After just about 20 years of Survivor, you’d think CBS and host Jeff Probst would have pulled out all their tricks and twists by now. You’d be wrong. Season 39 is a mere month away, and fans are thrilled because that means Season 40 will coast in on its heels. 

While fans are excited for Season 40, Winners at War, the entire theme of the season is actually one that Jeff Probst had previously spoken out against — all-stars. But, whatever Jeff may think about the decision to move forward with an all-star season, the tribes have been established, and frankly, they’re pretty thrilling. 

What does Jeff think?

Jeff Probst has made it clear in the past that he’s not a big supporter of an all-star Survivor season. Based on Probst’s previous statements about having an all-star season, many fans were surprised when Season 40 was announced as such. 

Previously, Probst told Us Weekly, “We can’t do all winners. As a producer, I would never suggest it. I would say it’s not a good idea. We have 10 great winners that you’d want to see play again,” he says. “We don’t have 20. We don’t have 18. Some of the winners don’t want to play again. Some of the greats are like, ‘No, we’re done.’” 

From the sound of things, CBS won out over Probst. He added, “CBS wants to do it. They’re pitching me all the time. And I’m going, ‘I’ll sit down with you and show you the list!’ We don’t have it. And if I sat down and we wasted our time and I walked you through all our winners, you would say, ‘Oh, you’re right. You don’t have a season.’ We have a tribe of winners, that’s it.”

Whether CBS got the better of Probst, or Probst had a change of heart, most fans seem to be excited to see the greats get together again on one season. 

A new twist revealed

When Survivor: Winners at War was announced, fans were already over the moon with the all-star twist. But, it turns out that’s not all Jeff Probst had in store for us. It seems as if there’s a new money-based twist involved in Winners at War, and also the return of a controversial twist, Extinction Island. 

It seems as if the money-based twist is a sort of Survivor currency. According to Inside Survivor, “…at the start of the game, each player is given a certain amount of Survivor ‘money.’ This money can then be exchanged for rewards, comfort items, and advantages throughout the season. When a player is voted out, they must will their money and any purchased items to another player still in the game, much like the Legacy Advantage.”

It seems that this time around, players who end up on Extinction Island will be able to send advantages to other players. However, those advantages will be bought with currency, which Extinction Island members can then use the currency they gain to pay for comfort items or food. 

The all-star tribes

According to Inside Survivor, there will be two tribes this season. Currently, they’ve been revealed only as Blue Tribe and Red Tribe, though it’s likely those names will change. 

As of now, Blue Tribe consists of Amber Mariano, Kim Spradlin-Wolfe, Sandra Diaz-Twine, Sarah Lacina, Sophie Clarke, Nick Wilson, Tony Vlachos, Tyson Apostol, Wendell Holland, and Yul Kwon.

Red Tribe is composed of, Adam Klein, Ben Driebergen, Ethan Zohn, Jeremy Collins, Rob Mariano, Danni Boatwright, Denise Stapley, Michele Fitzgerald, Natalie Anderson, and Parvati Shallow.

There’s almost too many Survivor icons to choose from — who are you rooting for?