{"id":453800,"date":"2026-05-22T01:15:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T01:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/453800\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T01:15:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T01:15:11","slug":"joe-rejects-idea-that-he-wasnt-fit-for-survivor-50","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/453800\/","title":{"rendered":"Joe Rejects Idea That He Wasn\u2019t Fit for \u2018Survivor 50\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joe Hunter<\/a>\u2018s honest game got him into the final three in\u00a0Survivor<\/a> 48, but not being able to clock a lie lost him the game. He wanted to play honestly again in\u00a0Survivor 50, but it quickly became clear that his style wasn\u2019t popular among his fellow returning players. Still, Joe made it to the final three again, and in the same way he did before: being chosen for the final three by the last immunity winner. He tells TV Insider that it was immediately clear at the beginning of the final tribal council that he wasn\u2019t getting any votes. In fact, he felt like some players hated him. (Read our finale recap here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Joe didn\u2019t get any votes in the end, but he\u2019s also never been voted out. Here, he explains why he felt his fate was sealed from the start in the final tribal, and why people are wrong when they say his style wasn\u2019t a good fit for this season.<\/p>\n

Well, Joe, how are you feeling today? Congratulations on making it to the final three.<\/p>\n

Joe Hunter: Thank you. I feel great. I\u2019m living in gratitude. I\u2019m proud as hell. I feel great.<\/p>\n

How was it in the live finale last night? Was it fun?<\/p>\n

Yeah, it\u2019s one of those moments where what are the odds of you being able to experience that live finale? When you think about anyone that\u2019s played Survivor period, there\u2019s not many in the new generation that can say they ever have, so it\u2019s awesome.<\/p>\n

What was the vibe like on set in the live finale before and after the Rizo confusion? That was clearly a big highlight of the night.<\/p>\n

You know what sucks about that is I go, man, Jeff Probst<\/a> is the head of the show, and he\u2019s hit every single time. So both my seasons, every single tribal live, no repeats, every challenge, he\u2019s guiding us, he\u2019s narrating, he\u2019s doing it all. Every Applebee\u2019s thing you see does all that live. Never misses a beat, never cue cards, no rebut, no pause button. And it\u2019s like, what about this? \u201d And I\u2019m like, \u201cMan.\u201d And he has to wear it. There\u2019s a lot of other working parts to that that when you see it live, you just go, \u201cMan.\u201d I focus on the fact of look at how he handled it. Leaned into it, poked at it, laughed at it, made a joke of it, tried to recover. I thought it just showed how awesome he is. That\u2019s to me, just showed on live television how others would\u2019ve failed. Other people in that spot, it\u2019s over. He crushed it. So I thought it was awesome that he recovered.<\/p>\n

Yeah, he doesn\u2019t even say \u201cum.\u201d<\/p>\n

No.<\/p>\n

He doesn\u2019t trip over his words. I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever heard the guy stutter. He doesn\u2019t say um or like, and so to see that was a wild experience, but then of course I thought his recovery was really funny.<\/p>\n

Awesome.<\/p>\n

\"Jeff<\/p>\n

Jeff Probst and the Survivor 50 cast during the Season 50 live finale<\/p>\n

Robert Voets \/ CBS<\/p>\n

When did you realize during filming that your honor and honesty strategy was not going to work with this cast?<\/p>\n

I never thought of it that way that it wasn\u2019t going to work. And I think that, here\u2019s what\u2019s funny is I never said the words \u201chonor and integrity.\u201d I never forced it. I never said it. But it\u2019s like-<\/p>\n

Just a common Survivor label.<\/p>\n

Yeah. It\u2019s just like, here you go. And I\u2019m like, OK. Well, I mean, out of the gate, I\u2019ve never mentioned it before, during, or after this season. And I was just being me. And what I realized was in this cast, based on previous relationships, didn\u2019t like more personality. And I just thought, man, I don\u2019t know how to navigate. You know what it\u2019s like is you ever go to a house party or a situation, it\u2019s like, man, you walk in, you\u2019re trying to mingle, and it\u2019s like couples, couples, couples, couples. Well, then there\u2019s no game there. It\u2019s like there\u2019s nothing. I\u2019m just trying to fit into a groove. And I thought what I realized was you can\u2019t have a plan when the game is already rolling. You have to adapt. So what I really tried to do was just be me and use relationships to adapt in the game.<\/p>\n

So that\u2019s really what it was. I didn\u2019t go into it like, \u201cYou can\u2019t do this. I was just trying to be me and hook up with the right people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Did the experience this season make you reconsider the value of lying in the game? I know you like to operate with transparency, but how did Season 50 challenge you in that regard?<\/p>\n

It just challenged me into believing in: don\u2019t let the world tell you you have to play Survivor a certain way, period. Everyone says, \u201cThat\u2019s Survivor.\u201d Says who? You tell me a winner that\u2019s won the same way every time, and then you can tell me that Survivor has to be played this way. So you go, OK, so every single winner has done it exactly the same way. It\u2019s shocking to me that we get caught up in this, which is our own self reason of how you would play. I\u2019m in the world of like we need every single type. How Rick played is amazing and should be played. How I play someone should play that way. I just feel like the problem is more about not giving people the space to play it and realizing you have to adapt to your season.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s really what it is. And instead of like, well, that\u2019s Survivor. Says who? It\u2019s about you doing the right version of that at the right time. That\u2019s what it is. There\u2019s times to be loyal. There\u2019s times to cut. There\u2019s time to stab. So I feel that\u2019s my answer to that. I was like, you just have to be more adapting to the situation.<\/p>\n

Did you ever lie this season?<\/p>\n

Of course.<\/p>\n

Tell me about your lies.<\/p>\n

Of course, the negative [smiles].<\/p>\n

Not negative. It\u2019s strategy.<\/p>\n

I lied to Ozzy when he said, \u201cAm I going to be safe? I lied to Tiffany. I lied to Cirie. I lied to Stephenie when she was going out about her idol or playing a shot in the dark.\u201d I mean, those are all dishonest moments, and I\u2019m sure I\u2019m missing some. It\u2019s those moments in the moment. It\u2019s like, \u201cHey, does anyone realize there\u2019s a Shot in the Dark?\u201d Hey, Jenna, in the very beginning, it\u2019s like, \u201cAm I going home?\u201d \u201cWell, you have a Shot in the Dark.\u201d This isn\u2019t take away the Shot in the Dark. I can always just say, \u201cMan, you\u2019re going home.\u201d But now you have to think about [the fact that] these players all know that Joe is going to tell you the truth. If they tell me the plan, and then I go over there and tell them, \u201cYou\u2019re going home,\u201d they\u2019re going to know that I told you. What\u2019s hard now is they used that against me, if that makes any sense.<\/p>\n

It does. You helped Rizo prepare for the fire-making challenge. You said people in sword fights all need swords, which I think was fair. But was Jonathan upset about that?<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know. Again, it\u2019s one of those moments where people will jump over the fact that it\u2019s like, yeah, people need a sword to fight fair. It\u2019s like, yeah, yeah. I heard this even last night. I was like, \u201cYeah, yeah, yeah.\u201d But it\u2019s a good thing. Here\u2019s another question. If I don\u2019t help Rizo, is that bad for Rizo, but good for Jonathan? Either way, it\u2019s going to be like, \u201cWell, how\u2019d Jonathan feel about that? Well, OK, well, if I don\u2019t help him, how\u2019s Rizo going to feel about that?\u201d So it\u2019s like, hey, man, can you just help Jonathan, who\u2019s in my alliance, but also not totally screw over Rizo and try to make it a fair fight? Can it just be that? That\u2019s really where that came from. I\u2019m just trying to make it more balanced. That\u2019s all.<\/p>\n

\"Rizo<\/p>\n

Rizo and Jonathan in the fire-making challenge in ‘Survivor 50’<\/p>\n

Robert Voets \/ CBS<\/p>\n

I mean, I think it should be a fair fight. It\u2019s not entertaining if it\u2019s not an even playing field.<\/p>\n

If they both don\u2019t bleed.<\/p>\n

There are a lot of parallels in this finale. Rizo and Jonathan both had to face the fire-making challenge in their first seasons. You were taken into the final three in both of your seasons by the immunity winner. What do you make of that? How did it make you feel for your history to repeat?<\/p>\n

I felt great. I feel that both have advantages. If you\u2019re chosen, that\u2019s a skillset. Now, granted, others would argue they\u2019re taking you into it for a reason strategically without a doubt, but that same move is all part of the strategy of your game, too. However, you get their benefits and hurts both people. Same with making fire. I feel fortunate that I feel very confident in my fire-making skills, but I never want to leave anything up to chance. I was proud that if you can make it and be competitive enough to get there, and then you can secure your spot in the final three. I feel the new generation does not value that fire-making challenge enough. In old-school, I feel that if you stepped up to say, \u201cI\u2019m going to sacrifice [immunity] for fire,\u201d now it doesn\u2019t hold enough value to me as it did. So, I want to secure a spot. And then my argument is, let\u2019s just beat each other head-to-head in the jury. That\u2019s how I feel. I felt fortunate to be picked both times.<\/p>\n

Were you surprised that fans voted for fire-making?<\/p>\n

No. I wanted it. I don\u2019t know if I was surprised. I think it adds a level of, oh my gosh, that unexpected. I just don\u2019t want to be a part of it, but I love it.<\/p>\n

Heading into tribal the finale, what were your feelings about your chances of winning?<\/p>\n

Oh, right when I sat down on that stool in Fiji, right away \u2014 this is me being totally transparent \u2014 I go, \u201cWell, OK, should I go home? What are we doing here?\u201d It was literally, I\u2019m not kidding you. I sit down, and I\u2019m like, \u201cOoh, all right. Hate me, hate me as a person. Hate me, hate me, hate me, hate me. Maybe.\u201d And I\u2019m like, \u201cWhat are we even doing?\u201d There\u2019s no chance in hell [that people would vote for him], with the exception of people like Emily, people like Christian, people like Rick Devens<\/a>, and Dee. I felt they truly tried to throw things out there that were like, \u201cHey, give this person a chance. Hey, let\u2019s keep it back to this.\u201d Other than that, say what they want. It was locked. Whatever their deal was, it was locked.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m going to be honest with you, I was like, I\u2019m lucky. The second I sat down, we didn\u2019t do anything. And in the game, I\u2019m thinking I had a better chance. But when I sat down, I\u2019m like, \u201cAh, damn, maybe a vote.\u201d I hadn\u2019t said a word, maybe two votes. That\u2019s a fact.<\/p>\n

Who did you think you might get?<\/p>\n

Rizo, maybe. And then I wasn\u2019t sure about the Rick Devens, Emily, and Christian. I know that sounds crazy indeed, but they seemed open. So I was like, well, I mean, you got a shot. They seemed open. What\u2019s the point if you\u2019re already locked in? It\u2019s like, what are we doing? Why are we sitting here? I mean, honestly, it\u2019s like, OK, well, I\u2019m not going to just get punched in the face. You want a fair chance. Even if your game is weak, you want the shot to wow them. What\u2019s the point if there isn\u2019t? But that\u2019s the game. That\u2019s the game.<\/p>\n

\"Survivor<\/p>\n

Survivor 50 final three: Joe Hunter, Aubry Bracco, and Jonathan Young<\/p>\n

Robert Voets \/ CBS<\/p>\n

When you say locked in, do you mean it felt like locked in for Aubry or locked in that it wasn\u2019t going to be you?<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t tell that from sitting there what it was because I didn\u2019t have the perspective like everyone else does with an edit and watching it secondhand. So, I didn\u2019t have that 30,000-foot view of, \u201coh yeah, I\u2019m sure it\u2019s this person.\u201d But I knew for me personally, you\u2019re looking at them. And then especially when you open your mouth, you haven\u2019t even said anything, and it\u2019s like, you know what I mean? If I\u2019m like, \u201cHey, eye roll.\u201d It\u2019s like, well, okay. Well, I mean, I knew for me, I\u2019m like, it\u2019s over, which just it is what it is. I mean, it was over and they can say what they want. That\u2019s a fact.<\/p>\n

So, in the live finale, you didn\u2019t expect to get any votes?<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t want to ever go in [thinking you\u2019ll lose]. You want to will it. You want to stay positive, but I\u2019m a realist, too. And I\u2019ll say this, this isn\u2019t a victim moment. Things like this, you\u2019re emotional or you need to be taken care of. Listen, if you are my friend and I view you as a friend, I\u2019m going to share things with you that I would share with no one else. I\u2019m going to complain about traffic. I\u2019m going to complain about coffee. I\u2019m going to complain about blah, blah, blah. If I don\u2019t like you, I don\u2019t speak to you one. If I don\u2019t like you, I give you generic, like this interview, it would be like good-<\/p>\n

Oh, so I thought you were saying you were giving me generic!<\/p>\n

No, no, no, no, no. I mean it would be like, \u201cGood. Yes. No. Yes.\u201d It would be this. So then, if I am just me, thinking we\u2019re actually friends because I\u2019m trying to build an alliance, I\u2019m going to pour it out. And then if it gets taken out of context, it\u2019s like, well, I just showed you a side of me that I don\u2019t let most people see, and that is also OK and allowed. But if I were to go back to the final tribal, I just realized sitting there that it wasn\u2019t me. And I thought maybe I\u2019d get a vote from that. And I thought maybe because of that, Emily, Christian, and Rick and then would switch it, but I just didn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n

You said in the final tribal council that you were feeling embarrassed. Why did you feel that way, and is that impacting your interest in appearing on Survivor again in the future?<\/p>\n

Embarrassed? I forget. How did I say it? I\u2019ve totally forgotten.<\/p>\n

The vibe was maybe that you felt embarrassed that people weren\u2019t going to vote for you, or you felt embarrassed that you were in the final three or something like that. I didn\u2019t know exactly how you meant it.<\/p>\n

No, no, no. I don\u2019t remember. I was not embarrassed. I\u2019ll go back every time, every single. I stand ten toes down. I\u2019m so proud of how I played. I\u2019m so proud. You know what they don\u2019t ask is, \u201cHey, how many challenges put you in the top three, who have ever played in two seasons, never have your torch snuffed ever?\u201d People have been voted out, never have the torch snuffed, your name written down once in two seasons, and then out of your two seasons, all the people that have played, there\u2019s only a handful that could say they beat you. Those are the moments where I go, yeah, I\u2019m not embarrassed at all. It\u2019s more about I regret doing certain things because most people in their exit press blame everybody else. I just blame myself. Whatever I did or didn\u2019t do in the game is why I didn\u2019t get votes, so I have more regret than embarrassment.<\/p>\n

But you\u2019d come back if you were asked?<\/p>\n

One-hundred percent.<\/p>\n

Survivor 50, Available Now, Paramount+, Season 51 Premiere, Fall 2026, CBS<\/p>\n

For more\u00a0inside scoop on\u00a0Survivor 50\u00a0from the set,\u00a0pick up a copy of\u00a0TV Guide Magazine\u2019s\u00a0Survivor at 50 Special Collector\u2019s Issue<\/a>, available at\u00a0Survivor.TVGM2026.com<\/a>\u00a0and on newsstands now.<\/p>\n

Read the latest entertainment news on TV Insider<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Joe Hunter\u2018s honest game got him into the final three in\u00a0Survivor 48, but not being able to clock…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":453801,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[458,146,85,46,154468,23150],"class_list":["post-453800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-joe-hunter","tag-survivor"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/453800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=453800"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/453800\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/453801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=453800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=453800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=453800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}