- - “Survivor” Producer Reflects on 50 Seasons of Challenges and Whether He Misses the Classics (Exclusive)

Stephanie PetitFebruary 8, 2026 at 7:00 AM

0

Jeff Probst and John Kirhoffer in Los Angeles on Oct. 29, 2016

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty

John Kirhoffer has been the producer behind Survivor's challenges throughout the show's 26-year run

Kirhoffer tells PEOPLE exclusively that at first, he was watching Army obstacle courses for ideas

He also shares the lesson he took with him from Mark Burnett after a contestant couldn't swim in season two

Survivor has introduced plenty of twists over its 50 seasons, but the basic structure has remained steadfast, including the significance of challenges.

While John Kirhoffer knew from about 12 years old that he wanted to be a television producer, he was almost ready to quit the business to "move to Hawaii and try to find a job teaching scuba diving" until he got a call in December 1999 asking him to join Survivor ahead of the very first season.

Since then, Kirhoffer has overseen every challenge on the show — a unique role he had to pioneer for himself as he quips that "Obstacle Course Building 101" wasn't offered at San Diego State University.

"I started watching Army recruiting obstacle courses. And you couldn’t just go to YouTube. You had to really research things," he tells PEOPLE of the start of his role on Survivor. "I went to the library, and I got books on obstacle courses."

From left: Jay Wolff, Jeff Probst, John Kirhoffer, Jimmy Quigley and Elan Lee on Feb. 23, 2025

Robert Voets/CBS via Getty

In the early seasons, Kirhoffer says he and his fellow producers studied the culture of the country where they were filming, sometimes using local games as challenges. And before Survivor was a pop culture phenomenon, Kirhoffer was also working with a "limited budget," resulting in simple challenges like "Hands on a Hard Idol," where contestants simply touched a totem for longer than their competitors to win.

However, Kirhoffer doesn't seem to mourn what some fans deem classics: "I don’t miss the standing on a pole thing for 12 hours."

— sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Jeff Probst hosts an immunity challenge on the first season of Survivor

Monty Brinton/CBS via Getty

Kirhoffer learned early on that tribe challenges had to encourage teammates to work together. He recalls when they found a quarry with a lake that they thought would make a good challenge location for season 2 in the Australian Outback, but then he recalled that contestant Rodger Bingham couldn't swim.

Talking to Survivor creator Mark Burnett about the dilemma, Kirhoffer got a "lesson that I have used on Survivor ever since."

"[Burnett] looked at me like I just tore up the Mona Lisa or something," Kirhoffer says. "He goes, ‘John. He has a tribe. Send somebody who is a good swimmer down first, then the person who can’t swim, then someone who can swim.’ He was giving me Survivor 101 on our second season."

"From then on, we don’t help anybody that needs help," he continues. "They have a team. Put the right people in the right positions and help your team."

A challenge on 'Survivor'

Robert Voets/CBS via Getty

In recent years, many of the obstacle course challenges require different cast members to perform different roles — from strength-based tasks and dexterity elements to puzzles and balance beams — to give every tribe a chance to make up time based on their strengths.

"There is something so satisfying about seeing an entire team coming together to help — leave no man behind," Kirhoffer says.

Survivor season 50 premieres Wednesday, Feb. 25, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”