The “Survivor” Sia prize has finally come to an end
The pop superstar will no longer be giving away money to her favorite "Survivor" players.
The Survivor Sia Prize is no more. The pop superstar and Survivor superfan will no longer be giving away money to her favorite player or players from every season, host Jeff Probst announced in a statement on Instagram. The singer made headlines each and every season when she would select her favorite players from the CBS reality hit and then ambush them with amounts of cash — changing lives in the process.
“It’s the end of one of the most unique eras in the history of Survivor,” wrote Probst on his Instagram story. “After eight years, 14 seasons, 19 players and over $1,000,000 awarded, Survivor is officially bringing the Sia Prize to a triumphant end!”
Related: Watch Sia give away $200,000 to Survivor 43 contestants
Probst then recalled when Sia first began gifting money, shocking everyone eight years ago at the Survivor: Kaoh Rong live reunion when she came up on the stage and informed contestant Tai Trang that she wanted to give him $50,000, and another $50,000 to the charity of his choice.
"I still vividly remember the day Sia stood up in the audience during the live finale of Survivor: Kaoh Rong back in 2016 and made her way onstage. She was so taken by Tai’s commitment to protecting a chicken from being eaten that she awarded him $50,000 of her own money. Tai was shocked, the audience was shocked, I was shocked! What was happening? Sia was on stage in her wig handing out money to a Survivor player!?”
And she would keep handing it out. Over the years, Sia has given money to 16 people and/or their charities, including $100,000 each to seven different contestants (Rick Devens, Elaine Stott, Janet Carbin, Drea Wheeler, Jesse Lopez, Carolyn Wiger, and Katurah Topps) — often surprising them over Zoom, like when she presented $200,000 to various members of the Survivor 43 cast.
Related: Survivor 47 host Jeff Probst shares intel on next season of the show
“That was the beginning of what became affectionately known as ‘The Sia Prize,’” continues Probst about the start of that shocking giveaway eight years ago. “And over the many years Sia has brought so much joy to so many players and it was always straight from her heart. So it is with tremendous gratitude and admiration to Sia that we bring to a close one of the most unique relationships a TV show could ever have with a pop star of Sia’s global wattage.I ’m really honored for Survivor to have this one of a kind association with Sia. She’s in the Survivor Hall Of Fame of Superfans!”
Frankly, it’s shocking the Sia award lasted this long. After all, the woman has given away over a million dollars of her own personal money. Word is the singer remains a huge fan of the show and still picks out her favorites every season to root for, but… again… A MILLION DOLLARS! The faucet had to turn off at some point.
That means Survivor 45’s Topps, Kaleb Gebrewold ($15,000), and Jake O’Kane ($15,000) become the official last recipients of Sia’s unparalleled generosity. Perhaps freshly minted Survivor 46 million-dollar winner Kenzie Petty would like to start footing the bill? At the very least, she likely has five people hoping for a big night out at Applebee’s.
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