TVLINE | We have to talk about that MrBeast coin flip. If you didn’t flip that coin, were you the one who was going to be voted out that night?
To this day, I am not sure because that’s what some people wanna sell you now. But I think there’s so much revisionist history in “Survivor.” I really felt like I’ve done enough to put the target on Steph. To me, you’re always trying to put yourself in the other shoes of the people you’re playing with. I just thought it was much better for Cirie, Tiff, Rizo, Emily, and Aubry to keep me than to keep one of those three, and they knew I’m a heat-seeking missile for Joe, Jonathan, and Steph at this point, especially after I threw them under the bus. That makes me a big target, a big shield for you, and you know I’m going after them, and probably they’re gonna be going after me.
So, it made no sense to me that they would, at that point, get rid of me and keep Steph, who had just exposed herself as lying to them, and was still trying to cover it up, whereas I was very honest, strategically. Open to the fact that I was willing to vote out Ozzy. Open to the fact that I brought up Rizo’s name. I think I showed all my cards, and that was very intentional. So, I don’t know. I still, to this day, felt in that moment that I’d put enough on Steph, but obviously, I wasn’t so sure of it that I wasn’t all over that coin flip, you know? Because even if I’m safe tonight, I’m the target tomorrow. So I wanted that immunity idol, and dude, I hadn’t had a real immunity in my hand the whole game. I wanted it so bad!
TVLINE | So everyone agrees to let you flip this coin and you’re standing up there with Jeff and Jimmy. What are you feeling and thinking at that moment?
First of all, just a stupid amount of confidence. I mean, it’s a coin flip. I have no control over this, and I was just sure it was gonna land. I was at peace with the fact that if I go home this way, no one else ever has. They didn’t vote me out, that’s fine, but I was sure it was gonna hit. I knew my kids would be so psyched because we’re Jimmy fans. We like MrBeast. I’ve got the receipts. It was so funny. People pull those up on Twitter and Instagram, like me talking about how much Jack and I like MrBeast. So, my heart was going a million miles per second, and Jimmy even reaches over and puts his hand on my heart, and I’m in that moment like, “MrBeast is touching me, like, what’s going on?”
But then it hits, and Ozzy, who was my biggest cheerleader during this moment, was just loving the whole thing. I think he was the first to be like, “It hit!” and I’m jumping up, and then I’m hugging MrBeast, I’m hugging Jeff, they’re hugging each other, which I brought up to Jeff when the whole game was over. I was like, “I remember you and MrBeast hugging,” and Jeff was like, “I hugged MrBeast?” He’s like, “I was really amped in the moment too, I don’t even remember that,” but it was just incredible, and I knew that that’s gonna be the moment my kids latch on to. They are now going to be “Survivor” watchers, but up to that point, they hadn’t watched a whole lot of “Survivor” and we’ve watched a lot of MrBeast, so watching it back with them was really awesome.
TVLINE | You had another amazing play when you and Christian planted a fake idol at Tribal Council. If you had to grade Christian’s pratfall that he performed as a distraction, what grade would you give Professor Hubicki?
I’m gonna get to the grade after a little bit of a preface. It’s part of my plan to say, “Dude, you’ve gotta be the first one to go towards the torches so that you’re in front of everybody and you’ve gotta fall, and they’ll all look at you.” I didn’t know he was gonna fall like he fell. I’m reaching in and hiding the idol, and the crash was crazy loud. And then I had to wait nine or 10 months to actually see it, Nick! [I was] looking the other way, so I didn’t see it happen. Then I did see it on TV — 10 out of 10, at least. If I can go higher, if I can turn it up to 11, bro, I’m turning it up to 11. Best alliance member anyone could ask for, and he did an amazing job. I don’t think the heist could have happened without it.
TVLINE | You wound up reaching for the fake idol at the Coach and Chrissy vote, the duos Tribal. People I’ve spoken with say they think Coach and Chrissy would’ve gone regardless of your idol play. What are your thoughts on that?
It’s again, a thing that I’m not totally sure of because of revisionist history. If I had to guess, hearing what people are saying now, I think I was probably safe, but I don’t believe that 100%. And I don’t regret going for the idol there anyway, because the worst thing in my mind would be, we hid that idol there and I don’t get to use it. Maybe it would still be there for Christian, but if I got sent home without ever going for it, it would haunt me, dude. And I’m not haunted by anything I’ve done on “Survivor,” including now, but that would have haunted me. And I’m sitting there going, it’s a 2-for-1, I’m saving myself and I’m saving Aubry.
Then the other nightmare scenario that could play out with this idol is that, you know, next Tribal, I need it, and I go for it and get it. So what do they do? They vote out Christian. And then I’d feel awful. He helped me with this thing. This was our plan, and he goes home because of it, or vice versa? He goes for it and, and I get sent home. So I just felt like he was safe that night with Jonathan. I was very much exposed, and in my mind, it’s like, if I go for it early, I still have “an idol,” because they think I have it, so maybe this can keep me safe next week, which it ended up, I think, doing. So, I don’t really regret going for it then.