The wait is over — “Survivor: Central Campus” is coming to Duke this fall.
The long-running CBS reality TV show, which has featured two Duke students in the past three seasons, decided to make its bond with the school even closer by filming its next season on Anderson Street. While the show has been taping in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji since 2016, the opportunity was just too good to pass up, according to the producers.
"We'd gotten comfortable in Fiji, but holy shit, I just wanted to see how people survived here,” "Survivor" host Jeff Probe told The Chomicle after seeing 300 Yearby.
CBS echoed his sentiment in a public statement, writing that that "while we appreciate Fiji's hospitality, our producers had been waiting years — if not decades — for Thrive and Sigma Tau Delta to leave their buildings, which have the perfect 'I could definitely see myself dying of unnatural causes here' vibe that CBS has always looked for."
Central Campus, which was largely built in the 1970s, housed Duke students until last year. Since then, Duke has lit some of the buildings on fire, but hadn't developed a long-term plan — until now. Although it's unclear how long “Survivor” will stick around, administrators hinted that it might be a while.
"If we can make students live here for 40 years while still paying full housing prices, I'm confident that we can keep ‘Survivor’ around for at least a few," said Spin Doctor, Duke's vice president for public propaganda and government gladhanding.
Longtime fans of the show, who've complained in recent years that the reality TV staple has gotten too far from its roots as a survival-focused hit, are sure to appreciate the return to basics.
"Since about season 30 there's been too much strategy and not enough survival," longtime fan Steve Clark told The Chomicle. "I'm glad that Jeff and the other producers decided to take ‘Survivor’ back to a place that feels genuinely inhospitable."
Probe said that “Survivor” decided to come to Central Campus after talking to previous Central residents, who won him over by constantly whining about how it was "impossible to get to any good food options," "located basically in the middle of goddamn nowhere" and "bereft of bus service."
The love affair wasn't just one-sided, though.
"People loved Central Campus 20 years ago, but now it's just a little outdated and no one really cares about it anymore," said Imin Competent, Duke's director of figuring out what the hell to do with Central. "’Survivor’ is exactly the same way, so we figured it was a perfect match."
Editor's Note: Happy April Fools' Day! In case you couldn't tell, this was a story for our satirical edition, The Chomicle. Check out more Chomicle stories here, guaranteed to make you laugh or your money back.
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