Survivor Alum Michael Yerger Shares Surprising Reason He Hasn't Returned to TV in 7 Years

"We made a decision not to bring any of the winners from Winners at War because we had just seen them and it was a big season," the CBS competition series’ longtime host Jeff Probst explained of the reasoning for their absence on the Oct. 22 episode of his On Fire podcast, which he cohosts with winner Jeremy Collins. "And I know a lot of people are going to miss players like Jeremy, but that was the reason why. That simple." 

In other words, just because a contestant is popular, it doesn't mean they were guaranteed to be asked to return. However, some contestants didn’t want to return, particularly Rob, who also recently appeared on Traitors.

“At this point, I'm kind of just hanging out,” Boston Rob told People in April. “I don't have a desire to go back and compete in that realm right now. I'm going to take a little break, the kids are off for the summer.”

So, who is appearing on the 50th season, which is airing next spring? Survivor 2018 contestant Mike White, with Jeff confessing he feels “so grateful" to see the White Lotus creator make his comeback.

“He’s arguably the single best storyteller we’ve ever had on Survivor,” Jeff told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published in August. “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."

He went so far as to call Mike "one of the best of all time."

Keep reading to see who else will be a part of Survivor 50.