Survivor, the most-watched Emmys series of all the 2025 nominees, had a hand in dishing out the award for scripted variety series to Last Week Tonight With John Oliver on Sunday night.
Jeff Probst, series host and executive producer, held tribal council on stage with a fully equipped mini Survivor set, where cardboard cut-outs of John Oliver and Lorne Michaels sat, awaiting their fate.
“During Survivor‘s 25 years on CBS, 50 seasons of our show with the world watching contestants must outwit, outplay and outlast the competition until one takes up the prize,” he began. “Tonight is no different. The two tribes that both have dug deep in their quest, and here there is no immunity to protect them.”
He continued by addressing both shows. “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and Saturday Night Live. Do you both know the prize you were playing? All right, well, the votes have been tallied,” Probst said, before crowning Oliver’s Last Week Tonight the “sole Survivor,” poking fun at the verbiage of the main series while awarding the fellow host with the Emmy.
The moment comes on the heels of the franchise’s forthcoming 49th and 50th seasons, with the latter set to feature a cast of returning contestants, with none other than The White Lotus creator Mike White.
Probst teased the 2025 Emmys bit on Instagram Saturday. “We are backstage at the rehearsal for the Emmys, which is Sunday, very exciting because Survivor gets to be apart of presenting an award. So we have some of our props here, we’ve got a really cool set. I can’t say what award we’re presenting.”
At the 2025 Emmys, Probst was nominated for best reality host, while the show received three additional nods for reality competition program, casting and cinematography. Notably, Survivor also went into the awards ceremony Sunday night as the most-watched Emmys series, accumulating 462.4 million hours during during this year’s Emmy eligibility period (June 1, 2024-May 31, 2025).
The White Lotus creator shocked Hollywood this May when he was announced as part of the list of returning cast members for Survivor‘s landmark 50th season. White previously appeared on season 37 and nearly won the show, landing as runner-up three years before his hit HBO drama debuted.
After the announcement of his casting made significant headlines, Probst told The Hollywood Reporter he “was a little surprised at how much attention” the news of White’s Survivor return generated.
“The thing that’s most interesting about Mike playing for the second time is there is no hiding that he is the biggest writer, director, show creator in the world right now, and he wanted to come back and play Survivor,” Probst said. “So I can understand why people had a reaction.”
Overall, the longtime Emmy-nominated host admitted that he was “so grateful” The White Lotus boss said yes to season 50, even though he’s been publicly campaigning for his Survivor homecoming for years.
“He’s arguably the single best storyteller we’ve ever had on Survivor,” Probst said of White. “Mike is one of the most peculiar and loving people I’ve ever met. He’s so authentic. He does exactly what he wants on his terms, and the results clearly speak for themselves. And honestly, I’m grateful to consider him a friend, because I learn from Mike every day. You’re talking [about] one of the best of all time, and the fact that he said yes to Survivor still brings a smile on my face.”
The 77th Emmy Awards aired live from the Peacock Theater at L.A. Live in Los Angeles on Sunday on CBS, and streamed on Paramount+. One weekend earlier, the 2025 Creative Arts Emmys handed out dozens of awards to mostly below-the-line categories.
See the full list of 2025 Emmy Awards winners here. Plus, see the star-studded red carpet arrivals here.