The White Lotus creator Mike White is returning to to iconic reality TV show
'The White Lotus' creator Mike White is returning for 'Survivor 50'
The 54-year-old writer and director - who competed on the reality show's 'David vs. Goliath' season in 2018 - will be back to help the CBS franchise mark its 50th anniversary alongside 23 other returning players.
On Wednesday (28.05.25), host and executive producer Jeff Probst told 'CBS Mornings': "Mike, after he finished playing, said, 'I want to play again'.
'When 'White Lotus' hit, and I thought, 'Well, he'll never play again.'
"But he kept texting and saying, 'Look, I'm serious. If you ever do anything where you have returning players, I want to play again.' So we're happy to have Mike.'
Before 'Survivor' in 2018, Mike was best known for his work as a screenwriter on the likes of 'School of Rock', 'Nacho Libre' and 'Pitch Perfect 3'.
Three years after he made it to the end of the intense reality show, he found success as the creator, writer and director of anthology thriller series 'The White Lotus'.
He's cast a number of his fellow 'Survivor' alumni in the HBO series, which could endear him to the other contestants in the upcoming 50th season.
In 2021, Mike - who also appeared on 'The Amazing Race' in 2009 - opened up about his love for reality TV, and insisted taking part in Survivor' in 2018 wasn't done as a joke.
He told The New Yorker magazine: "'Survivor' is the only show I really devotedly watch, even though I get frustrated with it.
'Part of my job and my way of life is studying people and analyzing motivation and character. I still feel like, even on the most contrived reality show, the people are human and they're more interesting than some of the most well-scripted drama.
"And for me, as a writer of drama, I aspire to do what reality television already does. To create characters that are surprising and dimensional and do weird shit and capture your attention.'
However, at the time he didn't expect Jeff to want him back on board for another stint.
he said: "Probst is like, 'Let's be real—you're never going to go on the show again'. I was like, 'Really? Why?'
"We are friends. We've become more friends since I was on the show, and he's an impressive guy. I think the fact that we've become close is probably why he says that.
"I don't know. I don't think they want the Hollywood Goliath who knows Probst to win a season.
"Now that Probst knows I can get to the end, I don't think he wants there to be a chance of that happening again.'
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