Survivor: Ghost Island interview: Chris Noble talks Domenick rivalry, Ghost Island, physical dominance
In this week’s exit interview, Chris talks about that vote, why he felt he didn’t need to play said idol, and also that rap video that he recorded while at Ponderosa. (Of course, during the episode Chris’ rap skills were under attack by fellow contestant Wendell.)
CarterMatt – Did not going to Tribal Council before the merge really hurt you? We’ve seen this happen before with people who go so far into the game without experiencing it.
Chris Noble – Yeah, absolutely. In going into a Tribal and going through that, you start to establish who is on your side and who is not, those lines that are drawn, and that helps you to build trust with people. I didn’t have any of that; not only that, but after the challenge people start changing and acting different and I have nothing to base it off of. And, we’re in a merge and that makes it even tougher because it’s not like I am getting back with the original tribe I’ve been at. Now, we’re just a melting pot.
On the show we saw Dom and Wendell say in confessionals that they didn’t have any plans to target you for at least that first vote after the merge. Do you really buy that?
My gut was telling me that they were trying to get rid of me and they wanted me to pick off a Malolo so that they could use that against me. That’s what I was thinking.
Now, watching the show and these confessionals maybe that’s true and they did want to work with me. To that, I tip my hat. The problem is that Dom and I’s relationship was so tarnished that I couldn’t trust him, period. I don’t think anyone in my position would have, either.
Was there anything that Dom could’ve said after the merge that would’ve convinced you to work with him?
No. I was done with him and I was ready for one of us to end this. Unfortunately, it was me, but that guy is a huge threat and I can’t believe how people were looking at the situation.
One of the most interesting parts of last night’s episode was you doing the secret mission to Ghost Island. How nervous were you making that trip?
I was really nervous in the beginning; the main reason why was because I worked really hard with a lot of people. At this point in the game I had played with everybody but Michael, so the last thing I wanted to do is get caught and really screw myself for Tribal and not have anything.
That was on my mind, and to go along with that Dom’s a night owl. Trying to sneak out of camp with that guy lurking around … you could really be in trouble. I waited an hour or two, I scoped out the field, I had a clear path, and I went. I acted like I was going out to pee and I just kept going.
It was an amazing time and an amazing opportunity, and when I got back nobody knew I was gone.
Anytime that you have an idol there’s obviously paranoia as to whether or not to use it. Even if nobody else knew you had it, how did they do a good job convincing you that you were safe?
Well, after my dumb decision of talking with everyone at the water-well — that’s the only thing if I would take back if I could take something back. Nonetheless, I don’t regret anything. That was a dumb decision on my part and after that, what didn’t make the airing is that I went up to four or five different people who I thought I had really good alliances with and I thought that I had really gotten close with over time. They were either lying to me or they were looking to go down a different route, one that was not intended to go after me.
Who were you the most disappointed with when it came to the vote?
Sebastian and Donathan.
You had a really powerful moment with Donathan on the show. In going into conversations like that, are you entering them organically or with some sort of strategic mindset in mind when it comes to connecting with him more?
I think all of that is in play on the show. It’s Survivor, but I was being genuine with him. When he and I had a one-on-one at camp after the talk at the water-well, I asked him for his opinion, whether or not that was the right decision [to target Dom and Wendell] or if we should go down another route. He was like ‘I think it’s a great decision.’ That’s about the route it went and I could do nothing but take his word for it.
Who knows what he really thought of me? I don’t know.
Obviously you had a really tremendous challenge record and there were times you were significantly better physically than anyone else out there. Did you ever think of toning it down so you wouldn’t be a big threat later? Or, is that something that just isn’t in your DNA?
I definitely tried to hold back sometimes, like with the ring-toss challenge near the end. I made like one or two, and then I was like ‘oh, shoot’ and then Wendell took in and caught fire. For one, we won and if I had another moment like that it probably would be the icing on the cake.
After my tossing challenge I told confessional ‘I screwed myself.’ It was a great moment, but everyone probably fears me now. That was uncut. I LIT IT UP how you saw it. I was watching it and I was amazed. You get in a zone and I don’t really remember all that much of it. I just remember it happening and it ending fast. Watching it, I was like ‘wow.’ They all saw it happen and I was doing it.
I definitely think that my athleticism played a role in my demise, but I think that people playing Survivor these days take the athleticism over the top. The show is getting so great at making these challenges that it’s really not all about athleticism anymore. You could be equally as strong of an opponent doing puzzles as you are athletically. I just feel like people sometimes think too much with their eyes than they do with other things. There are some other people who I may be able to whoop their a– athletically to this day, but if we got into a puzzle I probably wouldn’t be able to do it. I’m not good at them!
I watched the Ponderosa rap this morning and I know that you’ve already talked a lot about Wendell’s comments towards you during [Tribal Council voting]. Rather than regurgitating that what I want to know is this: Why did you want to make the rap video? What went into that?
I wanted to do something that was different, something creative. I wanted to do something that I stood out on that people appreciated … Going into the show I wrote lyrics and raps, but I never said them to anybody. I came out of my shell on the show and said raps to people that I never said to people before. I thought it would be a brave way to get a message across to people that you can dream big. I had to overcome a lot of first impressions from people because of my confidence and looks. Go look at the pre-game first impressions of me and I didn’t even say a word!
I wanted to be a compelling character — this guy, who you wouldn’t think does [something like rapping], does it all because he believes in himself and he’s comfortable in his own skin and doesn’t mind thinking outside of the box and being creative.
Do you want to go back and do this again?
If I got the call I would definitely be very interested.
What’s the thing you learned the most about yourself this time that you would take in the game if you did play again?
It’s easier said than done and it’s hard, but I would tone down my dominant personality a little bit. I had to go down that route because Dom had a dominant personality and was going after me — I had to match it, which definitely was not my intention going into this season.
If I go into another season I definitely wouldn’t go all Rambo like I did. I just would be more of a cast member willing to make plays, but I wouldn’t be as aggressive … I would not hold back my athleticism. I would still try to dominate.
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