‘Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X’ exclusive: Why David Wright isn’t haunted by fourth-place finish
David Wright was easily one of the most interesting, and entertaining players for most of “Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X.” He is the ultimate story of the guy who started off as an outsider lacking confidence in his abilities, only to become a strategic power player and someone who easily could have won the game. He made it all the way to the final four, but found himself voted out in the last Tribal Council before the end.
Earlier today we spoke with the TV writer and fourth-place finisher about not just his game, but why he was happy to finish in fourth place and also why he was especially happy to write down Adam’s name at the end.
CarterMatt – To start things off, was it flattering or frustrating to be labeled as such a threat? Going into this, was that ever a position that you thought you would be in?
David Wright – I never, ever thought I was going to get as deep into the game as I got. It was flattering, but also at the same time incredibly frustrating. You have to work with the perception that people have of you, unfortunately.
How much of that was potentially the Cochran effect? Had there not been somebody else out there of a similar archetype who made it so far and won the game, do you think there would be as many people talking about you?
Possibly. Cochran is the reason that I felt I had a chance in this game. Without him, I’m not sure I would have have bothered. I sort of endeared myself to the rest of my tribemates, and I think I endeared myself too much. The likability factor was too great for me to be taken to Final Tribal.
How agonizing is the fourth-place finish? Is that something you spend a lot of time thinking about?
No one’s going to believe this, but I felt a sense of relief when I got voted out rather than being in the final three. I had been going through so much personal growth, and I felt like in making it to the final three, it would have done too much damage. So ultimately, although I was trying to win, I was grateful that I didn’t make it to the final three.
You said that you didn’t want to push Ken too much given your bond with him. Do you regret that, or do you think anything that you said would have mattered?
In hindsight, I should I have talked to him longer than five minutes, but I thought if I pushed too much it would seem as though I was doubting him. I thought it was better to appeal to the judgment and loyalty that he’d shown me, but unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be.
You were probably closer to Hannah and David than you were Adam for most of the game. Did you plan going into the final Tribal Council to vote differently than you did?
I think all of us really felt like we were going to vote for Adam going in, and that was even before hearing his story. I think for me personally, I just felt like he played a great game. His game reminded me of my own — he found two idols, he played two idols, and he’s very likable. I felt in a weird way as I was writing his name down that it was like I was voting for myself.
The friendship you had with Ken worked really well within the game — is that something that carried over to life after it?
Oh, Ken and I are totally tight. He stayed with me a couple of weeks ago, and there were no ill feelings even for a second after I was voted out. I felt like he made the move he had to make for his game, and we’re still the best of friends.
Has “Survivor” made you a better writer? Is there any correlation there at all?
I mean an experience like that is going to make you better in life, whether it’s as a writer or in how you treat other people. I think I’m a much better person walking out than I was walking in.
Are you interested in going through all of this craziness again?
I really would. I would love to play ‘Survivor’ again.
Would you do things roughly the same? Is this the game that you feel you need to play to get yourself further to the end?
I don’t think I could play the same game twice, so I would need to give serious thought to the strategy I’d play going in. I may go under-the-radar much more, but hopefully that’s something that I’ll have to think about in the future.