John Peyton thought Applebee’s ‘Survivor’ tie-in was ‘the dumbest thing’ he had ever heard. He was wrong

When John Peyton took over as CEO of Dine Brands in January 2021, former Applebee’s CMO Joel Yashinsky brought him up to speed on one of the brand’s existing marketing partnerships: Survivor.

“Big idea: We’re going to be on Survivor. It’s in the South Pacific somewhere, and the winning team is going to have an Applebee’s-catered meal on the island,” Peyton recalled Yashinsky telling him.

The partnership debuted during Survivor: Island of the Idols in 2019, making Applebee’s a signature reward—an idea Peyton initially thought missed the mark.

“I said, ‘That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,’” Peyton told us.

That “dumb” thing would go on to become one of Applebee’s longest-running brand integrations with a television franchise, generating viral moments over the course of multiple seasons and teaching Peyton an important leadership lesson: Sometimes the best thing a CEO can do is trust the experts.

I will survive

Contestant Karishma Patel’s emotional reaction to an Applebee’s feast in Season 39 became an early fan favorite, and the promotion has since returned for Seasons 42, 46, and 50.

Its biggest viral moment came during Season 46, when contestant Liz Wilcox tearfully lamented missing out on her favorite Applebee’s meal—the Bourbon Street Mushroom Swiss Burger—after losing a challenge. According to Applebee’s, the moment generated more than 3,900 social media mentions and reached more than 42 million users. It resonated with fans beyond the episode itself, inspiring one viewer to re-create the scene on TikTok in a video that has received nearly 20,000 likes.

This year’s Survivor campaign has so far delivered more than 6 million paid media impressions and 2.1 million video views, according to the company.

What Peyton initially saw as a mismatch—a restaurant chain on a remote island—ultimately became exactly what made the integration memorable.

“What I had to learn was that it wasn’t my decision to undo. That was the marketing team’s decision—and not one I would’ve made,” Peyton said. “I couldn’t have been more wrong. It exploded.”

Peyton said that when marketing peers reached out to congratulate him on the integration, he quickly admitted he couldn’t take the credit.

“It was a good example of learning that my job was not to question what the marketing team was doing,” Peyton said. “They got it right, and I would’ve gotten it wrong.”