Jeff Probst Burnt Out On Reality

LOS ANGELES (TNA) – Jeff Probst has been the fearless host of "Survivor" for 15 seasons, but even this reality show pioneer admits he’s had enough of the genre.

"I’m so burnt out on reality,” he claims. "I feel like the level of B.S. [on reality shows] is rising and the number of loosely scripted moments is reaching a plateau. It’s reaching a place that’s not interesting to me because I can write the finish to them all."

'Survivor' host Jeff Probst is burnt out on reality TV.

He continues: "It’s so obvious the direction they [reality show producers] want the people to go – it’s like a camera is waiting around the corner for them to just walk into it. I think the audience can sense it on an emotional level, and it doesn’t feel real.

"Sometimes," he adds, "you get a really 'real' moment – like a kid crying on 'American Idol' and on ‘Cops’ – now that's as 'real' as you can get!"

Although you won’t catch Probst watching reality shows like "Rock of Love" or "Big Brother" in his free time, he insists he’s not burnt out on his own series, which he says is pushing the bar yet again when "Survivor: China" premieres Sept. 20 on CBS.

"China brings culture," Probst explains. "China is exciting from a creative point of view because it gave us different things to draw on in terms of coming up with challenges – the culture dates back 5,000 years!

"We had a really fresh season – 'Survivor' will be different this time."

Besides teaching Americans a thing or two about Chinese culture, Probst says this season’s contestants will interact more with locals, including Buddhist monks and Kung Fu masters.

"We did a really good job of bringing the culture and making it an organic part of the show," Probst says.

When they weren’t sightseeing, the contestants were stuck with each other in an extremely hot and rainy, and remote, location – making it a stressful game situation from day one.

"Every season people get a little down when they get out there [to the location] and it hits them that they did sign up for a real adventure – you’re not going back to a hotel room," Probst laughs. "No one really expects that and no one knows how to anticipate it, so those first few days are difficult.

"We got off to a tough start [on 'Survivor: China'], which is good for the show because there was lots of conflict early," he adds. "The heat and rain were the worst – it was blistering hot…it was a challenge just to walk up a hill!"

Although this season is full of backstabbers and tough challenges, Probst admits he and his crew had no running backstage bets on who will hook up with whom or who will take home the $1 million prize, which the tight-knit bunch did in previous seasons.

"Pools really don’t matter in the end," he says. "There are too many factors, and things change so much that it’s unpredictable and hard to bet on. I mean, who you get stuck with in a tribe on the very first day can get you in trouble and switch everything."

Although he won’t spill the beans on who he thinks should win – mainly because he doesn’t want to look like a cheater – Probst admits he’s quietly rooting for the underdog.

"Secretly inside I’m hoping, hoping, hoping that there’s somebody likeable that makes it to the end," he stresses. "I don’t like giving a million dollars to an asshole.

"I think there’s so much negative stuff going around [on TV]," he adds, "that it’s nice once in a while to see the good guy win."