‘Survivor’ Alum Furious Over Pre-Taped Reunion Show, Says Cast Supports Dan Spilo, Not Production

Season 39 of Survivor saw a first in the show’s history, as a player was removed for the game for something other than medical reasons. Dan Spilo was booted from Island of the Idols in last Wednesday’s episode, due to some sort of inappropriate behavior, which production didn’t explain any further. This was the second incident involving him this season after Kellee Kim accused the castaway of unwanted touching in an earlier episode. Production spoke with Dan and the cast and gave him a warning, but it looks like he didn’t heed that warning after allegedly getting handsy with a production member. Now a former Survivor player is speaking out about the situation and how the reunion will be pre-taped, and this game legend is claiming the cast supports Dan and not production.

Jeff Varner has appeared on three seasons of the hit CBS reality series and has made a name for himself in the game. After Wednesday’s episode, he took to Facebook (via Us Weekly) to vent about Dan’s removal from the game, claiming it’s nonsense.

“What just happened on Survivor tonight is 100% bull sh*t. I have so much to say and am fuming right now. About to climb the walls,” Jeff’s post began.

The alum later revealed he has spoken with Island of the Idols cast members who know what happened.

“I’ve talked to cast members. I know what happened that got him removed and I’m telling you, 100% horse sh*t. The cast has rallied behind Dan and few to no one is behind Kellee,” he claimed.

“It’s so painful to see what is happening with this show. They are pre-taping the reunion because cast members plan to publicly support Dan and call out producers. Can’t have that on a live mic. Ugh. So pissed. Rant over. For now.”

The Survivor reunion will be pre-taped for the first time in the show’s history, but only a few hours ahead of time. This won’t give much time to edit the reunion special, but producers can control what the viewers see regarding the topic of Dan, which inevitably will be brought up.

For now, no Island of the Idols cast members have spoken out on social media in support of Dan, but that could come when the season has concluded. It’s also possible that the castaways of Season 39 won’t be able to talk about the situation publicly due to the terms of their contracts. Kellee made a statement after the episode aired saying she felt “validated.”

Survivor: Island of the Idols airs every Wednesday night at 8 p.m. EST on CBS.