‘Survivor’ Season 36 First Glimpse: Meet the Cast of ‘Ghost Island’

The 36th season of Survivor is around the corner, and the cast is prepared to take a shot at $1 million. Every contestant is new to the franchise, which heads to a mysterious Ghost Island.

While the 20 castaways are new, the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji have been littered with references to past seasons of Survivor, including Brazil, China, Australia and Africa. The castaways will try to avoid mistakes made by past players as the challenges get harder as the season goes on.

“Ghost Island is the graveyard of bad Survivor decisions,” host Jeff Probst told The Hollywood Reporter. “You think about every memorable historic bad decision on Survivor, and those decisions have been living out on Ghost Island — they’re haunted! They’ve been waiting for a chance to mess with you again. This year, that’s what’s going to happen. The question will be: Can you reverse the curse, or is this thing truly hexed forever, and are you going to be its next victim and another resident of Ghost Island?”

As for the cast, Probst said the cast is made up of mostly young castaways. Two are in their early 40s and four are in their 30s. The rest are in their 20s, and there is one teenager on the show. Model Michael Yerger, who is also a real estate agent, is only 18 years old.

Survivor: Ghost Island debuts on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Feb. 28.

Meet the 20 contestants of Survivor: Ghost Island.

Photo credit: Robert Voets/CBS Entertainment

Angela Perkins

Angela Perkins is the oldest castaway this season at 42 years old. She is a U.S. Army veteran who served over 21 years. She told The Hollywood Reporter that she served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Dubai, France, Germany, Italy, Bratislava and Slovakia.

 

Bradley Kleihege

Bradley Kleihege is a 26-year-old Michigan native who lives in Los Angeles. He is a law student who previously tried out for Survivor. He says one of his pet peeves is stupid people who think they know everything.

 

Chelsea Townsend

The 28-year-old Chelsea Townsend lived in Utah, but moved to Los Angeles. She is a professional cheerleader and an emergency medical technician. She is excited about the unique experience of a lifetime you get from being a Survivor contestant. 

 

 

Chris Noble

Chris Noble is a 27-year-old professional model. He is from Florida, but now lives in New York. His real hero is his mother, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at 27. His mother was 34 when he was born, and Noble’s childhood was not great. She persevered, and is the best example of a Survivor.

 

Desiree Afuye

Desiree Afuye is a 21-year-old Brooklyn-based student. She is also a big fan of Survivor and could use her knowledge of the show to her advantage. She was homeless for a few weeks after her freshman year in college. Her parents were in Nigeria and her brothers could not afford to help her in the U.S. She managed to get back on her feet though, proving to be a Survivor before getting on the show.

 

Domenick Abbate

Domenick Abbate is a 38-year-old Long Island construction worker. He wants to play like Tony Vlachos, who starred on Survivor: Game Changers. Abbate says his biggest achievement in life is getting healthy and changing his habits after his first daughter was born in 2008.

 

Kellyn Bechtold

Kellyn Bechtold is a 31-year-old career counselor from Indiana who lives in Colorado. She has had several different careers, from waitressing in Indiana to working with plants in Florida. She was even a receptionist at a crematory once. Her parents are her biggest inspirations.

 

Morgan Ricke

The 29-year-old Morgan Ricke is a marine animal trainer in Florida. She works at SeaWorld Orlando, fulfilling her childhood dream. Her parents have supported her career, while raising her and her four siblings. She loves true crime documentaries.

 

Sebastian Noel

Sebasian Noel is a 22-year-old fishing guide from Satellite Beach, Florida. His biggest inspiration is the late musician Bob Marley. He says he has been waiting his whole life to show off his many skills, so Survivor is the perfect outlet for that.

 

Wendell Holland

Wendell Holland owns a furniture company in Philadelphia. The 33-year-old is Jeff Probst’s personal pre-game winner pick. He survived a big career change, leaving behind a legal career to start his own business. He knows what it’s like to challenge himself.

 

Brendan Shapiro

Brendan Shapiro, a 41-year-old father of two, almost made it to Survivor during its fourth season, 15 years ago. Now, he finally has his shot and is now afraid to take big swings to win the game. During the recession, he started his own business and is a physical education teacher in Virginia today.

 

Donathan Hurley

Donathan Hurley is a 26-year-old caretaker from Eastern Kentucky. He is also a big Survivor fan and excited for his shot at Survivor. He is openly gay and loves changing people’s minds about the LGBTQ community. He was also part of a national championship-winning dance team.

 

Jacob Derwin

Jacob Derwin is a 22-year-old Survivor blogger who is achieving his dream of actually being on the show. He is from Long Island and is an aspiring singer-songwriter. He is a music teacher and said his inspiration in life is the late Robin Williams.

 

James Lim

James Lim is a 24-year-old financial analyst who graduated from Harvard. He was a track star who was also a U.S. Presidential Scholar. He was the first Asian-American captain of the Harvard Track and Field team during his senior year. His late grandfather, who survived the Korean War, is his biggest inspiration.

 

Jenna Bowman

Jenna Bowman is a 23-year-old form Michigan who now works as an advertising account executive in California. She understands that she might seem a little unfriendly to those who do not know her, but she’s really a softie. Her hero in life is actress Shailene Woodley because she uses her fame to make a difference.

 

Laurel Johnson

Laurel Johnson is a 29-year-old from Philadelphia. Today she is a financial consultant and almost made it to Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X. In college, she helped her volleyball team win a division championship. Her parents are her biggest inspiration in life.

 

Libby Vincek

Libby Vincek is a 24-year-old Texan and a social media strategist. She says she did not start watching Survivor until she learned she was in the mix to join the show! She did watch the show when she was younger, and considers Elisabeth Hasselbeck one of her idols. “Even at a young age, I looked up to her not only because of her outer beauty, but her noticeably beautiful heart and work ethic,” she told CBS.

 

Michael Yerger

Michael Yerger is the youngest player in Survivor: Ghost Island at only 18 years old. He is a professional model in Los Angeles and a real estate agent. His goal is to become the youngest Survivor winner in the show’s history. He describes himself as energetic, slick and resilient.

 

Stephanie Gonzalez

Stephanie Gonzalez is a 26-year-old from Puerto Rico. She now lives in Florida and works in graphic sales. She is inspired by her mother, who fought skin cancer and works with handicapped children today. “It’s an ‘all or nothing’ kind of life in my mom’s eyes. I couldn’t agree more with that woman,” she told CBS.

 

Stephanie Johnson

The second Stephanie on Ghost Island is yoga instructor Stephanie Johnson. The 34-year-old lives in Boise, Idaho. She has been to 24 counties and six continents, so she might be better suited for CBS’ The Amazing Race. But she has survived several other challenges, and is excited to test her “ironman” mentality.