Once and future "Survivor" host Jeff Probst began "Survivor: All-Stars" dangling from a helicopter surrounded by a cadre of Central American military mercenaries. Given the difficulties of following up that flamboyant entrance, Probst does the only logical thing: He opens "Survivor: Vanuatu" standing on the lip of an active volcano in mid-eruption.

"One big 'kaboom' went off and rocks went past me, over my head and down the hill in front of me," Probst chuckles, several months after the filming. "It was me and the director and we kept pushing it going, 'Let's get a little closer, let's get a little closer' and our safety guy kept saying, 'You've got to wear your hard hat. Rocks could fall at any moment.'"

As its ninth season begins, Probst has begun to fall into a "Survivor" comfort zone. He admits that to some degree, the show has become an institution like ABC's "Monday Night Football," popular for its familiarity rather than its innovation. Although he compares the rote-quality of his oft-repeated dialogue to a midnight screening of "Rocky Horror Picture Show," Probst is at least in on the joke.

"I'm not looking to find a fresh way to say the same thing," Probst admits. "There are certain speeches that are mockable. If you can't mock 'Survivor' at this point, you've got no wit."

This season, in the South Pacific islands of Vanuatu, the mock dramatic Tribal Council speeches may remain the same and Probst may never give up his open-collared shirts, but the location will produce some major changes. For the first time in "Survivor" history, the natives play an active role in the texture of the game, lending an air of spirituality, even if they aren't a regular on-camera presence.

"'Survivor' is not National Geographic," Probst says, explaining that the season won't devolve (or evolve) into "Tribal History 101." "Our mantra is not to expose you to the intricacies of a tribe."

The season opens with the castaways facing an elaborate initiation ritual at the hands of a native tribe. As part of the fetishistic rite the contestants and, by extension the viewers, get to witness the slaughter of a pig.

"I'm sure PETA will come after us and good for them, they're doing their job," Probst acknowledges. "We're only allowed to show so much, but it was brutal. That pig was alive. They wheeled it in. [A tribe member] took a club and beat it to death."

As part of the ceremony, the natives separated the men from the women, which "Survivor" uses as an excuse to stage a second battle of the sexes.

"One of the big things that I think you'll sense right away is girl power," Probst says. "The question, I guess, is can it sustain? The women come out strong saying 'We're going to do what's never been done before. We're going to stick together til the end.' That's easy to say and really interesting to watch them try to pull it off."

In past years, Probst has been willing to tease reporters with the prospect of The Biggest Twist in 'Survivor' History (the return of the Outcasts in "Pearl Island") or The Biggest 'Survivor' Lie Ever Told (Johnny Fairplay gaining sympathy with the fake death of his grandmother), but he's at a loss to hype this season.

"There are no villains that came into the game determined to be a villain, like Johnny Fairplay was or Richard Hatch," he says. "Those were clear villains in the casting room. This group played out much more organically. What was kind of interesting was the people, I'm not sure to this day they realize they were a villain."

How will "Survivor: Vanuatu" survive without a villain, but with a recycled twist and an unchanged formula?

"I think this is going to be a good season, but honestly I don't know," says the reliably candid host. "CBS hates it when I say that, because they want you to always say, 'Oh yes, yes, yes.' The audience decides ultimately."

"Survivor: Vanuatu" premieres on Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.