For the first time inSurvivorhistory, theIsland of the Idolsreunion part of the finalewas pre-taped — as the show wrapped its most controversial season of all time.
On Wednesday night’s finale reunion special, hostJeff Probstand this season’s contestants — minus Jack Nichting and Elizabeth Beisel — addressed the allegations against former contestantDan Spilo, who was also absent from the taping.
“We intended to do the right thing. But in the months that have passed, we have learned so much about what we could have and should have done instead. And if this happened today we would handle it much differently,” Probst said before givingKellee Kim, who spoke out about the 48-year-old player’s misconduct on the show before she was eliminated, a chance to speak. “We are committed to doing our part to turn this into something positive.”
“I want to say to you, you were right,” Probst addressed the contestant. “You were right to speak up, you were right to step forward despite a lot of risk, to speak your truth and I want to acknowledge and apologize for your pain. You didn’t ask for it, and you didn’t deserve it.”
Robert Voets/CBS Entertainmen
Kim expressed she was nervous about finally having her moment to speak about the scandal before explaining that one of the hardest things for her was the fact that Spilo remained in the game even after she expressed concerns about his behavior.
“The reason why is not necessarily the injustice, it’s because I felt like I spoke up and I was not being supported or believed,” Kim said. “And when someone goes through something like this or even something remotely like it, to not be supported and not be believed is really the hardest thing.”
Probst said that Kim’s points were the biggest thing that he and the others behind the show learned from the situation.
“Your voice should have been enough,” Probst told Kim. “One silver lining is it will next time. We learned a lot from you being willing to stand up and take it and continue and try and play.”
Robert Voets/CBS via Getty
“I feel like I can be really proud of the fact that I spoke up, and I asked for these changes and CBS andSurvivorare making those changes, because I asked,” she went on. “As a result of this season, many of us have had these hard conversations. We’ve learned a lot and I think we’re still learning.”
“Ultimately, my biggest hope is that each one of us, each individual, each institution, each organization, especially CBS andSurvivor, can take this, learn from it, and do better. I fundamentally believe that we can do better.”
To that, Probst promised, “We are committed to it, Kellee.”
Spilo wasremoved from the gameafter an incident in which he allegedly touched a female producer’s thigh as he was getting into a transport boat.
The incident came just weeks after Spilo, a Hollywood agent, was accused ofinappropriately touchingKim. During the controversial episode, Kim expressed concern that Spilo had violated her personal space, even after she made multiple requests for him to stop. He was not removed at the time and it was Kim that was voted of the island.
“I am deeply sorry for how my actions affected Kellee during the taping of this season of Survivor,” he wrote in an exclusive statement. “After apologizing at the tribal council when I first learned that Kellee still felt uncomfortable, I want to make sure I do so again, clearly and unambiguously.”
Dan Spilo.Robert Voets/CBS Entertainment
Although contestants are paid $10,000 to appear in the final broadcast, the reunion could have hit a speed bump as some players initially decided to forego the money, a production source told PEOPLE.
“It was chaos there for a while,” the production source said. “There were about eight contestants were on the fence, because there would be so much negativity.”
One contestant also told PEOPLE that many players discussed their options via a group text. “It was like, ‘I’m going, are you? If you don’t go, I might not go, either,” one contestant said. “There was kind of an ‘all for one and one for all’ mentality there, but then it went away.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, only three of the 20 contestants were not planning to appear at the reunion show, multiple sources told PEOPLE. (In addition to Spilo, who was uninvited, two other post-merge contestants were currently planning to skip it.)
A source toldEntertainment Weeklythat the decision to pre-tape the finale was made in order to help the players “feel as comfortable and safe as possible while discussing what happened out on the island,” in addition to concerns about security and thesensitive materialcovered on the show this season.
“Security will be tight,” a second production source told PEOPLE. “The last thing anyone needs is for a protest to break out in that studio. People are upset. Everyone has an opinion. This is about real-life situations that strike a chord with a lot of people.”
source: people.com
