Survivor is now in the Philippines.

Rumors have been going on that the popular reality game show will finally have a franchise in the Philippines. It was also rumored that the U.S. version is shooting its next season on an island in Camarines Sur.

Although it is not yet confirmed if the next season of Survivor (U.S. version) is really shooting in CamSur, it has been announced that Survivor will have its own franchise here in the Philippines.

And the Philippine network that got the franchise rights is GMA-7.

In fact, GMA Network has already announced audition dates to search the first batch of 16 castaways in Survivor Philippines.

The audition is open to males and females, 18 to 60 years old. They must be physically fit and willing to become castaways and endure intense physical and mental challenges in an unfamiliar territory for 39 days.

The audition dates are as follows:

DAVAO (SM Davao) - May 1 and 2
CEBU (SM Cebu) - May 5 and 6
ILOILO (SM Iloilo) - May 8 and 9
BAGUIO (SM Baguio) - May 17 and 18
MANILA (SM North Edsa) - May 21 and 22
MANILA (SM Manila) - May 23

It has not yet been announced who will host Survivor Philippines, but many are hoping that Paolo Bediones would get the job since he already has  experience in hosting this format in Extra Challenge, also in GMA-7.

Survivor was created in 1992 by Charlie Parsons, and the first production to use this format was the Swedish show Expedition: Robinson in 1997.

Soon after, in 2000, other countries developed their own series based on this format: Belgium, Brazil, the Netherlands, and, of course, the United States. Aside from these countries, Survivor has also been franchised in Australia, Bulgaria, Colombia, Czech Republic, France, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom, and Venezuela.

And now, add to that list the Philippines, which has so many breathtaking islands ideal for Survivor locations.