CBS has announced the identities of the 16 castaways who will be competing in Survivor: Tocantins -- The Brazilian Highlands, the eighteenth Survivor edition that will premiere on Thursday, February 12 at 8PM ET/PT.
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Survivor: Tocantins' castaways -- eight men and eight women -- range in age between 19 to 53 and include a cattle rancher, a U.S. Army sergeant, two multimillionaires, and not one or two but three female models, according to TV Guide Magazine, which revealed the cast in its January 19 issue.
In addition, Survivor: Tocantins -- which became the first Survivor edition to allow Under-21 applicants to apply for the show when CBS lowered the show's minimum age requirement from 21- to 18-years-old last spring -- will also include a 19-year-old college student who will be the youngest castaway in Survivor history.
Prior to Survivor: Tocantins, which was filmed last fall, former Survivor: China castaway Michael "Frosti" Zernow, a then 20-year-old student and parkour athlete that the show's producers had decided to waive the show's usual age requirement for, ranked as the long-running reality series' youngest contestant.
Tocantins, a state located in central Brazil with numerous rivers and an equatorial climate, was formally announced as the location of Survivor's eighteenth edition during the December broadcast of Survivor: Gabon's reunion show, with host Jeff Probst presenting a preview that confirmed the filming location.
"In the new year, Survivor is going to one of the most rugged locations yet: Tocantins, the Brazilian highlands," said Probst during the preview.
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"Two tribes will be stranded in the majestic interior of Brazil for 39 days," he continued. "The only relief in the midst of this unforgiving land is a river oasis [called] the Rio Novo. Scorching temperatures, torrential downpours, dangerous wildlife -- who will have what it takes to outwit, outplay, and outlast all the others? Find out on Survivor: Tocantins -- The Brazilian Highlands."
Survivor: Tocantins 16 castaways -- and their TV Guide-released biographical information -- are:
- Sandy Burgin, a 53-year-old bus driver from Louisville, KY
- Stephen Fishbach, a 29-year-old corporate consultant from New York, NY
- James Thomas Jr., a 24-year-old cattle rancher from Samson, AK
- Spencer Duhm, a 19-year-old college student from Lakeland, FL
- Sydney Wheeler, a 24-year-old model and interior designer from San Diego, CA
- Jerry Sims, a 49-year-old U.S. Army sergeant from Rock Hill, SC
- Candace Smith, a 31-year-old actress/model and event planner and former lawyer from Los Angeles, CA
- Tyson Apostol, a 29-year-old bike-shop manager and former professional cyclist from Linden, UT
- Sierra Reed, a 23-year-old model from Los Angeles, CA
- Erinn Lobdell, a 26-year-old hairstylist from Waukesha, WI
- Carolina Eastwood, a 26-year-old bartender from Los Angeles, CA
- Tamara "Taj" Johnson-George, a 37-year-old from Nashville, TN
- Joe Dowdle, a 26-year-old commercial real estate broker from Austin, TX
- Benjamin Wade, a 37-year-old soccer coach and part-time orchestra conductor from Bolivar, MO
- Debra Beebe, a 46-year-old middle-school principal from Auburn, AK
- Brendan Synnott, a 30-year-old entrepreneur from New York, NY
Surviving 39 days may be a piece of cake for Wade. In 1996, he spent six months kayaking from Mexico to Columbia -- a more than 6,000-mile distance -- by himself, which set a world record for solo kayak expeditions.
"I'm in this game because I want to change it," Wade told the magazine in a pre-game interview. "[Survivor has] become survival of the weakest... I want to team up with worthy opponents."
Johnson-George was a founding member of SWV, a Grammy-nominated R&B trio that formed in 1990 and disbanded in 1999. She is married to retired NFL football star Eddie George -- who earned tens of millions of dollars during an nine-year career with the Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys -- but rejects the idea that she leads a pampered life.
"There's a stigma that comes with being married to an NFL player," Johnson-George told TV Guide. "People think we're pampered. But I'm not. I'm a 5' 9", 190-pound tomboy. I'm gon' tear 'em up when I get out there."
Johnson-George also previously starred in I Married A Baller, a 2007 reality series that chronicled her life with George. I Married A Baller aired on TV One, an African-American cable network, and was not renewed after its initial nine-episode season.
Synnott is a former high school quarterback who co-founded Bear Naked Granola, a granola company which was sold to the Kellogg's Company's Kashi subsidiary as part of a $122 million deal in 2007.
However Synnott and Johnson-George apparently aren't the only castaways who may decide to keep the details of their real-world success a secret from the rest of the castaways competing for the show's $1,000,000 prize.
"Money comes and goes," Reed, a blonde who was recruited from a taco stand and boasted that she'd turned down a Tommy Hilfiger campaign to compete on the show, told TV Guide. "If I'd saved when I was just starting out, I'd be a multimillionaire by now."
About The Author: John Bracchitta