Meet Survivor's Season 45 Contestants

Get to know the 18 new castaways who will try to outwit, outplay and outlast each other on Survivor's milestone 45th season.

By Brett Malec Sep 06, 2023 8:06 PMTags
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Eighteen new hopefuls are ready to outwit, outplay and outlast.

Survivor has announced the new crop of castaways who will be competing for $1 million and the title of "Sole Survivor" on the competition's upcoming milestone season 45.

Among the diverse group of contestants are students, attorneys, a nurse, a bartender and a school principal—just to name a few. And, of course, longtime host Jeff Probst is back at the helm to challenge the 18 competitors' physical and mental limits through games, puzzles and the cutthroat tribal councils.

And according to CBS, fans can expect extra hours of game play this season as each episode will be 90 minutes long instead of an hour, giving viewers a deeper dive into the players' backstories as they're stranded on the stunning islands of Fiji.

"Viewers will watch as castaways form a society and adapt to their physical and social surroundings while contending with treacherous new elements and navigating an ever-shifting social game," the network announced Sept. 6. "This determined group will be divided into three tribes of six and face a faster, grittier season from the moment they step on the beach."

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For some contestants, they want to break barriers. As entrepreneur Dee Valladares shared in an intro video, "I wanna be a Latina female winner on Survivor."

When it comes to civil rights attorney Katurah Topps, she wants to turn adversity into her advantage.

Robert Voets/CBS

"I have to walk through the world as a Black queer woman, I am constantly in survival mode because of that," she noted. "Figure out ways to adapt quickly, understand different social settings. I was watching Survivor and realizing I can do that on the show."

Keep reading to get to know all 18 of the new castaways.

Survivor season 45 premieres Wednesday, Sept. 27, at 8 p.m. on CBS.

Jake O'Kane

Age: 26

Hometown: Hanson, Mass.

Current Residence: Boston, Mass.

Occupation: Attorney

Austin Li Coon

Age: 26

Hometown: San Jose, Calif.

Current Residence: Chicago, Ill.

Occupation: Grad student

Janani Krishnan-Jha (stage name: J. Maya)

Age: 24

Hometown: San Francisco, Calif.

Current Residence: Los Angeles, Calif.

Occupation: Singer

Julie Alley

Age: 49

Hometown: Brentwood, Tenn.

Current Residence: Brentwood, Tenn.

Occupation: Estate attorney

Kellie Nalbandian

Age: 30

Hometown: Weston, Conn.

Current Residence: New York, N.Y.

Occupation: Critical care nurse

Dee Valladares

Age: 26

Hometown: Havana, Cuba

Current Residence: Miami, Fla.

Occupation: Entrepreneur

Sean Edwards

Age: 35

Hometown: Lawrence, N.J.

Current Residence: Provo-Orem, Utah

Occupation: School principal

Katurah Topps

Age: 35

Hometown: St. Louis, Mo.

Current Residence: Brooklyn, N.Y.

Occupation: Civil rights attorney

Kendra McQuarrie

Age: 31

Hometown: Haverhill, Mass.

Current Residence: Steamboat Springs, Colo.

Occupation: Bartender

Drew Basile

Age: 23

Hometown: Birmingham, Mich.

Current Residence: Philadelphia, Pa.

Occupation: Grad student

Brandon Donlon

Age: 26

Hometown: Sicklerville, N.J.

Current Residence: Sicklerville, N.J.

Occupation: Content producer

Hannah Rose

Age: 33

Hometown: Woodbridge, Conn.

Current Residence: Baltimore City, Md.

Occupation: Therapist

Nicholas "Sifu" Alsup

Age: 30

Hometown: O'Fallon, Ill.

Current Residence: O'Fallon, Ill.

Occupation: Gym owner

Brandon "Brando" Meyer

Age: 23

Hometown: Oak Park, Calif.

Current Residence: Seattle, Wash.

Occupation: Software developer

Bruce Perreault

Age: 47

Hometown: West Warwick, R.I.

Current Residence: Warwick, R.I.

Occupation: Insurance agent

Emily Flippen

Age: 28

Hometown: McKinney, Texas

Current Residence: Laurel, Md.

Occupation: Investment analyst

Sabiyah Broderick 

Age: 28

Hometown: Locust Grove, Ga.

Current Residence: Jacksonville, N.C.

Occupation: Truck driver

Kaleb Gebrewold

Age: 29

Hometown: Port Coquitlam, British Columbia

Current Residence: Vancouver, British Columbia

Occupation: Software sales

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