Everyone’s favorite soda-drinking Survivor castaway, Will Wahl from Millennials vs Gen X, did a Reddit AMA on Thursday
Will Wahl predictably became somewhat of a meme during Survivor Season 33. As the youngest contestant ever to appear on Survivor, it was an inevitability that hilarious moments would ensue. From the moment he opened his mouth to reveal the booming bass in his voice, that became somehow more of a certainty. Offers of soda and milk cemented that throughout Millenials vs Gen X until he was the 13th person voted out and the sixth member of the jury.
Though Wahl didn’t win the $1 million, he did become a definitive favorite among the diehard fans. That’s why it was a great treat when he decided to talk to his fans on Thursday, via a Reddit AMA from his college dorm room. Newsworthy note No. 1: Will Wahl is no longer in high school. How fast they grow up.
Obviously you can go read the entire thing here. However, if you’re lazy or, in true Reddit fashion, simply want the TL;DR version of things, we’ve got you covered. For organization’s sake, though, we’re going to divide this into to sub-sections with the gameplay, strategy, and general answers compiled together and then the humorous moments together as well. Let’s go:
Gameplay/General
Of the entire AMA, the most upvoted question came from Millennials vs Gen X winner, Adam Klein. Adam stated that his brother tried to convince Will’s mom to pull her son from the game, assumedly during the loved ones episode. Adam then asked who Will would’ve been the most angry at, which he said he would’ve been “livid at Evan” (Adam’s brother), forgiven his mother, but not mad at Adam himself.
Another person associated with Survivor, casting editor Lloyd Quinto also chimed in with another question, asking Will if he wished he were older when he played and what advice Will would give other 18-year-olds applying to play. Will said that he wasn’t expecting to be cast on his first try, adding that he’d wished he’d been in his early 20s when he actually got accepted. As far as how to audition and get cast, Will said that it’s important to be memorable and to fit a type of character throughout casting–even if it’s not how you plan to play, which was the case with him.
This could also go in the forthcoming humor section, but Will Wahl is one of many who was not a fan of Figgy. When asked about his relationships in the Triforce beyond Jay (Figgy, Michelle and Taylor), he immediately responded by saying he wanted Figgy gone “from very early on.” He seemed indifferent in his response about Taylor, but expressed genuine admiration for Michelle, who he later said taught him a great deal about life and religion. His ties to Michelle were reiterated throughout the AMA.
One of the more interesting things Will talked about, especially considering his age, was what he learned from fellow castaways. There he spoke of Michelle again, of course. However, he also mentioned that Taylor taught him about having fun being “just as important as working hard” and then talked about Adam teaching him about “compassion and selflessness.”
What’s more, Will also talked about age being a disadvantage, especially after being outed as a high schooler so early in the game. He noted that Julia (Sokolowski) from Kaoh Rong not revealing her age was likely because of that and how it’s tough to even get jury votes if you’re a young person.
Quick-hitting some of the rest of the general items, Will said that he thought that Sunday was an underrated player that could have won if Hannah hadn’t schemed to take her out. Had Adam been voted out instead of David in the Final 4, he would’ve voted for David to win. If he could play with someone again, he would play with Adam and be in alliance with the winner. Lastly as a solid lead-in to the more light-hearted side of things, Will Wahl’s top five seasons of Survivor (in no order): Cagayan, Micronesia, China, Amazon, Panama.
The Fun Will Wahl
If you want to get inside Will Wahl’s Spotify, he claims his current three favorite bands are Bastille, Panic at the Disco, and Imagine Dragons. He enjoys drinking a cold glass of milk and vibing to all three—okay, that last part was merely an assumption. However, Will did joke about milk on a number of occasions throughout the AMA. The funniest of the bunch was him remarking that he was “still salty” about Zeke taunting drinking a beer in front of him.
He hissed when asked about being part of the Reptilian High Council while deflecting the question. Let the Will Wahl truthers get out there and find the dirt.
One thing that many fans noted during Will’s castaway bio was that he shouted out, of all people, Randy as a previous Survivor that influenced him. Will stated that was because he heard Randy interviewed on Rob Has a Podcast and said he’d never been mentioned in that regard. That made Will want to shout him out if he was ever cast on the show.
The real gem of the entire AMA was when Will was asked about the funniest thing that didn’t make the final cut for the show on the air. Apparently Will’s American flag bathing suit was falling off during the snake-sand challenge. This caused the ineffable Jeff Probst to shout “Will’s leaving the American flag behind!” Gold. Pure gold.
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While he also joked about his “Jay has an idol” play in the game at one point, there’s only one thing that everyone needed to know that Will answered. He was asked point blank who the stinkiest person on the island was. Unfortunately for the current Ohio State student, he’s afraid it might’ve been him. Maybe he’ll have that under control when he’s (hopefully) invited back for an All-Stars season down the line.