What Did Survivor 50 Contestants Really Think About the Celeb Cameos?

Emily Flippen has no qualms with her celebrity alliances.

A contestant on Survivor Season 50, who finished seventh on Season 45, enjoyed the surprise appearances by celebrities like Billie Eilish, Jimmy Fallon, MrBeast, and Zac Brown, saying they brought a fun new element to the show.

Emily shared with TopMob News at the live Survivor 50 finale on May 20th that the changes have made the show more exciting and engaging. She explained that being on the island is thrilling for the contestants, as the show is very important to them.

It was great for the 31-year-old to realize how much the show resonated with both famous people and its loyal viewers.

Looking at it again, I think it makes things much more lively and interesting than they would be otherwise.

You know, everyone was so excited about the surprise appearances on set, and Emily was absolutely loving it! But poor Q Burdette was a little puzzled – he hadn’t heard of one of the guest stars, which made things a bit confusing for him. It just goes to show, you never know what to expect when you’re thrown into a new situation!

He remembered telling TopMob News at the finale that people were talking about Billie Eilish, calling her the ‘Boomerang Idol.’ They asked him what he thought, and he initially said, ‘I love him, he’s awesome!’ Then they corrected him, letting him know ‘Q’ was a woman.

The contestant who finished sixth this season said he believed they were referring to the singer Billy Idol.

Honestly, someone mentioned Billie Eilish and I was totally lost! I said, ‘Wait, who is that?’ and asked them to fill me in. They started listing off some of her songs, and I just kept thinking, ‘Nope, never heard of them!’ It was embarrassing, I’ll admit, but I genuinely had no clue who she was!

He chuckled, saying, ‘I’m from Mississippi, and people there don’t usually pay attention to things like that. But I was happy she was involved.’

Okay, so honestly, I was way more obsessed with finding out if Zac Brown was going to be on Survivor! It totally killed me that Q got voted off right before Zac even showed up – like, seriously?! He was the third person gone, and I was so ready to see those two interact. It was a total bummer, I’m not gonna lie.

Emily and Q liked the idea of having celebrities appear on the show, but some viewers weren’t as excited – a reaction that Jeff Probst, the host of Survivor, found confusing.

The 64-year-old recently told Variety that he finds it interesting how a small group of people – mainly former players or those who will never participate – are gaining attention with their criticism. He emphasized that their efforts to influence the show’s direction will be unsuccessful, as those involved are confident in their work.

He made it clear that he won’t be making changes to the work just because someone feels there’s too much focus on Zac Brown, stating he’s already discussed this point in previous interviews.

Want to know who the contestants were on Survivor Season 50 and saw the celebrity guests? Read on to find out!

—Reporting by Daryn Carp

Season 37 (DAVID VS. GOLIATH)

Survivor seasons 12 (Panama – Exile Island), 16 (Micronesia – Fans vs. Favorites), 20 (Heroes vs. Villains), and 34 (Game Changers) are considered particularly memorable installments of the show.