Andy DehnartUpdate: Survivor Nicaragua was confirmed by CBS on May 16.
If early location reports are correct, Survivor may return to Central America for its 21st and 22nd seasons, followed by seasons 23 and 24 in the Philippines in 2011. The series will be filming back-to-back, same-location seasons for the near future, if not forever.
For production this summer, the show may go to Nicaragua, according to online chatter. That traces back to a Television Without Pity post, which cited its writers’ parents conversation with a crew member while on vacation. That’s obviously a flimsy source, though the geography in Nicaragua–which is now tourist-friendly, unlike in the 1980s–makes it seem probable, as does its camera-friendly environment. And after two back-to-back island locations, I’d also expect that the show will move to an inland, non-island location for the next two seasons, and then back to islands again.
There’s more concrete reporting about the filming location that would be used for the seasons filmed in 2011, which is Caramoan, in the the Camarines Sur province of the Philippines. The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that “A top executive of the provincial government, who asked not to be named because negotiation was still ongoing, revealed that ‘Survivor USA’ would also be filmed here next year until 2012. Its production crew searched many areas in the Philippines and found Caramoan the most ideal place for filming because of its unique geographical features and available facilities that meet production standards.”
The report’s mention of “next year” would seem to mean 2011, though “until 2012” doesn’t quite make sense. The same location was used for French, Israeli, Bulgarian, and Serbian versions of the show (it’s where a Bulgarian contestant died last summer), so it already has the infrastructure to support the show, never mind that Caramoan is a visually stunning location. The Israeli version is currently filming there until this summer.
Of course, it filming there or anywhere depends upon the show being renewed for another year, but with all-stars generating higher-than-usual ratings, and the potential for one (at least partial) all-star season a year, I don’t think cancellation is anywhere in its future.