Jeff Probst explains why “Survivor ”films people going to the bathroom together

Season 45 champ Dee Valladares also shares a harrowing story.

Elation can turn to misery in the blink of an eye on Survivor. Once a player gets too comfortable and feels in control of the game, they can find themselves on the receiving end of a brutal blindside and subsequent Jeff Probst torch snuffing.

Joy can also quickly turn to pain if you get a little too gluttonous at a Survivor reward feast, as we found out in vivid detail on this week’s episode of the On Fire with Jeff Probst podcast. That detail also led the Survivor host to offer a bathroom warning to all future players.

The topic of reward food gorging and its possible ramifications came up as Probst and podcast cohosts Dee Valladares (winner of Survivor 45) and Jay Wolff discussed the “earn the merge” challenge winners' feast and whether one should refrain from eating too much to protect a body that has been denied food for weeks suddenly revolting from the extreme intake.

Valladares came down firmly in the stuff-your-face-until-you- can-stuff-no-more camp. “Whoever monitors their calorie and intake is a psychopath on Survivor,” last season’s champion opined on the podcast. “You want to eat everything. You should eat everything in that merge meal, even at the expense of what's going to happen next.”

This opinion is somewhat surprising, considering what did happen next to Valladares. “So I cannot believe that I'm going to say this on the On Fire podcast in front of two dudes,” she continued. “But in one of the rewards, I ate so much that my stomach locked up, got hard as a rock, and I had to run to the ocean.”

Unfortunately, the situation was so severe that Valladares had to quickly shift to plan B. “I didn't even make it to the ocean. I made it to the bushes and I started throwing up and I had the producer — she was following me, running behind me trying to catch the footage — and I was like, ‘Wait, wait, wait, no, you got to leave. I need to use the bathroom.’”

The producer complied, and then… “I was throwing up and using the bathroom at the exact same time, and that had never in my life happened to me before I was on Survivor. So that's how intense this is.”

And yet, it should be pointed out that she still says to eat all the food!

Survivor players are indeed allowed to go the bathroom without a camera or producer present, but only under one condition. “I want to clarify,” jumped in Probst on the podcast. “Just so you understand why she said ‘No, I'm going to the bathroom’ — that's the only time we give you privacy. If you're going to the bathroom alone, then we will not shoot you.”

However, the host reveals that privacy agreement is only if you are alone. “If you're going to the bathroom with another person or people, that's your own thing — but we will keep shooting you.”

As invasive as that may seem, the rule mirrors a similar one on Big Brother, which has a camera installed in the bathroom that is only used if multiple players try to enter the room to have a private conversation. If folks on Survivor knew that going to the bathroom in groups would not be filmed, it would no doubt be easily exploited for secret conversations between contestants. Making sure all interactions between players are filmed is also why cast members are on a non-speaking lockdown whenever cameras are not rolling (like while traveling to a challenge or Tribal Council).

So future Survivor players: take note that group bathroom runs may not be the way to go unless you want the entire experience captured on film. And I will point out that use of the word “runs” in the previous sentence was in no way poking fun at what happened to Dee. Well, maybe just a little.

To hear more from the host and showrunner about the latest episode, check out On Fire with Jeff Probst.

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