic warning to future players, and I’m okay with that, because we don’t ask for a lot. We let you play your own game on your own terms. We never tell you what to say. We never do anything. We don’t even nudge players. It is your world. All we ask is you’ve got to respect our rules. We only have a few. But if you don’t, then basically what you’re telling us is, ‘I’m not a team player,’ and that’s just never going to work for us.”
He also spoke to another site about what happened pre-production.
“Survivor has rules and standards, and if a player crosses that line, we act. It’s one of the reasons we bring alternates, is to have our own insurance,” Jeff explained to EW. “Typically, we bring alternates in case somebody gets sick or has a panic attack and can’t begin the game. That’s very, very, very rare there. But regardless why we brought them there initially, they are also there to serve as a reminder that we do put a lot of importance on the integrity of the game, and we won’t let anything or any person put that in jeopardy.”
“Casting on Survivor is never static. It’s always alive. It’s always in motion right up until the game begins. And typically, we bring 18 players to Fiji and we bring two alternates just in case something unexpected happens. And this season, something unexpected happened and we removed two players from the game and our two alternates — who thought they were there just as insurance knowing that most likely they would be invited back next year to play — were suddenly thrust into the game. It was a shock, for sure,” he added.
So, who are those alternates?
Jason Treul – ALTERNATE TURNED CASTAWAY!
Age: 32
Hometown: Anaheim, Calif.
Current Residence: Santa Ana, Calif.
Occupation: Law clerk
Michelle “MC” Chukwujekwu – ALTERNATE TURNED CASTAWAY!
Age: 29
Hometown: Sachse, Texas
Current Residence: San Diego, Calif.
Occupation: Fitness trainer
Meet the 18 contestants competing in season 49.
Source: justjared.com