“Survivor” legends Parvati, Tony, and Cirie to compete on “Australian Survivor”

Why wait for "Survivor 50"?

Tons of former Survivor players are waiting with bated breath to see if they are on the receiving end of a call from Jeff Probst inviting them back to the island to compete on the highly anticipated Survivor 50, set to film next year and air in 2026. But a few franchise legends are not waiting for any such call, having decided to take their talents overseas for an international edition of the franchise.

Parvati Shallow, Cirie Fields, and Tony Vlachos will be among the competitors appearing on an Australian Survivor edition scheduled to air in 2025 titled Survivor: Australia v. The World. The news was announced in a press release on the Paramount NZ website, and has been confirmed by Entertainment Weekly.

Related: Parvati Shallow explains why she won't return to Survivor

Meanwhile, the Australian Survivor social media accounts revealed three of the favorites from the Aussie edition that will be competing: social standout Shonee Bowtell, super schemer George Mladenov (a.k.a. King George), and recent fan favorite Kirby Bentley.

Parvati Shallow originally applied to be on The Amazing Race, but ended up on Survivor instead, where she competed four-times, winning Micronesia and becoming the runner-up on Heroes vs. Villains, while also appearing on the Cook Islands and Winners at War seasons. She recently returned to reality TV prominence where she and her headband made their mark on season 2 of The Traitors.

When asked in February if she would return to Survivor, Parvati was emphatic. “Oh God, no,” she told EW. “I don't want to do Survivor anymore. What's that going to be? Old people versus young people? And I'd be the old one. They used to call us old school. Now they're just going to call us old people.”

When reminded she had promised to never come back before only to return, Paravti responded, “Okay, I know. It's only because I have such a soft spot in my heart for Survivor. It feels like an extended family for me. Seeing Jeff, seeing the producers, seeing all the camera operators — I know them all so well. They've been there through my whole growth trajectory in my life. So I do feel a sense of, it's a family reunion I can't miss. It's twisted and sick, but I kind of love it.”

One of the big reasons she claimed she did want to return again? “If I play that game again, people will just try to get me out right away, and it kind of sucks. I want to be able to play. What was fun about The Traitors is they knew my reputation, but they were willing to keep me around.” Perhaps playing against other international legends will change that. Or perhaps not

Related: Big Brother star Cirie Fields 'flabbergasted' by Felicia's toenail activity

Cirie Fields was the woman who “got off the couch” to compete on Survivor: Panama, where she immediately became one of the franchise’s most popular players ever. She competed three more times (Micronesia, Heroes vs. Villains, Game Changers) but was never able to win the game. She remedied that situation by emerging victorious on season 1 of The Traitors, and then had a deep run while competing with her son Jared on season 25 of Big Brother.

Tony Vlachos mixed elite game sense with complete nonsense to join Sandra Diaz-Twine as Survivor’s only two-time winners, ending up as champion of the Cagayan and Winners at War seasons (while getting knocked out early by Sandra during Game Changers). Like Parvati and Cirie, Tony also competed on The Traitors, with that season set to air in early 2025 on Peacock.

Related: Tony Vlachos reveals all his antics we DIDN'T see on Survivor

Parvati, Cirie, and Tony join Sandra and Russell Hantz as the only U.S. players to appear on the Australian edition. This would seem to close the door on them appearing on Survivor 50, but could open another door even wider for more former American and Canadian players to jump overseas in the hopes of winning more cash and camera time.

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Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.