CBS’s loss is about to be Peacock’s gain. After CBS passed over Rob Cesternino and opted not to bring him back for Survivor 50, it seems Peacock has swept in to give fans what they’ve been waiting for — Cesternino’s return to their screens!
According to a new report from Reality TV News, Cesternino has joined the cast of The Traitors and will compete in the upcoming fourth season of the show. While unconfirmed, Cesternino’s role in the season 4 cast of Peacock’s Emmy-winning reality series seems quite probable, as The Traitors has been known to feature fan-favorite players from CBS’s long-running series.
It’s unclear when Peacock might have contacted Cesternino about joining the season 4 cast, but it seems it might have been recent. This is because Cesternino had been in talks with CBS about returning for Survivor 50 just a few short months ago.
Following the official Survivor 50 cast announcement, Cesternino revealed that he had been cut from the forthcoming milestone season. According to Cesternino, CBS contacted him in August 2024 to inquire about his availability for the season, and he made it clear to the production team that he was more than interested in returning. Sadly, after stringing him along for months, CBS ended up notifying him in March 2025 that he would not be part of the Survivor 50 cast.
News that CBS decided not to bring Cesternino back for Survivor 50 has not sat well with fans, and understandably so. While Cesternino has never won the game of Survivor, his gameplay in Survivor: The Amazon and Survivor: All-Stars earned him the title of "the smartest player to never win" from host Jeff Probst. He’s an absolute Survivor legend and deserved a spot in the Survivor 50 cast.
CBS fumbled the ball, but Peacock has turned that fumble into a touchdown for The Traitors. Cesternino is sure to be a standout in the season, and there is no telling how far he might go in the competition. It’s entirely possible he could become the second Survivor player to win the game if he plays his cards right.
Of course, he’s going to have some stiff competition as the cast also includes two Survivor winners, with Natalie Anderson and Yam Yam Arocho both set to compete.
Last season, we watched the Survivor players pick one another off quickly in the game rather than teaming up. If that happens again in season 4, it’s highly possible Cesternino could become a target with Anderson and Arocho firing off the first shot in his direction. Granted, he’s going to have to worry about more than just Survivor alums.
The season 4 cast will also include Big Brother alums Tiffany Mitchell and Ian Terry; Olympic Figure Skaters Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski; Real Housewives stars Porsha Williams, Caroline Stanbury, Candace Dillard Bassett, Lisa Rinna, and Dorinda Medley; reality stars Mark Ballas (Dancing with the Stars), Monet X Change (RuPaul’s Drag Race), Maura Higgins (Love Island), Kristen Kish (Top Chef), Rob Rausch (Love Island USA), and Colton Underwood (The Bachelor); actors Michael Rapaport and Stephen Colletti; as well as singer Eric Nam, comedian Ron Funches, and Donna Kelce (mother of NFL stars Travis and Jason Kelce).
The Traitors season 4 is expected to arrive in early 2026.