Rizo Velovic Doesn’t Think Jeff Probst’s ‘Awkward’ Finale Blunder Was a Big Deal
During the finale of Survivor 50, Jeff Probst accidentally revealed the result of Rizo Velovic’s final four fire-making competition. Probst seemed visibly confused by the spoiler, and Velovic said the moment was “awkward.” Still, he said he thinks the moment went as well as it could have.
[Warning: Spoilers for the Survivor 50 finale ahead]
Jeff Probst accidentally revealed the end of Rizo Velovic’s ‘Survivor’ game
During Wednesday’s Survivor 50 live finale, Probst interviewed Velovic about his fire-making competition against Jonathan Young. While the segment was supposed to occur after the competition aired, Probst spoke to Velovic before.
“Rizo, you become the final member of our jury,” he said. “Take a spot over here.”
The crowd seemed shocked by the reveal, and Probst seemed confused as well. After the commercial break, Probst addressed the spoiler.
“So, I love doing live television,” he said. “In case you’re confused, this is what happened: We were going to show you fire-making, and then have the loser of fire-making, Rizo, come out and talk about how charming he is, and if he had practiced fire-making, maybe he would have won. Instead, we did a Survivor twist. It’s the last twist of the season! It’s called A Peak into the Future.”
Rizo Velovic spoke about the moment with Jeff Probst
Velovic admitted that he realized something might be amiss the moment Probst called him out on stage.
“So my understanding was they were under the assumption fire already happened,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “But I was in the green room saying like, ‘Wait, I’m waiting for myself to lose here. What are we doing?’ And Jeff’s like, ‘Bring out Riz God. And they’re like, ‘You’re up!’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m gonna work with what we got here.’ And obviously doing the best RizGod that I do at Tribal.’”
He said he tried to keep his loss from the audience, but Probst ultimately revealed it.
“I’m playing off Jeff, and Jeff is talking about fire and I was like: Well, I’m not trying to reveal it. So I’m like, ‘Win or lose, I’m proud of how I played.’ And Jeff’s like, ‘Sit your a** on the bench.’ And I’m like: well, this is awkward.”
Still, he thinks they handled the moment well.
“I think we recovered well,” he said, adding, “I made a little joke with Jeff live on stage. I thought it was fine.”
He shared how he felt about his game this season
While Velovic did not win Survivor, he said he is proud of the way his game went. He is one of a small number of players who have never been voted out.
“Never been voted out of Survivor, two times playing, only one of four people ever that happened to. And also the first finale flub ever in 50 seasons and the RizGod was a part of it. So that’s what happened.”
