Exclusive: Cirie Fields talks 'Survivor: Game Changers': I think our gameplay will have a big impact on future seasons

Cirie Fields finished Survivor: Game Changers in sixth place during the Season 34 finale on CBS.


Cirie, a 46-year-old four-time Survivor player and fan-favorite from Norwalk, CT, finished behind Aubry Bracco in fifth place, Tai Trang in fourth place, Troy "Troyzan" Robertson in third place, Brad Culpepper in second place, and finally Sarah Lacina, who won the $1 million grand prize.

Cirie's ouster was totally unexpected, as no one from her tribe even voted for her. Cirie was eliminated from the game after all of the other castaways either won Individual Immunity, played a hidden Immunity Idol or played a "Legacy Advantage," which also served as a safety net. Her exit was shocking and definitely a Survivor first in many regards.

During an exclusive interview with Reality TV World following the finale, Cirie talked about her Survivor: Game Changers experience. Below is the concluding portion of her interview.

Reality TV World: When other wealthy athletes were on the show before, castaways often talked about how the jury would never vote to give them $1 million. But we didn't really see much concern about that as Brad progressed to the end. What do you feel the perspective was out there on that, and how do you think it might've played a role in the final jury voting results?


Cirie Fields: You know what? This was a Game Changers season in more ways than one, and usually that does come up a lot. However, people wanted to see game-changing moves and they wanted to make game-changing moves.

And it didn't even bother most of us when the game-changing moves were made against us and affected our gameplay because most of the people there are true fans of the game or love the game for one reason or another. So it was a different judging system than in previous seasons. There wasn't any, "I'm mad because you screwed me and flip flopped."

A flip-flopper is usually, like -- a player like Sarah flip-flopped so many times! But it was looked at in a different way. It was truly a Game Changers [season]. This changed the game in so many ways, and moving forward, I think people will be looked at and valued as far as their gameplay. I think it's going to be a whole new ballgame.

Reality TV World: Okay so it sounds like based on the jury's criteria for choosing a Game Changers winner, if Brad truly played the best game, he'd receive people's votes no matter what.

Cirie Fields: I think Brad really could have won if he played the best game and really took the time to know whom he was putting on the jury and what he needed to say to the people who were on the jury and how he needed to connect with those people on the jury. I think he still could have won, regardless of the money he had.


Reality TV World: At one point, your alliance in the game had a 5-3 advantage, but it was blown because you guys decided to turn on your own group and vote out Andrea Boehlke. Were you okay with keeping Brad around at that point because you thought you could just take him out later, or, maybe you actually wanted to go to the end with Brad? Why not keep Andrea around a little longer and target the opposing alliance first?

Cirie Fields: I saw Brad out there, and I saw Brad with Tai, and I saw other people out there seeing Brad. So I wasn't really threatened by Brad making it to the end, if he did or he didn't.

And I had found out that Andrea was making Final 3 deals, mind you, I thought Andrea, myself and Sarah, from the beginning of the game, we were the three best friends that anyone could ever have.

So when I found out she was making Final 3 deals with Sarah and Aubry -- and I found out from Aubry and Sarah -- I was like, "Oh Lord, I'm not in her long-term plans!" And they wanted to get rid of her anyway. It was the perfect time for me to make this move. So I thought, "Let's go for it, and then we'll deal with Brad Culpepper after."

Reality TV World: When I talked to Michaela Bradshaw earlier in the season, she explained why you attempted to steal Sarah's vote with her advantage when I was wondering why you didn't steal Brad or Troyzan's vote instead. Michaela told me it was to ensure Tai felt comfortable enough not to play an idol, which was the same reason why you didn't steal Tai's vote. So could you confirm that was the case?


Cirie Fields: Yeah, Michaela and I went over this. We went over this whole plan -- and we wish we didn't need to have a plan.

Because we were trying to let Sarah know, "Look, don't put so much trust in Tai, because if he flips with the guys, and you go home, then we're left as sitting ducks. So you're not only putting your own life in Tai's hands, but we also thought we were the three best friends that anybody could ever have and that we were going to the end!"

So we were like, "Wait a minute, don't do that. Don't trust Tai with our lives." And we couldn't get her to listen to that or go along with that. She just kept saying, "I trust him so much that I'll give you guys my advantage so you'll have it in case I'm wrong," and blah, blah, blah.

But yeah, it was exactly how Michaela said. I was trying to save us and Sarah. I wasn't trying to actually take her advantage. Well, I mean, I tried to take her advantage (laughs) but it was for a greater cause.

Reality TV World: Did you misread the steal-a-vote advantage Sarah gave you to hold or could you confirm that you didn't read it at all? Michaela said Sarah sneakily and intentionally gave you the advantage only like 10 minutes before Tribal Council so that you wouldn't have a chance to read it.


Cirie Fields: Yeah, I read it for the first time at Tribal. We were headed off to Tribal and it was lockdown, and at that time, there was no monkeying around or shenanigans. We can't even converse with each other.

So I couldn't read it on the way to Tribal, and then my first time even seeing it -- I actually felt it and checked for it when I put my hand in my bag to make sure it was there. But that was the gist of it; I didn't actually look at it or actually read it until we were sitting there at Tribal.

To read the first half of Cirie's exclusive Survivor interview with Reality TV World, click here. And for our interviews with the rest of the Final 6 castaways, check out our Survivor: Game Changers webpage.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski