Former Big Brother winner and reality television icon Rachel Reilly has been open about her desire to be a castaway on Survivor in the past, and let the record show, she’s just as determined as ever. In fact, her husband Brendan has been teaching her how to make fire in their backyard. Given her popularity within the competition community, you’d think we’d get to see those skills eventually, but the Survivor casting department has been notably reluctant to cast veterans of other franchises in the past. So, what are Rachel’s actual chances? Let’s talk this out.
In Survivor’s 50 season history, there have only been five total castaways who previously appeared on other majority reality competitions before they hit the beach. Twins Natalie and Nadiya Anderson were on The Amazing Race, as was White Lotus showrunner Mike White. Hayden Moss and Caleb Reynolds were both on Big Brother. That’s it. Other players may have been on lesser shows before, but longtime host and showrunner Jeff Probst and company haven’t consistently looked to their primary competitors and sister shows to find people.
That being said, now may be a unique moment. Survivor 50, with an all-star cast of returning players, just gave the show its biggest ratings numbers in years, and likewise, Big Brother is currently in the middle of a resurgence thanks to its decision to cast Survivor favorites Dee Valladares and Rick Devens. CBS is definitely looking at those figures and figuring out how to keep them rolling.
Probst has already committed to do another returnee player season on Survivor. The producers haven’t announced exactly when it’ll happen, but the fanbase is widely of the belief that it’ll be 53 or 54, which would mean it’ll air in late 2027 or early 2028. Outside of that, however, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some additional decisions made with ratings in mind, which could mean a cast that includes some celebrities or stars crossing over from other franchises. If the show did that, you’d have to think Reilly would be near the top of the list.
It’s hard to make a case that many reality television stars have been more successful than her over the past few decades. She, of course, won Big Brother, but her resume goes a lot deeper than that. She also won Snake In The Grass and Celebrity Fear Factor. She made three appearances on The Amazing Race, including two where she got to the finals, and she made additional appearances on The Traitors, Worst Cooks in America and more. She doesn’t have quite the name recognition or crossover appeal of a player like Boston Rob, but within the reality competition community, there aren’t many bigger names, which is why we've seen her make appearances on the last two Big Brother seasons.
Here’s what she told US Weekly about competing on Survivor…
I would love to do Survivor. That’s, like, oh my gosh, my dream. I talk about it all the time with my husband Brendon… Brendon is in the process of teaching me how to get a really good fire going.
Personally, I’m all for Rachel appearing on Survivor. She has a fantastic social game, and she always creates can’t look away television. It would be a lot of fun to see her bounce off some personality types she might not be getting on other reality shows as well. Fingers crossed it happens at some point, whether she's figured out how to make fire yet or not!
