Survivor has announced the new castaways who will be competing for $1 million on the CBS reality series' upcoming 44th season.

ADVERTISEMENT


CBS has unveiled the 18 Survivor castaways who will be competing to outwit, outplay and outlast when Season 44 premieres with a two-hour episode on Wednesday, March 1 at 8PM ET/PT.

RELATED LINK: 'SURVIVOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO'S STILL TOGETHER?! WHICH SHOWMANCES SPLIT UP? (PHOTOS) 

The castaways will be divided into three tribes of six players, and they'll "face a faster, more dangerous season from the moment they step on the beach," according to the network.

Players will deal with moral dilemmas and "mysterious new layers" of the game designed to push even the strongest competitors to their limits mentally and physically.

ADVERTISEMENT


The cast of Season 44 are fans from diverse backgrounds and range in age from 20 to 46.

The newbie players include a salon owner, a security specialist, a NASA engineering student, an NYC firefighter, a school teacher, a surgical podiatrist, a Yogi, and a drug counselor.

"It's impossible to fly under the radar. I don't shut up," jokes castaway Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho, a salon owner, in his introductory video.

"That's what my husband says, but I let my guard down on purpose so people will relate to me and connect with me because the beauty salon is always real with gossip... I'm the best player in the world and so we're going to make it happen for the million dollars!"

Carson Garrett, a NASA engineering student, says he didn't want anyone to view him as a rocket scientist in the game.


ADVERTISEMENT


"I want to be hidden in the background, so I think other people are going to perceive me as the short, 5'5" nerdy, nice person. And then by the end of the game, I can come out as more of a puppetmaster leading those votes," Carson explains of his strategy in a video.

And Jaime Lynn Ruiz, a corporate America employee-turned-Yogi, shared how meditation is going to be her "guiding light" on Survivor, adding, "It reminds me of my power that I have, that will help me win the game. And we like to speak things into existence, so [I'm] the next Sole Survivor!"

RELATED LINK: 'BIG BROTHER' SHOWMANCES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER? WHICH COUPLES HAVE SPLIT UP?? (PHOTOS)

Survivor, once again filmed on the islands of Fiji, will be hosted by Jeff Probst.

The show's 43rd season wrapped in December with Mike "Gabler" Gabler winning the prize money in a landslide vote over the runner-up Cassidy Clark.

ADVERTISEMENT


Below is the list of 18 castaways who will be appearing on Survivor 44 this spring.

- Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho, a 36-year-old salon owner from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, who currently resides in San Juan, Puerto Rico

- Matt Blankinship, a 27-year-old security software engineer from Albany, CA, who currently resides in San Francisco, CA

- Brandon Cottom, a 30-year-old security specialist from Newtown, PA

- Kane Fritzler, a 25-year-old law student from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan in Canada, who currently resides in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan


ADVERTISEMENT


- Carson Garrett, a 20-year-old NASA engineering student from Rome, GA, who currently resides in Atlanta, GA

- Matthew Grinstead-Mayle, a 43-year-old barbershop owner from Pickerington, OH, who currently resides in Columbus, OH

- Lauren Harpe, a 31-year-old elementary school teacher from Port Arthur, TX, who currently resides in Mont Belvieu, TX

- Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt, a 43-year-old engineering manager from Ponce, Puerto Rico, who currently resides in Pittsburgh, PA

- Helen Li, a 29-year-old product manager from Wayland, MA, who currently resides in San Francisco, CA


- Frannie Marin, a 23-year-old research coordinator from St. Paul, MN, who currently resides in Cambridge, MA

- Danny Massa, a 32-year-old NYC firefighter from Bronx, NY

- Bruce Perreault, a 46-year-old insurance agent from West Warwick, RI

- Maddy Pomilla, a 28-year-old charity projects manager from Huntingtown, MD, who currently resides in Brooklyn, NY

- Claire Rafson, a 25-year-old tech investor from Highland Park, IL, who currently resides in Brooklyn, NY

- Jaime Lynn Ruiz, a 35-year-old Yogi from Mesa, AZ


ADVERTISEMENT


- Sarah Wade, a 27-year-old management consultant from Rochester, MN, who currently resides in Chicago, IL

- Carolyn Wiger, a 35-year-old drug counselor from North St. Paul, MN, who currently resides in Hugo, MN

- Josh Wilder, a 34-year-old surgical podiatrist from Cincinnati, OH, who currently resides in Atlanta, GA

RELATED LINK: 'SURVIVOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO'S STILL TOGETHER?! WHICH SHOWMANCES SPLIT UP? (PHOTOS) 














About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.