Overview

• The two-hour premiere aired Sept. 24 on CBS, with live streaming on Paramount+ for Premium subscribers and next-day access for Essential plans.
• Eighteen castaways—including last-minute alternates Jason Treul and Michelle “MC” Chukwujekwu—began the 26-day competition in Fiji’s Mamanuca Islands under host and executive producer Jeff Probst.
• After the opener, weekly episodes shift to 90-minute installments each Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
• The season opened with the first Tribal Council and an elimination, setting early dynamics without revealing key outcomes.
• Season 49 is positioned to feed the milestone Season 50, with two contestants from this cast to be selected for the all-returnees lineup.