Hunter McKnight isn't the first player to hide in a tree on Survivor

In the eighth episode of Survivor 46, Hunter McKnight, one of the strongest players in the game, appears to make a bold move in "Hide 'N Seek." Based on the preview for the new episode, Hunter hides in a tree, leading to chaos at camp!

According to the episode synopsis, it's described as "an innocent game of hide and seek becomes a revealing metaphor about every castaway’s Survivor strategy."

So, it sure seems like Hunter's hiding is less about gameplay and more about playing a game with his fellow tribemates. Even so, he's not the first person to hide in a tree on Survivor!

Tony Vlachos takes the spy shack to new heights in Winners at War

While Tony Vlachos and Hunter weren't the first Survivors to climb trees, Tony was the first to create a "spy shack" and "spy bunker" in Survivor: Cagayan and Survivor: Game Changers. It was a hilarious moment in the show that actually helped the two-time winner advance in the game.

You can watch the video of Tony explaining the spy shack in Cagayan.

Then, in Survivor: Winners at War, Tony took the spying to new heights! He created the spy nest, which was about 15 feet up a huge tree next to the water well.

When the castaways would come to get water, Tony would listen in on their conversations. He claimed that he heard several conversations that helped him win the game. While we didn't get to see those things happen in Winners at War, he did win the game, so I believe him!

As soon as the video of Hunter hiding in the trees and the other players calling out his name looking for him, Survivor fans all over the world had immediate flashbacks to Tony and his spy antics throughout the three seasons of Survivor he played. Hunter, who is a student of the game, definitely knew what he was doing and who he was channeling by climbing into the trees even if it wasn't for investigative purposes or intelligence-gathering operations.

We'll have to see how it all shakes out for Hunter. Will his antics come across the right way? Will everyone get flashbacks of Tony, too? To be determined! We didn't see that pop up in the sneak peeks at episode 8.

Survivor 46, episode 8, "Hide 'N Seek," airs on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+.