Throughout the years, Jeff Probst and Survivor faced some dark moments. Probst would even accept responsibility for certain controversies, including Kellee Kim's awful experience with Dan Spilo.
Other questionable moments have taken place both before and after. A memorable one was back in 2007 during Survivor: China. Contestant Denise Martin was in the middle of it all. She was awarded $50,000 by Mark Burnett because of her story. Though, as it all turned out in the end, Martin's firing was all a lie. Her employer completely blew things up. It went from a feel good moment, to complete embarrassment for everyone involved.
Let's recap, and look at other lies told on the show throughout the years.
Denise Martin Was Given $50K By Mark Burnett For Losing Her Job, But It Was All A Lie
Survivor fans know this all too well, dishonesty is part of the game. However, during Survivor: China back in 2007, things were taken to the next level by contestant Denise Martin. Martin claims she was a lunch lady at school, and was displaced from her job for filming the reality show. In an effort to help her out, Mark Burnett gave the Survivor contestant $50,000. The only problem, it was all a lie…
The school's superintendent, Nancy T. Lane, issued a statement back in December of 2007, claiming Martin had lied about her employment status.
She continued, "Yeah, I watched my own jaw drop when she s"Martin held a full-time position as a custodian prior to her participation in the series, and she returned to this same position upon her return from China. Although Mrs. Martin was a cafeteria employee prior to her selection as a contestant, she asked to be considered for a promotion to full-time custodian, and was promoted to this position on March 30, 2007. This promotion came with additional benefits and a higher salary. Following her leave, she then returned to this same position."
CBS would issue a statement of their own following the allegations, urging Martin to come forward with the truth if this was the case.
"The comments made by Ms. Martin on the program were compelling and sympathetic. If these statements were misleading or false, we hope that she will take immediate and public steps to clarify her remarks."
At the time, Lane added that Martin still had her job if she wanted it.
"I told her, 'I think we have a few things to go over,'" Lane says. "I might have a few things I'd like to talk about."
Martin would eventually address the controversy, and apologized for being misleading.
“It was not my attention to be misleading. … Nancy has been outstanding to me,” she said. “I’m sorry, and I apologize to everybody. Believe me, if none of this had happened, I couldn’t say I’m sorry enough.”
A friendly reminder for those that forgot about what Martin said:
- “When I was on Survivor, I wanted to go to back to my original lunch lady job, and I did everything I could. I tried to talk to the food service director … and tried to go back to my original job. I loved that job, it was one of the most favorite parts of my life. When I was away from my family so long, I just wanted to go back to the way things were before I was on the night shift.”
- "I was told that I could not have my old job back. They didn’t give me any particular reason, they just said no.”
A dark moment on Survivor, but far from the only controversial incident.
Other Survivor Controversies: |
Dan Spilo's Incident With Kellee Kim (2019) |
Richard Hatch's Incident With Sue Hawk (2004) |
Alec Merlino Spoiling The Season 37 Cast (2018) |
Jeff Varner Calls Out Zeke Smith As Transgender (2017) |
Denise Martin Was Far From The Only Contestant That Lied On Survivor
Jeff Probst called it the greatest lie in Survivor history. Villain Jonny Fairplay was behind the incident, and still has no regrets about faking his grandma's death.
Speaking with The Daily Beast back in 2023, Fairplay discussed becoming the show's first ever villain.
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"I mean, I started this stuff. I’m the first villain ever. [Survivor costar] Richard Hatch never saw himself as a bad guy. Jerri Manthey felt she was misunderstood. Several others felt they got a bad edit. I went into Survivor: Pearl Islands saying, “I want to be the first ever villain and I want to be the greatest villain.” And I feel like I checked both boxes."
Looking back, Jonny doesn't have any regrets over what took place, and admits his grandmother had a blast with the ordeal as well.
"My grandmother’s license plate was DEADGMA. She embraced it. I hurt nobody by saying my grandma died. It was a game move, and I was smart enough to bring it into the game. Twenty years ago, people would describe Jonny Fairplay as a liar or a villain. I think 20 years later, they’d call me an innovator and legend. That moment changed my life forever, and for the good."
Fairplay adds that his bold move changed the course of reality TV. "I feel like I’ve crossed a lot of boundaries and controversially made changes to the format of reality competition shows as we know it today. That move has stood the test of time. So I’m not surprised. Like LL Cool J said in “Mama Said Knock You Out”: Don’t call it a comeback."
Fairplay has been able to continue his run on reality TV all these years later, recently appearing on House of Villains.
Survivor
Reality
Release Date
May 31, 2000
Cast
Jeff Probst
Seasons
45
Story By
Jeff Probst
Writers
Jeff Probst
Network
CBS
Streaming Service(s)
Hulu , Netflix
Directors
Jeff Probst
Showrunner
Jeff Probst
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