Survivor is one of those shows that is made great by the character of the players and the work of the editors.
A jury of booted players always chooses the winner, but sometimes the winner is a surprise even to production.
It’s up to the editors to craft a satisfying narrative based on the footage they have but still make sure the outcome isn’t too obvious. Thirty-nine days (or 26 in the last three seasons) yields a lot of material, so you’d think they’d always have enough to go on.
Not always. Sometimes, making the winner appear deserving seems impossible, so the players’ relationships and strategies are embellished or tossed aside in favor of an entertaining throughline. It hasn’t always worked.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for many seasons of Survivor.
Sandra Diaz-Twine – Survivor: Pearl Islands/Survivor Heroes vs. Villains
Sandra Diaz-Twine is the undisputed queen of Survivor. She is the first person to win twice and still the only woman to have done so. Diaz-Twine appeared on six seasons of Survivor — five in the US (four competitively, once as a mentor) and one as an “import” on Australian Survivor.
In Pearl Islands, Sandra was portrayed as a scrappy, astute, easygoing player, often sidelined in favor of big characters like Rupert Boneham and Jonny Fairplay. In her second outing, on Heroes vs. Villains amidst another cast of larger-than-life characters, Sandra once again faded into the background.
Sandra’s “as-long-as-it-isn’t-me” strategy helped her avoid the chopping block. After two under-the-radar wins, Sandra would forever have a target on her back as the two-time winner, and though she adapted her strategy well for subsequent outings, she never could recapture the magic of her first two games.
Vecepia Towery – Survivor: Marquesas
Vecepia Towery should be better known, full stop. She was not only the first Black winner of Survivor but the first Black winner of any American competitive reality show.
“Vee” was never the main focus of the season, thanks to the emergence of the man who would become a Survivor legend, “Boston” Rob Mariano.
Vecepia was thoughtful, quiet, and clever. Her moves never felt flashy, but she masterfully dodged vote after vote, even after she was made to switch tribes. She knew how to stay out of the drama and stealthily tiptoed her way to the end. It felt like Vecepia got sidelined in her own story.
Brian Heidik – Survivor: Thailand
“Mr. Freeze” played a strong, cutthroat game. His was the case of a villain dominating strategically and being rewarded for it, if only because he took someone even less likable than himself to Final Tribal Council with him (and, credit where it’s due, he was the first winner to do so).
Brian was the template for all future villains, and we’ve never seen a winner quite like him since (thank goodness!) There was no way for the edit to hide Brian’s ruthlessness, which showcased the merit of being a stone-cold, emotionless player.
Thailand was one of the darkest seasons and has featured very few returning players.
Jenna Morasca – Survivor: The Amazon
Survivor: The Amazon doesn’t hold up well at all in terms of political correctness, as it was the first “battle of the sexes” season. Much was made about the men and women and their dynamics, with the men being portrayed as manipulatable horndogs and the women as vapid eye candy.
Jenna and her tribemate/friend Heidi famously got naked for peanut butter at a challenge. Jenna was the youngest winner at the time and still the youngest female winner (at the time of winning).
A few clutch immunity wins took her to the end, and she wisely ousted her biggest threat for the million, Rob Cesternino, who had dominated the game strategically. Jenna was portrayed as an airheaded young swimsuit model who got lucky.
Had Jenna been shown with more agency, her win over Rob could have felt more triumphant and powerful instead of an unfair turn of events.
Amber Brkich Mariano – Survivor: All-Stars
Amber Brkich won not just Survivor but the heart of her fellow castaway, Boston Rob Mariano — who proposed before the winner was announced (the two are still together and have four children). Theirs was a showmance like no other.
However, Amber was considered much more passive, whereas Rob was made out to be the brains of the operation, even though Rob insists that Amber and he were equal partners in their strategy.
The fact that they got to the end as a pair would forever be an example for future showmances or any close pairs to play the game.
Amber was portrayed merely as the lesser of two evils and not a strategic mastermind in her own right. Considering she won the first returning player season ever, she deserves better. Both Marianos returned for Winners at War, with Amber being voted out as a way for the other winners to weaken Rob.
Aras Baskaukas – Survivor: Panama
Aras was the chill, friendly yoga instructor on the “younger men” tribe. His game was far from perfect, occasionally clumsy (literally and figuratively), though his best moves were in the allies he chose, namely one Survivor legend, Cirie Fields.
Aras was fairly subdued but always there, trying new things. His plans didn’t always work out, but he won immunity when needed, which was impressive, considering he was up against the much beloved (and heavily favored to win) Terry Deitz.
Aras cut himself badly on the final day and required seven stitches. The humility he incurred from the accident probably helped tip the scales in his favor against a more brash Danielle DiLorenzo, who had taken him to Final Tribal after she won the Final Immunity.
Aras’s win isn’t as unsatisfying as, say, Tommy or Gabler’s, but he made much more of an impact on his second outing in Blood vs. Water (Season 27) when he played with his brother, Vytas.
Danni Boatwright – Survivor: Guatemala
Danni Boatwright won Survivor: Guatemala against fan favorite Stephenie LaGrossa, who has returned along with Bobby Jon Drinkard from Survivor: Palau.
Danni was rumored to have avoided speaking to production and kept very reserved in her confessionals, which might have had something to do with her extremely muted edit.
Audiences felt they had no sense of who Danni was as a person or a player. Nonetheless, she was able to articulate her underdog story to the jury and took home the million over LaGrossa.
Danni gained lowkey legend status among diehard fans and returned for Winners At War, where she was unfortunately voted out third.
Bob Crowley – Survivor: Gabon
Bob Crowley had the good fortune to align with Sugar Kiper, who dominated the glorious dumpster fire that was Survivor Gabon while being ostracized by most of the other players. Bob reminded Sugar of her recently deceased father, and the two forged a comfortable bond.
Rumors swirled after the fact that Bob was allegedly inappropriate with some of the female contestants, but any evidence of that was left on the cutting room floor.
Bob was a kindly, older father figure, tough and clever (he won individual immunity three times and made two fake idols), but a strange winner nonetheless in one of Survivor’s most chaotic seasons.
His edit was surprisingly quiet until his run at the end, with only 31 confessionals the whole season, compared to Sugar’s 51.
Natalie White – Survivor: Samoa
The story of Survivor: Samoa was dominated by the first appearance of one of the most notorious survivors ever, Russell Hantz. Though he played three times, he never won, bested twice (in a row!) at Final Tribal Council.
Many viewers felt that Natalie White merely won due to a bitter jury, who were angry at Russell and voted for Natalie out of spite. But if that had been the case, people could have voted for Mick Trimming.
Natalie White is one of the sweetest contestants ever to play Survivor, and her win shocked everyone, but it proved that sometimes kindness goes a long way.
Natalie was largely invisible, with only 15 confessionals in the entire season. She got significant pushback from fans who felt Russell deserved to win. Russell even offered to buy the title from her, but Natalie stood her ground and refused.
Samoa could have been so much more interesting if we’d seen more of Natalie’s winning tactics, but instead, we got her killing a rat and too many Russell Hantz shenanigans.
Jud “Fabio” Birza – Survivor: Niacaragua
Fabio’s win can be summed up in one word — “Huh?” Some would argue that Fabio had no strategy and simply let the rest of the castaways cannibalize each other until he was the last one standing. He was generally well-liked, though he did pee in the pool that time.
Nicaragua was not the most pleasant season, thanks to some truly unpleasant personalities. Fabio’s win either diminishes or elevates it, depending on how you look at things. Fabio coasted to the end and then claimed his attitude was actually strategy all along. Whether or not it was true, he still took home the million.
The edit portrayed him as, if nothing else, a good-hearted person, and in Survivor: Nicaragua, that appeared to be enough.
Sophie Clarke – Survivor: South Pacific
Sophie didn’t make much of a mark in the early days of South Pacific, thanks to the big personalities of returning players Ozzy and Coach and the overpowering arc of Brandon Hantz, nephew of the infamous Russell.
Sophie was extremely relatable in that she always exuded sanity amidst the increasingly unhinged religious fanaticism (led by Coach) that took over the camp. She bested Ozzy in immunity when she needed to most, which cleared her path to victory.
Her Final Tribal Council performance was not as incredible as some we’ve seen, but she was a preferable alternative to Albert and Coach. Sophie’s triumph was somewhat satisfying in a roundabout way, though the audience might have been hoping for a Coach win after Ozzy was booted.
Sophie’s return on Winners At War proved she was a worthy winner the first time around, despite the edit she got.
Michele Fitzgerald – Survivor: Kaôh Rōng
Kaôh Rōng was one of the most intense seasons of Survivor ever. We saw so much strategy and gameplay from Aubry Bracco, but Michele was just one of those players who was always there, enduring and befriending everyone (as well as winning immunities when she needed them most).
Michele had a remarkable amount of “narrative” confessionals (57!) that were not strategy-related, leading to a small but vocal group of “Michele truthers” online who, throughout the season, were convinced she was going to win.
Many medical evacuations occurred in Kaôh Rōng, and many viewers attributed Michele’s win to pure luck.
However, Michele’s performance in Winners At War (making it to the final tribal again) proved that she had a solid social and strategic game for both of her Survivor outings and did not deserve to be underestimated the first time around.
Chris Underwood – Survivor: Edge of Extinction
Thanks to the bizarre conceit of “Edge of Extinction,” Chris Underwood spent only 12 days playing the actual game, making him one of the most irrelevant winners to take the crown and a cautionary tale to producers.
Underwood’s win proves that Survivor is not scripted or planned because it was apparent production was hoping for a Joe Anglim win (well, it worked out so well for Boston Rob in Redemption Island).
Underwood’s performance in the final episode was brilliant, but the twist made for some incredibly lopsided storytelling.
Through sheer force and determination, Chris Underwood “stole” the return to the game from Anglim. Underwood made the riskiest but strongest move in taking on his biggest competition, Rick Devens, to fire-making and surprising everyone by winning.
Tommy Sheehan – Survivor: Island Of The Idols
Survivor: Island Of The Idols is one season we all wish we could forget. Including Rob Mariano and Sandra Diaz-Twine as mentors was an interesting “twist” that ultimately didn’t lead to much, considering that the winner, Tommy Sheehan, never visited them.
Tommy was a bland, inoffensive winner in an offensive, disturbing season, and we really had no sense of why he won except that he was likable and made it to the end with two people who seemed to rub others the wrong way (Dean and Noura).
Tommy was a nice enough guy, but whatever he did was overshadowed by the unfortunate circumstances surrounding sexual assault and inappropriate touching among other players. His win felt like an afterthought.
It’s not Tommy’s fault that things went down the way they did, so it might be worth giving this colorblind champ a second shot to see if he could prove himself in another season.
Erika Casupanan – Survivor 41
Erika Casupanan, the original time-traveling queen herself, was the first winner of the “new era” and the first wholly Canadian winner (Survivor China champ Todd Herzog had to renounce his dual citizenship to claim the money).
Erika’s game was quiet and clever, but we didn’t see much of it. We hardly knew anything about her until her big “smash the hourglass” move. Throughout the season, it was hard to believe that she would win, given that she was all but invisible for the pre-merge.
However, with Luvu winning so many challenges, her strategy didn’t get a chance to be showcased.
Even though most of Erika’s endgame didn’t spell out a path to victory, she pulled it off, proving that the ability to articulate your strategy clearly, as well as politeness (a typical Canadian) and respect for the other players, go a long way.
Mike Gabler – Survivor 43
Nobody expected Mike Gabler to win Survivor 43. He was the kooky, eccentric older guy everyone tolerated and kept around because he was annoying.
Even though Gabler’s “hiding in plain sight” strategy was mentioned several times, viewers — and the other players — didn’t take him seriously because the old man archetype so rarely wins (Bob being the other exception).
The edit built up Jesse Lopez as everyone’s ideal winner, and Gabler’s record-breaking fire-making packed the wrong kind of punch.
However, in an unpredictable reveal that softened his strange victory, Gabler vowed to donate the entirety of his prize money to charity, making him the first Survivor winner to do so.
We all have our favorites, but the producers/editors routinely under-edit female winners unless they have a dominant game, such as Parvati Shallow or Kim Spradlin.
It isn’t easy to portray the quiet, clever, under-the-radar winners. Overall, they may feel less satisfying usually because, above and beyond, the editors must produce an entertaining television season, and sometimes the winner doesn’t always figure in those storylines. They work with what they’ve got.
If Survivor’s continued endurance is anything to go on, they’re still doing something right — and they’ve been on for 43 seasons and counting!
Who do you think will win Season 44? Will they be a dominant, high-profile player, or fly under the radar? Share your predictions in the comments!
Survivor Season 44 premieres with a two-hour episode on CBS on March 1 at 8 p.m.
Mary Littlejohn is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.