More heartache for Jonathan LaPagila as he loses ANOTHER job after shock Survivor sacking

Daily Mail​

12-07-2025

Less than a week after his shock exit from Australian Survivor, popular host Jonathan LaPaglia has been dealt another major blow.
Top Gear Australia is thought to have been quietly dropped from Paramount+'s production slate, leaving the popular host without a local series to host.
Daily Mail Australia can exclusively reveal that the big-budget reboot will not return in 2025 or 2026 for its slated second season.
The 2024 series, starring LaPagila, marked the third attempt to relaunch the iconic British motoring format locally, after two false starts by SBS and Nine.
It has now been shelved indefinitely by Network 10.
LaPagila steered the latest iteration of the wildly successful Top Gear franchise, alongside Amazing Race Australia host Beau Ryan, and YouTube series Car Mods co-host Blair 'Moog' Joscelyne, who boasts 3.8 million followers.
The eight-part series, co-produced by BBC Studios Australia, premiered in May 2024 on Paramount+ and is one of the streamer's most-watched local originals.
'It hasn't been officially axed,' a source close to the production tells Daily Mail, 'but it's absolutely not coming back — at least not with this line-up.'
It follows a turbulent few weeks for LaPaglia, who was also dropped as host of Australian Survivor, a role he held since the show's 2016 reboot.
News of his axing by email sparked fierce backlash online, with many fans declaring Survivor 'unwatchable' without him.
According to industry insiders, Network Ten and streaming partner Paramount+ are undertaking a broad overhaul of their reality TV offerings, with a major shift towards younger, more diverse presenters.
'There's been a sweep of changes behind the scenes,' an executive source tells Daily Mail.
'Several long-standing hosts, not just JLP, have been quietly told they're not part of the future.'
While official announcements are expected at the network's Upfronts event in September, sources say decisions have already been made regarding several key on-air personalities.
'The direction now is clear: younger talent, more energy, and fresh faces. It's not personal, it's branding,' the source added.
In dozens of interviews last year, LaPagila and his co-hosts waxed lyrical about their 'chemistry' and 'mateship' being the key to revitalising Top Gear.
However, the trio of self-confessed fanboys, and even Network 10/Paramount+ Australia executive producer Ciaran Flannery, freely admitted their nerves about picking up the seemingly poisoned TV chalice.
'The original version was so good, it was so well done,' LaPagila told Mumbrella.
'It's not like we're taking a crappy version and aiming to make a better version, we're starting with something that was already really good.
'So if I'm perfectly honest, I did feel the pressure and the weight of that, because I know those comparisons are going to be inevitable. So that did give me pause initially – as it does hinge on the relationship between the three of us.'
The most recent update on season two was posted eight months ago when the series went free-to-air on Channel 10, sparking excited chatter from the hosts
Despite big expectations, Top Gear Australia's 2024 revival failed to rev up a lasting impression.
While critics praised the high production value, fans online described the series as 'underwhelming' and 'lacking spark'.
'A new series won't air in 2025,' one Ten insider tells Daily Mail, 'but we continue to work with BBC Studios on what a new series might look like.'
Speaking to Mediaweek last year, network EP Flannery said that Paramount+ would never make Top Gear again if it wasn't able to match the production value of the show's best international versions.
'It's got to be up there, and the reality is the scale that Paramount+ gives us allows us to go global,' he said.
'Paramount+ delivered a production value that arguably a local version might not quite have matched.'
The show also struggled to generate the buzz of its original 2008 version or the more chaotic 2011 reboot.
Ratings were reportedly modest and social media engagement flatlined after the season premiere.
'It looked great, but felt like it was trying too hard to replicate the UK version,' one fan surmised on Reddit. 'There was no reason to bring it back.'
The most recent update on Top Gear's future came eight months ago, in a joint Instagram post made by Beau Ryan and LaPagila to announce season one would go free-to-air on Ten.
'Myself, Jonathan, and Blair embarked on the adventure of a lifetime. Supercars, super boats, muscle cars, EVs, hatchbacks, trucks, tanks, , tractors, caravans, you name it, we sent it,' Beau wrote.
'There were tears, fires, nudity, laughter and plenty of hugs. Obviously in that order. After being such a huge success on Paramount+ the guys at 10 have made the choice to air it on Channel 10 and we couldn't be more excited.'
Then crickets.
While neither Network Ten nor Paramount+ have confirmed LaPaglia's future with the network, insiders say the writing is on the wall.
'He hasn't done anything wrong,' said one inside source.
'But he's part of an era that Ten is trying to move past.'