Angie Layton, a 20-year-old student from Provo, UT, was voted out of her Survivor: Philippines' Matsing tribe during Wednesday night's third episode of the CBS reality series' 25th edition.
 
Angie was voted out of her tribe at the season's third Tribal Council, which was also the third elimination vote for Matsing, after tribemates Malcolm Freberg and Denise Stapley had determined she and Russell Swan were the weakest links in the tribe. Due to the fact Angie and Russell failed to contribute much athleticism and timeliness to the Immunity Challenges, it became an obvious decision for Malcolm and Denise to eliminate Angie first, as Russell at least brought strength to the table.

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In an exclusive interview on Thursday, Angie talked to Reality TV World about her short-lived Survivor: Philippines experience -- including whether she felt she was stereotyped in the game or in the show's editing, what the story was behind her choice to stop competing in the Immunity Challenge, and what her thoughts were on the vocal "Roxy" Roxanne Morris.

Below is the first half of Angie's interview. Check back with Reality TV World on Friday for the concluding portion.

Reality TV World: You seemed to sincerely believe that it made more sense for your tribe to keep you and vote of Russell at Tribal Council during last night's episode. Was that actually the case, or were you just trying to save yourself?

Angie Layton: You know, it was both. I think loyalty is always better than strength, but in their situation, I guess they thought differently. But I sincerely believed that I was better to stay and I could be more useful to them, maybe not in strength, but loyalty absolutely.

Reality TV World: So were you surprised to be voted off instead of Russell then? Or had you still kind of expected it?

Angie Layton: It was a 50/50. I knew it was going to be either me or him. I went into Tribal Council preparing for the worst but hoping for the best.

Reality TV World: But it wasn't a situation where like Malcolm or Denise pulled you aside before Tribal and told you or anything like that?

Angie Layton: Malcolm told me. I asked him. I said, "Hey, if it's me, let me know. Please let me know." And he was like, "I'll let you know." And then, you know, we just didn't talk after that. And after that, I got really nervous and we went straight to Tribal. I didn't hear anything back from him, so I was like, "Oh okay, there's still a chance. Maybe there's still a chance. I'll just fight my way through this."

Reality TV World: Last night's episode seemed to show you telling Denise that you couldn't go again during the challenge. But then afterwards, when you went to Tribal Council, you kept saying you would have went again and could have done it -- and unlike Russell -- wouldn't have quit on your second turn. That seemed to kind of conflict a little with the footage of you talking to Denise at the challenge. So could you explain that a little? Were you just trying to save yourself?

Angie Layton: After the challenge -- okay, so when I was diving, I took a long time, you know? And I came back, and strategically in my mind I was like, "I can go again or I could let someone who's freaking fast go again and we won't be behind." I don't particularly remember saying, "I can't" to someone. I know I might've -- obviously it showed that I said it -- but I might've whispered it to myself.

And I was shaking my head and she just -- instantly, [Denise] knew. She was like, "Okay, okay." So she went for me. After that, I wanted to explain to them the reason behind that. The reason behind that was obviously Denise, she's an amazing diver. Malcolm, he's super good as well.

And for them to go for me would have been such a better move for me than to go again and be slow. Absolutely I would've went again, but I know that I would've been slow and I didn't want us to lose. That was my biggest thing. And yeah, I brought up all of that with Russell because I wanted to stay and I was going to fight for it.

Reality TV World: Yes, it was a little weird on TV, in that you saw the on-screen subtitles [state that you were saying you couldn't go again], but it was hard to make out what you were actually saying there.

Angie Layton: Exactly.

Reality TV World: Russell accused you of revisionist history when he heard your comments during Tribal Council -- so it sounds like you're kind of on the fence about that, since your recollection is a little foggy?

Angie Layton: I know that I wouldn't have went back to camp and said, "I didn't say 'I can't,'" if I said it to them. I may have said it to myself, like, "I can't. I can't. I need them to go for me." But it wasn't like, "I can't do it guys! I can't do it!" It's more like when you're in the heat of the moment and things are going so fast, you don't realize what you say. You don't realize every single thing that's going on.

I mean, it's so crazy. But after I got the chance to explain to them my reason behind everything not going, I mean, I would've went again. If she would've said, "No, Angie, you need to go." I would've been like, "Alright, I'm going. I'm going right now."

It's not like, "Oh, I'm not going to go." Absolutely. But I was slow and they could see that. I didn't want our tribe to be behind. I was put in that role, you know, the strength role that's hard.

Reality TV World: You also began crying after Russell's comments at Tribal. Were those real tears or was that an attempt to gain some sympathy in order to stick around longer or something?

Angie Layton: No, I was trying not to cry. I never cry, but literally, it just like hurt my feelings really bad. Like I said, I was trying not to let it affect me, but then when he just kept going and kept going, it just kind of got to me. I teared up a little bit, but after that, I snapped out of it and I was okay.
           
Reality TV World: There's been some discussion today about how Russell was basically damned if he did or damned if he didn't when he replied to your comments at Tribal. The idea is kind of that it wouldn't have been fair if he didn't defend himself fully just because you were a girl, but then when he did, he got stuck being that guy who made a girl cry... (Laughs)

Angie Layton: No, I thought it was fine. I was throwing him under the bus because I wanted to stay, and he was doing the same thing. He was doing it, and I understand he was doing it because he wanted to stay. I was doing the same thing. It's what you have to do in Survivor, but I was hoping they would like [my argument] better and choose to have me stay over him, but it didn't turn out that way. It sucked!

Reality TV World: You seemed really surprised that Roxy believed there was a relationship between Malcolm and yourself. Why were you so surprised that she would feel that way? I mean obviously you two were cuddling together at night, and maybe it was just the editing, but the show did seem to show you two spending a lot of time together.

Angie Layton: Yeah, we were great friends. I mean, he was fun to be around, around camp. And I really think that Roxy was jealous. From Day 1, she was. We were going to vote her out from Day 1. So everything that she said, I didn't even understand, because it wasn't even relevant.

Reality TV World: It didn't seem like she ever told you directly, but Roxy was shown saying she felt you were playing a "cheap game" and basically suggesting that your Survivor strategy was to just go on the show, flirt with the young guys, and trade on your looks...

Angie Layton: My boobs!

Reality TV World: (Laughs) Yeah.

Angie Layton: Yeah, exactly. What's her game? Sit around camp and cry on the beach? Last challenge, she said I was on the floor, well let's speak for a second [about that]. Okay, I went twice. She went once. She's eight years, nine years, older than me.

She's in the military. I model and I do pageants, and I said I was going to go twice. I gave it 110% percent each time, and I pushed as hard as I could. That's why I was exhausted and that's why I collapsed on the floor, because I gave it my all. And to try to say that I had a "cheap game," it's false. It's 110% percent [false]. Unlike her, I was mentally there.

Reality TV World: Like you mentioned, there was a lot of talk about your chest on the show. Roxy kept making her jokes about how you were a "booby trap," and Denise and Russell were also shown commenting on...

Angie Layton: Miss America all day long! (Laughs)

Reality TV World: (Laughs) Yeah -- and like I was saying, they were talking about how they hoped Malcolm wouldn't lose his focus. Did any of that surprise or upset you, or do you feel you were unfairly stereotyped?

Angie Layton: No, I mean, it doesn't surprise me. Girls are like that. She's just being a hater pretty much. There's nothing else more to it, and it didn't surprise me. But she was going and I knew she was going, so I didn't really need to worry about her.

Reality TV World: Do you think you were edited fairly or do you think that as the pretty blonde girl the editors kind of stereotyped you as well and took clips of you and Malcolm hanging out, trying to make it appear as if there was more going on between you two than there really was?

Angie Layton: I think they might've made it look like there was more to it. The real alliance was Malcolm and Denise, and I was just with them in their alliance -- going pretty much with what they said and what they wanted. So, it was kind of like the three musketeers, but those two were more of an alliance, I felt, than me and him.    

Above is the first half of Angie's interview. Check back with Reality TV World on Friday for the concluding portion.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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