David Genat on how he'll fill Jonathan LaPaglia's shoes as Australian Survivor host

David Genat is stepping into the shoes of Jonathan LaPaglia as the host of Australian Survivor, and with his debut just weeks away, he’s revealed how he plans to win over long-time fans of the show.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jonathan said he doesn’t plan to reinvent the role, but rather to pick up where Jonathan left off.

“I’m not trying to be Jonathan. I’m not Jonathan. Jonathan was an amazing host. So, for me, it’s not about wiping what Jonathan does and being better than Jonathan. It’s really just building on the show.”

David – who’s competed on three seasons of Australian Survivor — said that he’s personally never watched the show for the host, but rather, for the cast.

“I never watched Survivor for Jonathan or for Jeff Probst. I watched for the players. I watched for the contestants to see what they were doing. They’re the ones that are driving the game.”

For that reason, David said he felt that it was important for him as a host to let the cast and their strategies drive the season.

“I knew there were gonna be, obviously, some people who were upset with Jonathan being gone, but for me, I just need to facilitate the game. And I know that the players and the game are gonna speak for itself. So whilst there is a lot of pressure to do that, I know a lot of people don’t like change, they’re upset that Jonathan is gone, but the franchise continues, the format continues. It’s just as good.

“We have an incredible cast, and we have a great season, and I know people are gonna be really happy. You just have to get over that shock of the first episode of being like, “Wait a minute, that’s not Jonathan’s voice. That’s David!” But I think they’re gonna like it.”

Why did Jonathan LaPaglia leave Australian Survivor?

Rumours first emerged that Jonathan LaPaglia was fired from his role as host of Australian Survivor in late May 2025. In June, the network confirmed that Jonathan had been let go, and in August, it was revealed that David was taking over the gig.

Jonathan later confirmed in an Instagram post that he had been ‘blindsided’ by the move.

“Australian Survivor has seen some of the most epic blindsides over the last 10 years, but this one might just be the craziest of them all…. because it happened to me,” he began a lengthy statement.

“I received a call from the Network thanking me for all my hard work and dedication to the show but for next season they are ‘going in a different direction’. Ratings had dipped a bit recently and they wanted to do something drastic to shake things up.

“So for the first time ever this is not a tribe swap, but a HOST SWAP®ï¸ Yes, you read that right.”