Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers spotlight: Meet Roark Luskin, graduate student
Are there things that could stand in her way? Sure, and we’ll dive into some of that more in the latest entry in our CarterMatt castaway spotlight series below.
Age – 27.
Location – She’s originally from Palo Alto, but currently resides in Santa Monica, California. We’ve joked for years that casting loves to go find Santa Monica bartenders to be on this show when they’re running low of good candidates, but we think that Roark is a fan of the show and was probably an early choice for this season..
Bio – She’s a graduate student at USC (we’re more in the UCLA camp here), and part of the reason why she’s on the Healers tribe is because of all the counseling work that she does at a school as a part of her program. She’s experienced both good days and bad days there, but understood the value of making a difference in people’s lives.
Past Survivor comparison – She compares herself to Sophie Clarke and Courtney Yates, and we instantly love that she does given that it shows that she hasn’t just seen a few seasons and that’s it. This is also probably accurate, though you could probably throw Aubry Bracco and, given the counseling background, Denise Stapley into the mix.
Strengths – She’s got a history of listening to other people, and we think that’s huge in this game given that Survivor is all about making other people feel valued. If she can do that nobody will ever want to get rid of her, and she’s smart to know that she wants to play the game slow and not go crazy right away. (Her analogy in the video below about the frog is a little gross.)
Weaknesses – Roark is not going to be a physical threat this season. She won’t win a ton of athletic challenges, and she also needs to keep at bay her instinct to correct people. She knows that she’s very intelligent, which is good since a lack of self-awareness can sometimes work against someone who comes in and thinks that they will run the game. Nonetheless, being smart can make you stand out and you don’t always want to stand out in this game.
Pre-show prediction – Roark has the potential to win the game. She has the right strategy, has the right attitude, and should be able to navigate the game well if she makes the merge. Our concern is if her tribe loses a bunch of challenges right out of the gate. She shouldn’t be bad in challenges, but she won’t be the stand out and it’s possible that not everyone will appreciate her sense of humor out there. If nothing else, it should be fun seeing how many people this season misspell her name.
How well do you think that Roark Luskin is going to do on Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers? Let us know in the comments below!
Also, click here to see some of our other CarterMatt spotlights on this season. (Photo: CBS.)