RHAP: We Know Survivor - Kellyn Bechtold Talks Chrissy Hofbeck | The Survivor 50 Files

Episode Date: June 25, 2025

The Survivor 50 Files are back as Brandon Donlon and guest Kellyn Bechtold dive into Chrissy Hofbeck's potential return for Survivor 50. They explore Chrissy's journey from her 16-year application process to her runner-up finish in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, and how her experiences might shape her gameplay in a new era of Survivor.

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Let's get to the show. What is going on everybody? Brandon Downland here with another episode of The Survivor 55 and we're talking Chrissy Hoffman from Heroes, Healers and Hustlers, which is still hard to say. That season came on in 2017, it's still hard to say. I am joined by a great friend of mine, somebody who I've never gotten to do this with, and

I'm so thrilled. It's Kellyn Bechdel. Kellyn, how are you? Hello. Hi, everyone. Hi. It's so fun to be here with you today and get to hang out talk a little bit survivor a little bit of survivor a little bit of Retriality maybe a little bit of all the things so I'm really excited to be here today and to just get to exchange words with

You I actually put on my my ponderosa shirt. This is the shirt I wore at ponderosa And I was just getting in the mood. It's hot, it's 90 degrees, it's summertime, it's survivor off season and it's, uh, some season 50 contestants, maybe Chrissy Hockback, maybe not, are at Ponderosa right now. So we will see. We'll see. Let me just, so this is the first episode, the Survivor 50 Files, where our guest, Helen, has not played with Chrissy. They have a good relationship.

They've talked to each other. And let me tell you, if you're on the Heroes, Healers, Hustlers cast, you're so hard to reach. I don't know how, where you are in the world. It is not a group that is involved with the Survivor community, which is so interesting, Colin, because half of your Ghost Island cast is also so removed. And I feel like you guys are the last survivor cast that are like that, where it's just like everybody's OTG, they're off the grid. Yeah, you know, I have a theory on this, which is not necessarily based on any fact.

I'll be interested to see what you're... We like those, we like those theories. I'll be interested to see what you're, because you would have been a fan back in the day. Fan only at the time. And I get the sense that casting, because this was right before Lynn was ousted, right? So I forget when was she ousted? Like, I think her last season was 38. I believe. Okay. Okay. So I think this is my, that Lynn decided she wanted to go Love Island casting, like reality TV people, not necessarily Survivor fans.

And so 35 and 36 are like the peak of that era in casting, which was like people who did not know about Survivor, people who did not watch the show. There were some people who did, obviously there are fans, Chrissy being one of them had been applying for years and years and years, but like JP and all these people who I don't know why I picked him out, but like Jenna Bowman from my season, like none of these people I don't think were super Survivor fans and so it makes sense that because they went into it through the casting process of like let's do reality tv

stars they may or may not were able maybe not became tv stars after. It makes sense to me that the tie to survivor doesn't feel as close as some of the later seasons here in the new era where it seems like most people are not recruits. I think that's the word. When you're in the pregame for Ghost Island, can you get like an aura from the people who are the recruits? Can you tell like, I think in my season, most if not all of us had applied for the show. I'm pretty sure all of us. Were you getting a vibe from people that like they maybe did not know as much as you did about the show as a whole?

Definitely like you have made up, you like make that up about what you think about who's the recruiter. It's so funny too, cause I think some people like lied on whether or not they were recruited cause like being recruited was like a bad word back in the day. Like it was a bad thing if you were recruited for the show.

And so people weren't even completely forthright on whether or not they applied. But even for the people who did apply, I think it may have just been people who got through who were interested in being on the platform of Survivor, but not necessarily super in love with the game of Survivor. I do not get the sense that Chrissy is one of those people.

No Chrissy applying for 16 years, you know, I went back and I watched a few episodes. I watched her as you did also telling you watch our her confessional compilation on YouTube, which is very great. You know, she she says in a few confessionals over the course of the season, every year for 16 years, she was trying to get on the island. What does it mean for you? Do you think if you can put yourself in Christian's shoes, she's trying for now for 16 years and now, you know, almost 10 years after that she's back? She's

doing it again? Yeah, I cannot. First of all, I can't imagine the only thing I know because I, well, I applied. I essentially, when I got the call to talk in person, I made it all the way through casting and on the show. So I applied one year, just got the written thing back, never heard from anybody, applied again a year later, and then made it on the show. So I was very lucky that my timing worked out. And so I cannot imagine what it would be like

except for Brendan Shapiro from our season is very much the same as Chrissy had applied that many years finally gets to go out there. The pressure of that first and foremost I think would be beyond like if the dream had been for so long I think the pressure would feel higher for people who had applied that many times and tried to get through so many times and then she did it and then she had this massive experience did so well on her first season. I would think that if I were Chrissy, like the dream would have never died for how far she made it for how long she

applied, she finally made it on how close she was how the end of HHH blah blah blah ended. I bet she has always kind of felt that, not that, when I talked to her on Road to Reality, I think she felt like she had a really great experience, but I did get the sense that there were some things that were left to be determined, and so I imagine that she feels like

she has these final loose ends that she'd really like to tie up this trip back. What's so interesting is the whole season 50 casting process has been now for what, nine months. And Chrissy was never on my radar to come back. Like it was a passing thought. You know, if she felt like one of the folks who, you know, there's the class of people from season 35, including your season, to 39, where they kind of missed the boat in terms of returning season as 40 is all winners.

But then Jeff starts doing interviews. He's on a press tour season 48. He's mentioned in season 50 and he keeps bringing up Chrissy. Really? He came up in three interviews. Fill me in on the tea. In one of the interviews that I'm remembering, he's doing a somebody's handing him like no cards and asking survivor questions.

And I think the fire making challenge came up. And then he's like, yeah, Chrissy's like, Chrissy's still mad at me for this or something. I'm getting the quote wrong. But he mentions that like, like they've recently had a conversation. And then I'm like, Oh my God, I guess they're calling Chrissy. And when you think about Chrissy's archetype, there wasn't anybody that I had super thought was getting that call. So it doesn't make sense. The Chrissy's there. but I'm thrilled that Chrissy gets another shot to play Survivor. Because Chrissy's unlike really, I think anybody that's played Survivor in the last 10 or 15 years where, you know, you have a Cass who goes in and Cass is, you know, pitched as the mom

and then Cass is super lethal. And there's a, there's, I don't know what it is. And I'm curious to hear your thoughts in like, Cass and Chrissy are different. There's a different way that they go about like their lethalness, but I don't know what that is. Do you know what that is? Let me think through this here. I think that think through this here. I think that they're equally calculated.

In their strategy, in their strategy, equally in their they're equally calculated in probably like, in their profession, like their professional women, corporate women, they come in, they seem equally calculated. I think that Cass, maybe in her, as things get hungrier and things get more out of control, I think Cass probably unwound into more emotional than Chrissy did, actually, even though maybe some people would think that Cass comes across as harder and more direct. Chrissy, to me, as time went on, she really kept her shit together. She really stayed in when things weren't going her way. I just watched like the replay of all of her confessionals. Like there are many things

going wrong and stacked against her. And I saw her stay in curiosity and like understanding that things are people relationships versus Cass really wants to crunch the numbers harder. And I think Chrissy wants to get closer to people and understand them better. So Chrissy's drive to be able to understand people to get her strategy complete seems a little bit further than maybe Cass is going to crunch the numbers. I don't know what's your take on that?

No, I agree with all of that. And it's like it's a testament to Chrissy. They're like Chrissy enters on her tribe of heroes. You know how actuaries and everybody's a hero, a firefighter, an actuary, a lifeguard, Alan Ball. Like everybody's a hero, which is awesome. She enters that tribe, she is not feeling great, ends up on the top of that tribe before the swap. She gets out of swap tribe, she's at the bottom, she's at the top of the swap at the merge. Enters the merge at the bottom,

and then leaves the game really in one of the top positions and kind of masterminds herself around until like mid game. It becomes kind of a chase to get out until like mid game, you know, it becomes kind of a chase to get out Ben and then Ben has an idol every round. You know, this is not, you know, this is, this is a season that I feel like I know the least about. I don't and I don't know why that is because I was so engaged on ghost Island. I was so engaged in diverse life, even game changers, I can kind of, you know, get my way around and I don't know what it was about heroes, healers, hustlers, maybe it's the name,

during the season where I just felt a little bit more disengaged. But going back and revisiting, it's so interesting to see this person who I think will fit in with new era survivor in a way that the, like more so than the old era survivor. Oh, thousand percent. Like even more, I think even more so

than the pace of the game for Colby, Suri, these folks who coach like, which are interesting. I mean, I don't know about Ozzy, but she definitely has the capacity. Like when you hear her speak in confessionals, it is a very new era coded. Moving people around, playing it like a game of chess, seeing what's going to happen, thinking steps. I think she even says like, I'm partnering with Ben because he has more of a social, has more social pull than I do and he's more charming. And I can see the game multiple steps ahead, which is very to me new era coded. Also, side note, I think Chrissy's self-awareness was off the charts in her first round of play. And I think that's

going to help her out a lot in season 50 as well. Well, people, people, Kellan, and I know you've seen this on Twitter, people call new era survivor like corporate survivor. Everybody's giving corporate. And I think Chrissy's giving corporate. I think Chrissy fits in. Chrissy's corporate. Um, Chrissy's giving corporate because she is literally corporate. Um think Christy is corporate. Christy is corporate. Christy is given corporate because she is literally corporate. She operates herself in a way that is very much like, you know, somebody higher up at your, you know, at your company who then wants to, they want to own the company. And that is how they kind of go about those stages. Whereas- She literally wrote a book, which is actually very, very good called Winning Conditions. How to survive, how to get the best out of what your best is and how to carry yourself in the world to create winning

conditions to climb the ladder to get what you want to create the business you want to win the interview you want. It's a great read. I love it. And I really hate most corporate books. I think it's a good mix of that. So yeah, I think that makes sense and yes, I agree that of the old schoolers, if us 30s are now considered or whatever we call new era, whatever you consider, it's like old school, new school. New school. Yeah. Of us new schoolers, I think she has a very good chance of crossing the boundary into new era play. I think she has a very good chance of crossing the boundary into new era play. You know, it's funny.

We I just recorded an episode early. Kelly, now Bandit and I talked about D and Julie Alley, who is, you know, Julie Alley and Chrissy know each other, have communicated, are friendly. And, you know, on paper, D really likes to tag in with that archetype. And if they're on a tribe together, that sounds pretty good. I can see the natural kind of going against each other. I'm sorry, going with each other.

Oh yeah, I was like, I don't know. I can see D and Chrissy really pairing up, so. I'm curious who you think Chrissy will not get along with. Is there anybody that jumps out to you on the list that is like, maybe not? Honestly, I think and this is why I love Chrissy for this, this season is I think Chrissy is able to withstand any relationship to get what she wants. I think she is really good at playing the game of you know how when you're in a boardroom or you're in a meeting or whatever you're

in an interview and you're like I guess corporate but like you have that veil of oh my gosh yes absolutely I love that love that. Oh, you like to sail, I like to sail too. Like this willingness to be a chameleon, to meet people where they are, I think puts Chrissy in a great position to go far in this game again. I don't think there is anyone that is going to annoy Chrissy out of her strategy. You put Kellen on the beach with Coach, I get annoyed out of my strategy, right? If you put Kellen, just, if you put me out there

with certain people, I am annoyed out of my ability to stay in control and stay strategic. I don't think Chrissy's moving in that sense. So I don't know that there is one person who Chrissy cannot be willing to chameleon into working with. I think that puts her in a potential space to control the group of outsiders if there are any on this season. Yeah. Can I ask you, you don't have to name the name, But did you feel annoyed on Ghost Island? Did people like annoy you? Oh, yes, I think they're very open.

Chris Noble annoyed me very much. Oh, sure. Dom very much annoyed me on. I had to call and apologize to Dom for the last podcast I did because I just I was mean and I don't want to be mean about Dom. Dom is my closest friend. He's the best. He's the best guy. So I love Dom. He annoyed me out there for sure. Definitely Chris Noble. I think that's it. I think it was those two. I mean and like Chris Noble too. I mean Chris Noble patted me on the

head and just he his favorite. He if if women didn't have to work we wouldn't need takeout restaurants. Hooters is his favorite restaurant because he doesn didn't have to work we wouldn't need takeout restaurants Hooters is his favorite restaurant because he doesn't only just want to eat the wings I mean these kinds of things did not go well did not work well with me Looking back going with Chris Noble and not being annoyed out of my strategic lane would have put me in a greater Spot in Ghost Island there was you know at the earliest point for me to defect from the Navidie strong thing would have been to go with the Chris Noble contingency. No way. I was annoyed out of that. I do not think I think Chrissy Hoffbeck of all people, especially I think of all people not gendered, is in the best place to not be bothered by those

sorts of things if there are any. I think anybody who's in that corporate line of work like Chrissy is like can you know take feedback and I think that in her first season I mean she gets to the final three and I think that there is this you know if you read exit press and you follow the story like if she's at the final three and Ben isn't there I don't think that she wins. I think it's tight, but I still don't think she wins. It seems like from what everything I've read, it might be debit. But in every exit press that you can read, which some of them from that jury, not super

nice to Chrissy. I think that that is feedback that she is taking. Because if you're in a professional field- What does it say in the, can you give me a, for lack of better, like, I mean, can you give me the highlights of what the negative press was on her? Like, what was her cast saying about her in that exit press? And again, I don't want to get anything super incorrect, but I believe there was some sentiment that the women of that group weren't super thrilled with how they felt like they were being communicated with by Chrissy.

Which I don't think, you know, that is, and again, it's not my place to say, of course. I don't know if that's something that is inherently Chrissy's personality or that is situational. That might be something that is something that, you know, if you have nine years to reply. So they didn't like her, ultimately, right? They didn't like her ultimately, right? They didn't like her. They didn't feel like they liked her. I mean, I always say that Survivor is a likeability contest.

We can go into all these ifs, what's wherefores. Ultimately, the person who wins Survivor is the person who people like the most, and that, I would say, is across the board. Sometimes we look back and we think, how was that person the person that they liked the most, right? How was that? But in the moment when they cast the vote and write down a name for a million dollars, no one is giving that money to somebody that they, I mean, 99% of people are not giving money to the people that they don't like. So here's, here's the thing with Chrissy looking back, and this is more of a societal like discussion, I think, but in looking back and

seeing Chrissy's all of her confessionals in one spot, one after the other, the way she talks about people, and the way they show her some of the interactions with people is very masculine, very direct, very clear, very masculine in nature. And so while she is a chameleon, she is not a, oh, I'm gonna fold and do you like me and she's not someone who's out there trying to like get giggles and you know, gifts. That is not what Chrissy does. Chrissy was there

and I think she genuinely cares about people, but I don't think that she was doing a very good job of playing the game of life as far as friendship and that sort of thing. Now, ultimately, do you have to have that to get a million dollars in a first season? Yeah, probably. Now we see Tony, he was kind of an abnormal win first time around, second time around. Nobody is seeing Tony as like a, oh, give me hugs and I love him and he's so sweet, right? I think in these returning seasons,

there's more of a space to be rewarded for your survivor play and not just for being somebody who is trying to make everyone feel loved and liked. And so I think that puts Chrissy in a better position the second time around as she goes through and is more, I, and she doesn't, you know, in a world like, can we just leave gender behind? Absolutely. But in this like energetic things that are masculine energy and feminine energy. Like, I just do not see her as someone who is like flipping her hair and blinking her eyelashes and like,

oh my god, we should go shopping and get our nails done after this. And sometimes we wouldn't like that in women. And so I do think she has that mountain to overcome where she is not going to present like a traditional girl's girl and uh but when you look at the women who are on this cast i don't think it's a group of women who demand a girly girl and so i think that will be fun to watch Chrissy and the other women on this season play out when they don't have to be in that trope of girly girl. Yeah, it's interesting. And I wonder if that also like the casting at the time, you know, I think about like Trey Plutnicki who was on the squid game

and then he goes and does the show Battle Camp, which is on Netflix. And Trey was kind of, I want to outcast it as maybe the wrong word, but he's the only one playing with like high level strategy on this game of people from Netflix shows where there is no strategy entailed. Not to say the people in here as Halo's Hustlers did not have strategy.

However, I think Chrissy was maybe operating, playing the genius while everybody is playing Survivor, which sometimes doesn't, sometimes it works. But I think sometimes you get a group that is more on a different wavelength. But good news for Chrissy is that she's now on a group where everybody wants to win. And I think that there's the theme of doing these podcasts is there so many egos that are going into this. And I think that with work like Chrissy can kind of, you know, backseat hers a little bit, because she knows that she's

smart because she is right. She knows that she can is capable of maneuvering votes because she can and did but there's so many egos that are going into the season that I don't think wanna put that in the backseat because they view this as like you know their time whereas you know I think a great survivor skill to have is to be able to backseat and let somebody else drive a vote or let somebody else make that decision because, you know, in two rounds you're safe and you can make that decision. Whereas she does seem like she has an ability to pace, maybe for sure ability to pace can control her ego in this mountain of egos.

Yes. Oh my God. Um, ego is not good to have in survivor. I think. can control her ego in this mountain of egos. Yes. Oh, my God. Ego is not good to have and survivor, I think. I think that the lack of ego. I just talked about Mike White, which hasn't come out yet. Spoilers. We're going to be talking about Mike White in a couple of days. And I think Mike White coming in multimillionaire, coming in

successful writer, coming in, you know, with a esteemed career, shows up on this Goliath beach and is kind of just, you know, making jokes aboutemed career shows up on this Goliath beach and it's kind of just, you know, making jokes about it. Like, like he in his Emmy speech, he talks about how he wants to lower his threat level in Hollywood because he wants to keep playing. If you will, he likens his creating of a show to Survivor. And he's like, I want to I want to keep doing this. I don't want to be the biggest.

I just want to keep playing. And I think that having that skill is necessary when you're in a group of 23 people who, and you know this, Kellen, is like, there's 700 people they could have picked for season 15, you know what I mean? And it's like, we picked 24 of them. And I think your older era, your Colby's, your Stephanie's, you're like, oh, this is my time. Whereas everybody thinks it's their time. But it's like, you know, people are shot out of a cannon because they get so in their head of like, oh, this is it. And Chrissy can sit back and watch it happen. Yeah, I think she has a very, I mean, an actuary, right? I've never been an actuary, but I think

that it's taking in all of the data pieces like from a 360 degree view and really having a realistic expectation for where you are, how people, maybe not how people are seeing you from a social standpoint, but like where you sit in the pecking order. And yeah, I just think Chrissy's in a great spot here. I had a really hard time choosing between a Genevieve win or Chrissy win. I did ultimately make Genevieve my winner pick, but Chrissy was right up there with me, especially because like you said, you didn't think about her being on the I definitely did because all of the people

who I would have brought back if I got to choose my returning season would be so many people in those 30s because that's when obviously that's when I was in high school, you know not literal high school. That's like when I was in high school, you know, not literal high school. It was like when I was in survivor school, that was my crew. So I definitely had Chrissy top of mind, but to me, it's like Chrissy and Dom, were the two, the number one guy and gal

that I would have wanted to see back. So it's just gonna be really interesting to see how it plays out. And the likability factor is totally different in this returning season. Like you've so eloquently pointed out. Where's Dom in this group? I'm just having the thought now, where's he at?

I mean, Dom is living a beautiful life with his amazing kids and wife and he's just doing the most beautiful backyard pool I think I've ever seen. It's like an oasis. Like Dom's is lifing and the Abbate family is gorgeous and fantastic and doing all the things. Why he is not at the top of this list, admittedly I am biased, but to literally be the closest to have never won.

The closest. Do not win. Like, how did he not get this season 50 slot? I do not know. I think it's a total miss. He's great TV. He's hilarious. He's strategic. He has an ability to make friends with a lot of people

and to also rub some people the wrong way, even though he's a great guy. And so, I don't know, I can't believe it. They totally missed the mark here. It's, you know, he's one of the only people that I've met in person that I feel like has an aura. Like there's like, there's like, and it's not that he's like gaming per se,

but he just, he carries such a presence where in like, I, like your high school, like I say about the new era, like every new era person's like somebody you went to high school with is just like, we're all seeing each other, whatever. But Dom just feels so survivor to me. He feels like a guy who should be, if I just saw him on the street, I would be like, oh my God, you gotta go and survive.

Like he has that about him. Is there anybody else that you were shocked is not here on this cast? Let me think. I don't, I mean, I don't think, honestly, I just thought he was, I just thought he has been a lock this whole time. No, I'll have to, I have to come back, sorry.

I don't have anyone off the top of my head other than him. Listen, I am excited as Chrissy is now returning for the option that we all voted on, to not have the fire making anymore, which I think maybe that's why Jeff brought her up in that interview. But I do think the fire making controversy that ultimately like, you know, brings Ben to the end and Ben wins over Chrissy, whatever. Like, I think that's great for Chrissy.

I think that's a great story to set up Chrissy's next time. Whereas if there's not that and they vote off Ben and then Chrissy goes to the end and Chrissy does lose, I don't think it's that same story or that same fire, for lack of a better word, in Chrissy to then go back. 35 was the first time they did it, right? It was the first time they did it. And Chrissy wins the immunity that then reveals an hour before tribal council.

You're going to make fire, which is still bad. You hate that. You I know we all hate that. Right. You're not. Yeah, I mean, I yeah, we found so we would have found out about it that it happened, right, because they would have just finished that season. We come into Fiji. Jeff is telling us how it's going to go down. So that's how we learned about fire making was at Ponderosa. We learned before the game started that it was going to happen and that they had done that in the season. Well, I don't even think they

told us that they had done that in the season before. Maybe they did, I forget. How much of the merge strategy was then dictated by that final four? Was that top of mind for everybody? I don't think so. I don't think so. I mean, maybe Dom and Wendell who were actually like playing and winning the game. Um, I mean, some of it, we talked about it somewhat, but I didn't make it that far. Let's just say it from it that way. I really thought this is something that I've said to now all my friends when the, when the first initial calls went out for survivor 50.

Um, and again, I'm not I'm not saying anything that isn't public knowledge of like, I know people who got the call who were there. I thought for a long time it was a duo's season of Survivor. I thought they were calling dynamic duo's. It's not heroes versus villains. It's not all winners, but it's a fun thing for 50. And Dom and Wendell would have been would have been back out there. One of the most famous ones. Oh yeah, I mean, I think Wendell's had his time, right?

Maybe, but that would have been fun, dynamic it was. I really thought it for a while. I was bummed that that wasn't it. But we got a great theme, right? This theme's cool that we got. It's just everybody, everybody's here. right? This theme is cool that we got is just everybody. Everybody's here.

Uh, I, I don't really love the, I feel like the theme is missing. I feel like there were so many options to go with. Like you said, dynamic duos. I feel like there could have been pre-merge, merge, final tribal. I feel like there could have been, um, new era, old school, new school, new era. I think there could have been so many cool old school new school new era i think there could have been so many cool ways to like set this up from a place that really encompassed out loud what the theme of it i mean take it back to heroes healers hustlers right like in some ways we don't like to say it but you can remember who was on a starting tribe and who the new era, I'm sorry, but I can barely

remember come the merge who was on what tribe because it's just a color and a random name. And so I think going back to that era, that time of it is these people versus these people versus these people, first boots or whatever first boots versus, you know, last out first out versus last. I mean, there's so many ways we could have brought in the game of Survivor. So I would give this an F on the thing. I feel like the votes with the hands of the fans was like, OK, we can talk about it. But who really cares? So I'm pretty Debbie Downer on the way it all sorted out, just because there was so much gold

that could have happened that got left on the way it all sorted out just because there was so much gold that could have happened that got left on the table. I think yeah, my and again, you've heard me muse about this if you're listening for for many, many weeks, but the the the voting in the hands of the fans is like, I wanted to write in voting. Like, let me let me like tell you what we want. Like I said this on Tyson's recap podcast, which is like if you know you have all these people across the country across the world who are watching the show who are like, oh I have an idea for an advantage that would be fun. Like let me let me write it in. Let me

tell somebody you know and let's see you know this guy he's an accountant and he lives in Des Moines. Like let's see his advantage that he thought of. Yeah wouldn't Chris from Des Moines think about what this idol could do or whatever. I mean I I still like, I don't love that stuff. So I, but yes, I would prefer that over rights or no rights or which immunity necklace are we going to use and blah, blah, blah. You have done the road to reality podcast on the Rob is a podcast network for a couple of seasons, wherein you've heard now so many stories of folks who are almost on an all-star season and then they get clipped at the last second or they end

up on the all-star season and then it doesn't go great. What do you think the all-star season represents for everybody who's played Survivor? Oh my gosh, wow. It's really interesting because it has been so long, right? It's been, please correct me if I'm wrong. Sometimes I feel like I don't even know anything about Survivor. We had season 40 and now season 50 and there were no repeats in between. Yeah, we had Bruce on my show who was out first and then Bruce.

But otherwise, the Bruce exception. Is that it? So that is such a long stretch, which really changed the ball game in its own way. I can speak to it in the 30s, which is when there were returning seasons, every couple cycles, and people going back and I was in the midst of that. I was in the midst of getting calls. I got calls for 38. Right 38 had a couple of returnees. Yes. Yes. So I got calls for 38, right? 38 had a couple of returnees. Yes.

Yes. So I got called for 38 and 40 before it was all winners, obviously. So in that time when all you can, every single person who gets out of Sorever, at least I can say for Ghost Island and many, many, many, many people have talked to since. At that time, it was you get voted off, you get your torch snuffed, you go to Ponderosa and immediately you're like, Jeff said this at Tribal, Matt

said this afterwards, like this I'm going to get to play again because XYZ. Like that is everyone's addiction. There's a few exceptions but 75% of people are playing out the scenarios of how do I get back on that island and get it. I mean it is so strong. The pull is so strong and because it was happening every few seasons it really felt like there was a ton of chance for you to go back in so many slots. I think that probably wore off over the last five years as the returnee seasons weren't, but the moment that things picked up with returnees started to get calls, it set fire. And thankfully, I am in a place where I understood that that was not going to be me. And so that really allowed me to take a step back and I wasn't in the mix.

But I heard secondhand from a lot of people and a lot of my friends who were in the mix. So the first rumor goes out, the first round of calls go out in the first week and it is like putting gasoline on a fire and everyone was calling each other. No one's calling me. I'm like pretty open about the fact that I'm out of the loop there. So it's not me. I get to witness this and it just turns people into crazy. Scarcity mindset. The lines are blurred between are people calling me because they want to be my friend or people calling me because they're pre-gaming or people in casting or they're not in casting. It brings the game from the island into real life for people and that really sucks in a lot of ways, I think, for people because especially new people come home, they were on seasons,

they did well, they didn't do well, and somebody from 46 is calling and somebody from 44 is calling and they're acting like they want to be your friend, but really they're just and maybe part of it is, you know, it's always a blurred line and you know this. Part of it is wanting human connection, part of it is wanting to build friendships and community. But then there was always this underlying thing for me in the 30s of like, are people just calling me because they're wondering if I'm in casting and if I'm gonna take their spot.

And that proved to be true for me and for many, many people. And I think that for a lot of people was extra painful over the last year in casting. Tell me about the 38 calls. You get home from 36. Is it right after you get home or do you have a couple months to breathe and then they call back and they say, hey, you know, I had a couple months to breathe. But because I got back in July and my season didn't air until February, the calls came

in between playing and airing. Oh, and that's weird because that's not the case for most people. I mean, for the 48 people, if they got called in in August, I guess that's the case. And even folks in 47. Yeah. How is that? How do you grapple with the call when you haven't even known how you're going to be portrayed? You've said you've listened to Road to Reality. And so we talk about on Road to Reality. If anyone hasn't listened yet, Road to Reality is a show where I talk to people who are on Survivor about the experience of being on Survivor before, during, and after. Not necessarily a bunch of game talk, although sometimes that comes

up, but about being a human who was on Survivor and going through casting in reality TV. To get the call, your question was, what's it like to get the call when your season hasn't aired yet? Yeah, like you're in it. You're in the Survivor. Like my body hasn't fully recovered yet. I have no idea what's going to happen. I'm traveling around with people from my cast. I'm completely offline from the real world and I am in Survivor Mindset. And then here I am getting a call from casting again. And it just is really keeping the delusional parts of myself really going.

It's like you're feeding the drug. You're doing lots of hits of the survivor drug when you're in casting before your first season has even aired yet. Yeah, it's a weird thing. And I'm so intrigued on the folks who have now had like 20 years to think about it and to manifest over it. You've got Chrissy, who's got nine years. You've got these people from 49 kill.

They got back a week ago and they got back on the plane it was they didn't clean the plane yet they didn't do the vacuum on the plane it's not what we've realized because that's happened to a few people uh like Michaela Aubrey Zeke right there are a few people who have played immediately and I think it's all of them have publicly spoken about how screwed up that was and how hard it was all of them have publicly spoken about how screwed up that was and how hard it was for them physically and mentally. I guess if you're gonna do it all get it all over done and get it all done at once but I don't know how deep the the scars go. I'm sure just it just depends. I mean for

the people who haven't seen themselves play the first time and then they're going out and doing again and then they have to go through, for me, the most traumatic part of Survivor was the post Survivor experience. To have to do that twice after being out there twice. It's like I cannot express in words how unsettling and traumatic that would be for a person. FanDuel Casino's exclusive Live Dealer Studio has your chance at the number one feeling, would be for a person. Vanduul Casino, where winning is undefeated. 19 plus and physically located in Ontario. Gambling problem? Call 1-866-531-2600 or visit connexontario.ca.

Please play responsibly. I mean, even if you go out early, speaking from experience, there is still a lot to process. And you would have to imagine the folks who are going back on this next season, they've done okay. Like they probably were not the first or second out. They have to experience that processing two different times. You know, it's having two separate, and we use traumatic,

Survivor is traumatic for many people. We use traumatic, like, you know, two separate traumatic experiences within the span of two months is is is tough for anybody. And I do wonder how that will manifest those people also. And I've said it now a couple times on this podcast, they always do well on that second season. They're never the first thought to go out. Just because of I guess the egos of it all everybody wants to gun for each other. And there are extra votes that can be used as such. I think Zeke is the lowest placing back to back person

at 10th place out of 20. And then everybody is, you know, fourth member or the jury or better, which is pretty good odds. But something that I think the meta has caught up. And I think there are people on the island now who know that. And that might be a reason why somebody gets sniped. Yeah, I get that.

I was going to say my instinct when you're saying that is one of these two people is going to be early to go early boot this time. It they're not going to win. I would bet my life that neither of these people are going to win season 50. And honestly for their mental health, I think the earlier they get out, the better, but you know, what do I know? I'm not a therapist. So it'll be interesting to see how they fit in

with the whole group, especially since there's lots of this like old, old, old school contingency and then all of the groups, but they will certainly be outcasts because even the 48 people will have been able to see their season, right? Yes. Yes.

So they're the only two that have not seen themselves on the show. It's gonna put them at a disadvantage this time around. What is your, you play 36, Chrissy is 35. What is your relationship with Chrissy as it's airing or in the years after? Yeah, so I didn't meet Chrissy until later, a year later, after both of our seasons have aired,

we were at a fundraiser for Give Kids the World in Florida. I think she's, everyone should go listen to her Road to Reality episode with me. She was the first episode and it is a killer interview if I do say so myself. Like you think you know Chrissy? I thought I knew Chrissy cause I'd watched her season. We were literally out on the island back to back seasons.

We were in the thick of it together. And I learned so much about her life, about what she has gone and done, sneaking into Cuba, I think, if I remember correctly, all sorts of things going on in Chrissy's life. She has lived a life of adventure and also like kind of a quote unquote traditional corporate actuary motherhood life. And so to see the span of Chrissy's experience in her life and what Survivor, And so to see the span of Chrissy's experience in her life and what Survivor, how it played in the midst of it, but Survivor is one amazing thing that Chrissy Hoffbeck has done in her life. There are many. I think that's true for all of us in some ways, but hers are like literally,

literal, like big adventurers. And so her insatiable desire for creating adventure, even in a pretty stable life, is so fascinating to me, that dichotomy. My relationship with Chrissy has always been extremely friendly. I feel like I could call her if I needed something. I had to reach out to her when Road to Reality didn't exist yet, when I was in,

she didn't know what it was, what it was about, and she used her very precious time to come and speak with me to tell her story be open to this community to talk about her childhood talk about growing up everything and so that is my experience of Chrissy. Open, giving, kind, gracious, a good listener, checks in with me, is kind person, so I have always had very positive experiences with Chrissy. She is coming into season 50. And there are multiple people, like you have Aubrey, who has now become a mom. We have Angelina, who I think has also become a mom. But Chrissy has faced a unique set of health challenges in the past couple years.

I think since post-COVID maybe, so relatively recent. How do you think that is going to shape her season 50 appearance? Not even strategically, just like from a story perspective. How do you think that plays for her? Yeah, from a story perspective. So in her episode of Roach Reality, she talks a lot about how she used to live her life. Like a lot of us, and I still am guilty of this sometimes, like what's the next thing? Oh, once it's summertime, then X. Or, I can't have to work these next few weeks, but on the next vacation, like kind of waiting for the next big thing. Literally going on Survivor is the next biggest thing in Chrissy's life.

And what she realized while she was out there, I can totally relate to this, was being in the present moment and appreciating where you are and loving yourself in the midst of it, in the present moment is what life is all about. And so since Survivor was the first time that Chrissy kind of stopped skipping ahead constantly in her life, she was like, wait a second, the moment is now, I am winning these immunity challenges

now, I am a badass now, I don't need to accomplish something else to arrive to a new place. Living is now in the present moment. And then that played into her life between 2017 when we played Survivor. She would have played and aired in 2017 to now. We're talking eight years later. She's been living more in the present through her breast cancer diagnosis and recovery. Now she has really, really, really, from my understanding, taken life for what it is right now and living experience wholly. And so I wonder if that presence going into the game, knowing she wants to stay present, keeping eyes wide open, appreciating the whole experience will give her an opportunity to not be trying to play a thousand steps ahead, not only strategically, but letting

herself really appreciate the experience. And that might turn on the side of her that connects to other human beings in the present moment. And that may course correct naturally the lack of kind of social connection that we think she had in her first trip. So I think it all might perfectly come together for her here starting out appreciating the present moment and that is where you find other people and that's where you build connections. And as some of you know the most important thing to me is for when people go on survivor that they have an experience

where they get to know themselves and to love themselves for however it goes. Whether you're the first one out, whether you're the hero, whether you wish you would have done things differently. How can you love yourself even more? And with Chrissy starting out in the present moment, loving herself more, loving others more, and building out that full 360 degree experience with her eyes wide open. Ysera has, I forget if it's heroes or civilians or game changers, but she has a confessional where she's like, I've been here before, like I've done this, I just want to have fun this time.

And I think that is like so often not the perspective that people go into these All-Star seasons with, where it then becomes like wanting to win, which I understand why when you get close and you're, you know, whatever, I understand that vengeance feels like there's like a derogatory connotation with it. But like, there's this, there's this air of like, it needs to work out, it needs to be done correctly. But I feel like, and granted, Ceres, both of those times didn't ultimately end in a win. But I think that air of like, just taking it in,

just being there and taking it in, because really odds are on one of these returning seasons, 20 out of 24 of the people are not just taking it in. And I feel like that gives you a like up when there are people who are running a thousand scenarios a minute. If you can be that cool head in the room to be like, or there's no rooms on Survivor. Contrary to popular belief, it's all one room. It's outside.

But if you're the cool head in the area that's like, let's just, you know, one step at a time here and having that perspective, I think is infinitely valuable over somebody who is just laser focused on first place. Because really, you know, they say it in every Survivor podcast, but only one person is going to get it. Only one of 24 people in this rapid crap shoot of a game. And just to sum up, I think what you just said, which is so key, the people who are coming in focused on the past, trying to correct that in a future outcome are going to be behind the people who are experiencing it in the now. And correct me where I'm wrong, Chrissy is really set up because of her first time, because of how

her life has been in the last five years, because of her perspective to play the game hour by hour, which I think is what you have to do now, and not trying to correct the past with the future, just being in the now. And that is why she could really take this whole thing. Well I had a funny observation about Chrissy just a couple hours ago I was you know taking my notes as I do and I went on her Instagram and in her Instagram bio if you're listening to this go look at it she can't change it she's in Fiji it says runner-up is not my destiny with the little sparkles that's in there it's survivor 35 castaway runner-up is not my destiny what do you think her destiny is, Callen?

What's the destiny on Survivor 50? Oh, golly gee. You know, in re-watching her first show and really thinking about her a lot, knowing I was gonna come in and do this today, like I'm just really, really rooting for her to have a complete experience, whatever that means for her.

Wow. I like that a lot. That's a great, that's, you know, that's all you can ask for. I mean, even my friends that are there, I just, I want them to come home and they had a great time and it was fun. You know, I hope that everyone gets along and these are the things like after you play a place forever, right? It's like, I hope Ponderosa is good.

If they're going on a pre-dre trip, I hope people are celebratory. Like Jeff said, they wanted it to be. I hope everybody is kind to each other and has a really good bonding experience and that this is a way for people to heal through trip two instead of just reopen wounds and make new ones. But as you and I know, the chances of that.

That's not going to happen. That's not going to happen. But for Chrissy, I really hope it does. I'm going to show you the graphic for everybody who's playing Sorry 50. Anybody here that you have any kind of personal anecdote or relationship with other than Chrissy? So I'm trying to think about who I have even met in person.

Angelina, I love Angelina. I was able to have brunch with her and I have been a huge Angelina fan. It's really interesting because I feel like she and I, while our lives are very different, she's a mom, she's opening up a studio. Actually, I am using her Joy Babe Studio.

Sember Studios was the branding agency that did Joy Babe. They are now doing the OutBeyond, so we share a branding agency. My stuff hasn't come out yet. Don't judge Sember on my work. So Angelina and I are connected that way. I often play Blood on the Clock Tower with Christian. And let's see, have I met, or Emily also, Blood on the Clock Tower with Christian. And let's see, have I met, or Emily also,

Blood on the Clock Tower, I'm hoping there's a Blood on the Clock Tower alliance happening out there. There certainly will be, from everything I've heard. That seems like it's locked in, those two. No, oh my gosh, Q, I have met Q two or three times and every time we meet, he calls me Claire. And so I give him shit for that all the time. He's always like, Claire, Claire, why are you that?

Actually, I went to play Traders, a really amazing home game. If anyone ever wants to play Traders, follow me on Instagram and message me there at VKellenB because I have access and I'm gonna be on the production team for next season's Traders. So freaking cool.

This is a live game? It's a live game. I wanna do that. Where is that? It's in the Catoctin Mountains in Maryland. And Baltazar is the guy who runs it. And it was such a integrity run game, like so good. I had the time, I can talk about it afterwards. Um but anyway, I went in to play Traders. This

is where my hair turned pink because I decided to go play Traders this live game as someone else not as Kellen who had played Survivor and I use the name Claire. I told everyone my name was Claire inspired by Q because that's what he's like. You just look so much like a Claire. So I do know Q from that. I think Q is hilarious in person. It will be just interesting.

I can see Q going out in every single place. And that's it. I will say there's a couple of people or just one specific person that isn't my cup of tea. And then most people I do not know. So. Can I hear who isn't my cup of tea. And then most people I do not know. So. Can I hear who's not your cup of tea?

You can hear after. Patreon, I'm kidding, it's not on Patreon. Venmo me $1,000 and YouTube can know. How did Claire do on the traders? So I was a trader starting from the beginning and there were, oh my god, now I forget how many of us started, 20 or 22. There were three traders and I made it to sixth as a trader.

How much of your survivor strategy was implemented in traders? Is there anything you picked up there that translates? First of all, playing traders is a thousand times harder than playing survivor. That's what they're saying. Everybody's saying it. Oh my God. I didn't know that people were saying it, but it is so hard. The level of stress that was in there, first of all, to be pretending I'm someone else all together and just lying, lying, lying. It it is one thing to play Survivor. You don't have to lie about a bunch of stuff.

When you are playing traders, you have to, you're just always lying, right? Did I use any strategy? I mean, I think I'm a social person. I think I ask people about that. I think I was actually hindered a little bit in my ability to connect with people because I do do that so

genuinely usually and did while playing Survivor that because I was lying about who I was that just put me on edge. So I think that I had to hold back my number one skill for playing Survivor, which is true human connection. This will be the first time in a long time that nobody on Survivor can lie about details about their life because everybody knows each other. Whereas all these new era seasons, you got the lawyers who aren't actually lawyers. You got Sue, who's not, I don't know how she said she was 45. I believe Sue's not 45. Like this is, you know, clean slate for everybody.

No, I guess the 49 people theoretically could lie. But why would they? I don't think that I think that just handicaps them in a game that is not, you know, going to go their way to begin with. Yeah, probably it would be a lot. I would think You wouldn't need to lie because you're already an outcast You know, I don't think there's any like job thing or age thing that's going to put you out of the group when you're the 49 people going in here Is there anything come that you want to tell people going in here. Is there anything, Kellyn, that you wanna tell people

to check out other than Road to Reality? Definitely listen to Road to Reality. I get such, the people who take the time to listen to that really love it. So I'm biased, but I think that it is worth a listen. I am, what I do for work is I am a career coach, although I have transitioned to mostly working with people who are running their own business or freelancers, artists, coaches themselves,

people who are building a life outside of the system. And I love that work. You can check it out at the out beyond.com and I'm at the Kellenby on social media. I love to hear from people. Uh, no big, no big announcement other than just really excited for all of this survivor content that's coming out. Um, I just did a survivor, like 25 top 25 moments recap. If you haven't watched that with Mike Bloom, I was with Rachel who's a good friend of mine before Survivor. I knew Rachel before she got on the show. Um remains a very very good friend to this day and Omer who I also somebody who I would have loved to see on 50. Omer uh hilarious. Oh my

god hilarious person. How did you know Rachel Lamont? Rachel and Lamont and I were in the same online poker league. Uh really? Oh that's so fun. Yeah so Rachel and Lamont and I were in the same online poker league. Really? Oh, that's so fun. Yeah, so Rachel and I knew that she did all of the casting and everything. I didn't even see her casting video, actually. I mean, I talked with her before casting

and before she played, certainly a lot. We did a lot of talking before, but she got on the show all on her own. And so Rachel's an amazing person and keep an eye out for what she has coming up around the corner. Super cool stuff going on in her world as well. So that's my pitch. Come follow me on social media. Check out the Out Beyond if you're somebody who wants to work outside the traditional nine to five. That's where to go instead. I think that's it.

I have a friend of mine who just messaged me about the OutBeyond and they are working with you and they said so many nice things. So if you are a business owner, go to the OutBeyond. Yeah, yeah, I think I have a inkling on who that is. Yes, I, yeah, no, no, no, I take confidentiality of my clients very seriously. But yeah, it's really fun.

I cannot believe that I get to do this work. Like this is my life to help people like take their skills, what they love to do. And they have this dream of like, hey, I love to do ex pottery, an executive recruiter, an accountant, a film, like a person who does film, an acupuncturist. And they're like, I love to do this thing.

And I don't think I know how to build a business. And if I go build a business, that's going to compromise what I want to do because business, business, business, business, business. And my desire is to help people realize that I do not believe that building your most successful life is hard. I actually believe that on the other side of the most easiest, most exciting, most curious things are where your success, financial success, like total life

satisfaction lies. And so that is what I'm doing with people, including your friend. And so yeah, that's what I get to do every day is to help people decide how to prioritize what they want to do and how to make money in a way that they love to get up every morning. And there's three years ago I left private equity and I cannot believe that I'm here. Feel so lucky to do it. Oh my God. Well, go check out the Alpion. I want to start a business.

You have me riled up to start a business. I'm in a rather business. I got to do a bit. I get me riled up to start a business, you know, I'm in Rob's business. I got to do my own thing. Thank you. Exactly. Everybody for listening to this episode of the survivor 50 files talking, Chrissy Opik. We will be back tomorrow for a new episode. Stay tuned. It'll be a good one. Thank you, everybody. Take care. Goodbye. Thank you to our friends at Mantis Sleep for sponsoring this episode of the

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