TVLINE | If you could pick three allies right now just based on your early game gut feelings, who would they be?
Three people I could just stick to would be Emily, Kyle and, who else? Mike. I gotta put Mike in there because you know he’s here for the vibes, so I wanna laugh and I know he’s funny as well, so I think those would be my three people.
TVLINE | There are a couple individuals here who we don’t know anything about! What are your thoughts about having two Season 49 players in this game? [This interview was conducted before Season 49 aired.]
There are two people from Season 49 that are on “50,” which is a little bit scary because it could go two ways. 1) It’s an advantage for them because no one knows how they played and they could do whatever they want. They can adjust their mistakes. No one knows about them and people will be OK with it. Or 2) they’re gonna be the first boots in either tribe, and that is because we haven’t watched them play. Also, Kyle and myself are the only winners confirmed, so one of two, in my opinion, has to be a winner, so it’s gonna be interesting to see what truth or lie they come up with, but yeah. I don’t want them on “50.” I think they just got back from Fiji. They need time to decompress. Go back home. I don’t wanna play with you. I don’t know who you are, and familiarity breeds trust, so… Even though I haven’t played with some of the old school people or even some people in the new era, there’s still some sort of familiarity in there just because we’ve all watched each other, right? We all have a perception of each other except those two people from “49,” so they gotta go.
TVLINE | You’ve been on “The Challenge,” now you’re back here for “Survivor 50.” What show might you tackle next?
You know what? I’m not sure if I want to, at least this year, do any more reality TV. I think I’ve had my fair share of fun, but I don’t want that to be my career. I think I’ll look forward to maybe hosting some things or public speaking or I don’t know, maybe being in some sort of production in another show. I really like that aspect of it and, even when I watch “Survivor,” sometimes I can’t get myself to watch as a fan. I have to watch [like], “Oh, I like that they asked them this question,” or “Oh, this is why they’re telling this story because they’re building up this character.” All of that just fascinates me, so I think I’m gonna chill on the reality TV shows for a little bit for now because I also want to spend some time at home with my family and my loved ones, and when you do stuff back to back, I just don’t want that to be my lifestyle right now.
TVLINE | Is this an exclusive scoop? Are you announcing your retirement from reality TV here and now?
I am announcing my retirement for 2025! [Laughs]
TVLINE | What’s the anticipation like as you wait for this season to begin?
First of all, this is a great cast. Everyone here wants it and you can feel it. Coach makes me laugh because he’s always kind of doing this. [She puts her hands on her knees and rotates her knees] Literally, all day. That’s all Coach does, so I already know this man is not ready for the physical aspect of this game. [Laughs] Colby is an interesting one because at the airport coming to Fiji, he took the stairs instead of the escalator. Emily was at the front and she looked back at me and she started cracking up because on our season, Kendra took the stairs instead of the escalator and Hannah called her a pick-me, and I just thought that was hilarious, so basically Colby’s doing just that and then he sits in the back of the rooms or wherever we’re sitting, he sits in the back like, “Dude, it’s fine, you can sit in the front,” you know what I mean? You could be an alpha in the real world, but on “Survivor,” I don’t know. I think it’s just giving vibes of “not easy to work with” or “what I say goes.” Hopefully it’s not the case.
TVLINE | If you could have had one more player from “45” here with you, who would that be?
Oh man, you’re putting me in a bad position asking me who I would want from Season 45 here with me. My initial reaction is Julie because that’s my ride-or-die and we played this game together from beginning to end, but I’m not gonna pick her. I’m gonna pick Kelly and that’s because I think Kelly. We’re kind of the same archetype and she really wanted it so badly, so it would be great to watch her play because she’s so freaking smart and she loves the game and is passionate about “Survivor,” so I would pick her.