‘Survivor: San Juan del Sur’: Two contestants exit season 29 before filming; why?

What is it with “Survivor: Blood vs. Water” and medical issues? The first time that this twist came around last year, RC Sainte-Amour and her father were forced to drop out of the show after some last-minute medical issued showed that he would not be able to play the game. Luckily, though, the issue came in enough time that Candice and John Cody could be called in as last-second replacements.

Already for “Survivor: San Juan del Sur,” though, things are different. Due to another medical issue, another pair (this time of new players) was forced to leave the game right before starting, and Jeff Probst told Entertainment Weekly that there is no one in line to fill in:

“We just lost two contestants [Friday] … We came out here with 20. We spend months casting our show — months. I mean, this is like….who you’re gonna ask to prom. All year you’re like, ‘Is it her or her?’ and ‘Will she say yes?’ And you finally get your 20 people, and then through no fault of their own — just a medical situation — they can’t play…. So instead of 20, it puts us at 18. Instead of equal men and women, it puts us uneven men and women.”

We do wonder why there are not one or two alternates brought out to location, and wonder if this is an issue related to cost or something else. If this was a returning player season, they would probably be able to call up someone and bring them in; however, it’s not nearly as easy for new players since the preparation process is strenuous.

Who knows? Maybe this twist will turn out to be a great thing since it will completely shake up the game. Personally, we actually prefer having 18 to 20 players anyway, given that it allows you more time to know a smaller group of people. Still, we prefer 18 to 16, given that if there is a quit or a medical evacuation in a group of 16, it makes an episode or two drawn-out and predictable.

We’ll have some more updates on the season from CBS or Probst as they come out; don’t worry, this is a spoiler-free zone. Also, click here to see all of our recent interviews from the “Cagayan” finale, or here to get some updates sent to you via our CarterMatt Newsletter. It’s like tree mail, but without the dirt!

Photo: CBS