Its a little bit of redemption for me.
Thats what Michele Fitzgeraldtold EWa few days beforeSurvivor: Winners at Warbegan filming.
She may not have won, but she found the redemption she was seeking.
CBS
How does Michele feel now about herSurvivorstanding after outlasting some of the legends of the game?
Is she surprised she did not get any votes at the end?
How would she have done against Tony at fire?
We asked her all that and more.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Well, Michele, you lasted all 39 daysandoutlasted your ex-boyfriend, I might add.
MICHELE FITZGERALD:Well, thank you so much.
Thank you for saying that I outlasted my ex-boyfriend!
That’s super awesome.
You went out there to Fiji on a mission to prove that your first win was not a fluke.
Do you feel you accomplished that mission?
And I do feel like I proved it to a lot of people.
And in some weird way, it just gives me the validation that I needed.
And I felt very satisfied.
I’ve only been two seasons, 78 days.
That’s going to be my new intro this time.
Wespoke before the game, and you talked about what happened last time.
It feels so great.
I honestly feel so privileged that I was able to get out there and fight for my own journey.
I actually think that’s a really interesting point.
Because for me, the Fire Tokens were this morale boost.
That’s a vote."
To me, that felt like a vote.
And so, it’s interesting that that didn’t correlate to votes.
it did give me kind of the courage to keep going a lot of the time.
And I’ve talked to them about this post-game.
So instead, they sided with Tony, just to confirm that the right person won the season.
So I’m grateful with the way that it turned out, no regrets.
You almost had to go against Tony at fire.
How do you think you would have done in that, Michele?
It’s a great question.
I probably would have beat him.
It got a little wild, but I was pretty stressed out.
I mean, my level of stress was 110.
I tend to do well when my stress level is high, so you never know.
There are so many moments that I wished that they had shown.
But I think this last episode, I mean, it’s fresh in my mind.
And we got plastered drunk, and we had a f—ing great time.
So I wish that that was shown, because I just feel like it’ssoheavy at the end.
They’re freaking hilarious.
So God, it exceeded all the expectations.
I can’t even tell you how grateful I am.
How weird was it to have your final vote reading over a webcam?
It was so weird, having it over this cam.
But I have to tell you, my first season, I felt really disconnected from my family.
I enjoyed it with my cast, and it was so cast focused.
My family really came very secondary.
So I’m happy.
I mean, honestly, I think it was the best thing ever.
What’s in the water in New Jersey, Michele?
An all Jersey final three!
Youre a Jersey boy!
We’re always going to come out fighting.
And she scratched her way to the final three.
I was on the bottom, I scrapped my way there.
Tony was the biggest target.
And that’s just really the overarching aim of Jersey people.
We will always come out fighting and throwing elbows to get us where we need to be.
And people underestimate us.
They’re like, “Yeah, it’s just Jersey,” but I’m from Jersey.
So we’re pretty dope.
Should she have listened to you, Michele?
And it’s just one of those things that happened to maybe not make the cut.
Tony going to win.
And you really need a story.
And so, why don’t we help you shape his story?"
Michele, you’ve done it twice now.
You’ve made it to the end twice.
Once you won, once you didn’t.
Are you up for a third trip at some point?
I will never say no.
If Jeff calls me, he doesn’t even need to say a single word.
I’ll say yes, and I’ll pack my bag, and be ready to go.
Well, go get ready forSurvivor: Webcam Edition, maybe Season 41.
The angles are always wrong, and the lighting is s—.
And for moreSurvivorscoop, follow Dalton on Twitter@DaltonRoss.
