Survivor host Jeff Probst recently told reporters that the producers are considering setting the show in northern Canada for a future season of the hit reality series. This is a familiar rumor – I remember a similar one three years ago, when producers were said to be looking at the idea of doing a season set in a remote part of British Columbia.
But that was said to be a summer show, so the girls could still wear bikinis. According to Probst, Mark Burnett,
Survivor's executive producer, is now "leaning towards … a colder climate" for something a little different, as it's getting harder and harder to find locations as the show goes on. However, they're undecided so far, and it sounds like the main point against it is that we wouldn't get to see the
Survivor competitors half-naked.
Seriously, would the audience be nearly as interested in watching the contestants dressed in parkas and woolly hats? I doubt it. I just survived months of Canadian winter myself and let me tell you, everybody looks the same when they're dressed for winter weather. Then again,
Survivor's never been much for making their contestants dress appropriately anyway. Ooh, frostbite! Sexy! And it would be more likely that the skinnier people would do badly, as body fat helps keep you warm.
As well, Probst said it might not work out because "physically you tend to shut down when you get cold, you don't do as much."
"We see a lot of positives that would be new and different, and then there's some negatives… You're going to be wearing parkas and hats and boots and you're not going to be in bikinis, and challenges become a little different, so there's pros and cons."
Regardless of where the show is set, they'll still only have American contestants, as Mark Burnett doesn't own the rights to do anything but a US show.
-Mel, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Edmonton Journal
Photo courtesy of CBS