This batch of five Vokai members are all promising players who have some fascinating stories on how they eventually got on Survivor.
The more I learn about these 20 new castaways of Survivor: Island of the Idols, the more I feel like production is bringing back everyone who narrowly missed the final cut in previous seasons. We learned in the first round of Josh Wigler’s interviews about Chelsea Walker making the casting finals multiple times and having to buy Jeff a drink to get to Fiji.
Three out of the five castaways in this batch have also had near brushes with making it out to Fiji. They shared some thrilling experiences so I urge you to take a listen to these five intriguing interviews on RHAP. Here are some of the highlights from the first five members of the Vokai tribe.
Dan Spilo was moments away from being on two previous seasons!
If you thought Chelsea Walker had a great casting story, get ready for Dan’s. After making it to the final phase of casting for David vs. Goliath, Dan was told that he made the cut and was going to be a Goliath member. However, a week or two before heading out to Fiji, he got pushed out of the season because someone who was scheduled to play in season 38 now preferred the David vs. Goliath filming slot.
A couple of months later, Dan was now going to be on Edge of Extinction. However, just nine days before flying out to Fiji, Dan broke his foot! As a result, he was forced to skip the season and was super disappointed. Thankfully, casting contacted him for Island of the Idols and he finally has his shot at the million-dollar title.
Jack Nichting is this season’s pathological liar!
Most people who know they’re going to be on Survivor usually try to get fit, practice fire-making, work on puzzles and stuff like that. Jack Nichting took it a step further and decided to work on lying. He recognizes the importance of lying on this show and decided to practice in real life, especially when explaining to people why he was going to be missing for five weeks, secretly shooting Survivor.
In fact, Jack even lied in his interview with Josh Wigler saying that he’s never been to Fiji before. Wigler knew this was a lie because Jack was an alternate for Edge of Extinction and was in Fiji at Ponderosa, never getting the chance to enter that season. All I’m going to say is that Jack is shaping up to be a very fun player to watch this season!
Jason Linden’s audition video was too dark for Jeff Probst!
As a big fan of Survivor, Jason Linden tried to find a way to make his audition video stand out. He decided to go down a very sarcastic and almost villainous route, acting as an impatient boss at his law firm. Casting saw his video and requested a more light-hearted attempt. After Jason sent in his more upbeat take, even Jeff Probst was confused with the two polar opposite audition videos.
Janet Carbin for tribe leader
The one common strategy amongst most castaways in this season, in particular, is to lay low and avoid leadership at all costs. Janet agrees with that plan, but her personality does not! She even mentioned that if she’s forced to take a leadership position, she will. That’s not normally a good sign, but Janet’s warm attitude, strong work ethic, and great swimming ability might just help her succeed in this role.
Jamal Shipman was going to be on season 35
Here’s yet another castaway who nearly made it on an earlier season. Jamal auditioned at an open casting event and received word back not too long after. Jamal made it to the final auditions for Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, but was snubbed from making the final cast. That said, we’re happy that he got contacted a couple of years a later for this season that will hopefully be an improvement from season 35.
We might see a groundbreaking family visit
We’re going back to Dan Spilo for this awesome tidbit. If Dan makes it to the family visit, his 13-year-old son will be his loved one! Dan has been watching the show together with his son since he was four. Survivor has never had someone that young qualify as a loved one, but with production’s approval, we hope this memorable scene will come to fruition.