It’s not good news for fans of Survivor South Africa as the popular reality-series has not been renewed for an 8th season, despite a ratings increase for the latest season.

The seventh season concluded with a live finale two weeks ago, but fans were surprised when host Nico Panagio failed to mention anything about the next season. We now know why—M-Net has temporarily shelved the series citing budget and scheduling conflicts.

Speaking to TVwithThinus, M-Net’s head of local productions and independent films, Kaye-Ann Williams, said, “What we do as a team, is work out our schedule line-ups three years in advance. So we have to look at how our budgets are working out, what content is coming in, what do we have the licenses for; do we have the money for it.

“Obviously ratings and performance help us to make those decisions—but we’re not there yet for Survivor South Africa,” she continued. “It’s not that we don’t love it, we absolutely love it. And we’re all dying to do it, but the stars have to align.”

This is not the first, or even the second time, that Survivor South Africa has been put on hold. The show debuted in 2006 but was rested after just two seasons, eventually returning in 2010 for a third edition. Following the fourth season in 2011, the show was put back on the shelf until it returned for a fifth season in 2014 before once again being sidelined.

M-Net revived the format in 2018 after a four-year absence with a season that felt more in line with its American counterpart. The sixth season received widespread acclaim from fans around the world.

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