Why Rizo “Rizgod” Velovic Deserves To Be In Season 50

Survivor 49’s highly-anticipated premiere was an exciting two-hour event, proving to viewers who weren’t certain about some of the season’s cast members being included on Survivor 50 that Rizo “Rizgod” Velovic was the right choice. Although Survivor 50 won’t be out until 2026, the milestone season made waves when the cast was announced earlier this year, including two of 49’s castaways.

Survivor 49, which kicked off with three new tribes fighting for power in the game, brought 18 new castaways into the long-running show’s family. While there’s still an entire season to play out, watching the premiere episode gave many an idea of who they’ll be interested in following along with as the show continues. Rizo, sometimes called Rizgod online, was one of the standouts.

Though some were concerned when Survivor 50’s cast came out that two cast members were included on the list without viewers weighing in on the season at all, seeing the premiere episode made it clear that Survivor is going to enjoy focusing on Rizo and his fellow Uli tribemate Savannah Louie. After just one episode, Rizo seems like he’ll make a huge impact on Survivor 49.

Rizo “Rizgod” Velovic Was Quick To Volunteer For An Individual Challenge

He Wanted To Stand Out To His Tribe

During Survivor 49’s premiere episode, the castaways were given a quick challenge to determine which of the three tribes would win their supplies up front. While Rizo’s tribe, consisting of himself, Savannah, Sage Ahrens-Nichols, Shannon Fairweather, Nate Moore, & Jawan Pitts, was able to make it close to finishing first, they lost out to the Hina tribe in the end.

Rizo and the Kele tribe’s Alex Moore chose to move to the individual phase of the challenge after host Jeff Probst asked for volunteers, and while Rizo said he wouldn’t be able to do a puzzle, he proved himself wrong. In the secondary challenge, Alex and Rizo had to gather puzzle pieces, creating a map that then directed them to a dig site.

While Rizo had a tough time putting the puzzle together, he was cunning enough to know to use Alex’s puzzle once the Kele tribe member had moved onto digging out in the sand. Cheating the system, Rizo was charming enough in his narration to explain his thought process and went on to win the challenge out from under Alex, who’d been ahead.

Rizo’s Tenacity, Creativity, & Well, Rizz, Will Help Him Curry Favor

Survivor Fans May Be Quickly Endeared

While Rizo may still only be in the first days of Survivor 49, knowing that he’s been cast for Survivor 50 means that the way he’s showing his character is likely a good representation of who he is throughout the season. Rizo’s, for lack of a better word, rizz seems to be carrying him through the game thus far, which is a good sign.

Seeing Rizo move through his initial challenge creatively, while not entirely working within the confines of the typical Survivor rules, made it clear that he’s ready to do what it takes to win. With some charm, creative thinking, and the ability to move through competitions with ease, Rizo was the right choice to carry forward as Survivor enters another new era.

Survivor airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EDT on CBS.