Exclusive: Kat Edorsson talks about 'Survivor: Blood vs. Water' (Part 1)

Survivor: Blood vs. Water eliminated returning castaway Kat Edorsson from the game after she lost the season's sixth Redemption Island duel during Wednesday night's seventh episode of the CBS reality series' 27th edition.


Kat, a 23-year-old full-time student and saleswoman from Orlando, FL, lost the duel to returning player Laura Morett, a 43-year-old construction company co-owner from Salem, OR, and "loved one" John Cody, a 30-year-old physician and army orthopedic surgery resident from Washington, D.C., who's the husband of Candice Cody.

Kat's boyfriend and former Big Brother winner, Hayden Moss, is still in the game competing for the million dollar prize on the new Tadhana tribe.

In an exclusive interview with Reality TV World on Thursday, Kat talked about her relationship with Hayden and how their dynamic affected their gameplay. Below is what she had to say. Check back with Reality TV World on Friday for more of Kat's interview, including her perspective on her tribemates and decision-making during the game.

Reality TV World: You mentioned during the show you and Hayden had just started dating before the game, but then it got a little confusing for viewers because you both were shown making comments as if you've been together forever -- like you're a team and best friends and such. So how long had you two been dating prior to appearing on Survivor?


Kat Edorsson: A little bit less than a year. We've been together for a year-and-a-half, but we are actually official in December. So our one-year anniversary will be this December.

Reality TV World: What's the status of your relationship now? Obviously you guys are still together, but do you see a possible engagement coming or anything like that?

Kat Edorsson: I mean, we -- don't jinx me! (Laughs)

Reality TV World: How could I be jinxing you guys?! You both were talking "long-term" this, "long-term" that. (Laughs)

Kat Edorsson: I mean, I don't see myself being with anybody else besides Hayden, and I think Hayden feels the exact same way as me. So, we still don't even live in the same state, so it's hard for us to answer these type of questions when we don't even live in the same area code, you know what I mean?


So yes, I love him, he's my best friend, he's here supporting me, we're together all the time -- as much as we can be every two weeks when he lives in a different state. But to say those types of commitments, we want to get in the same state first.

Reality TV World: Do you see that changing?

Kat Edorsson: Absolutely, we are moving to California in April.

Reality TV World: Some viewers found it surprising you actually thought Hayden might break up with you or look at you differently since you got voted out of Survivor before the merge. How competitive were you two going into the game? Did you talk up a big game or something beforehand and that made you embarrassed about getting voted out, or what gave you the idea Hayden might lose interest in you?

Kat Edorsson: Everything was a lot of joking and, you know, me and Hayden, we're very playful. And so, when he's around me, I can say whatever I want, I know it's okay because it doesn't mean -- he really doesn't take too much value in -- he would never break up with me over Survivor. I was just being a little baby about it.


But yeah, it's a tough situation. We're never around each other that much and I really wanted to play. Hayden and I were two couples that were very, very determined to win and we would do anything to stay.

And there were a lot of couples that could be out there just to support the other couple -- the other person in their game. But me and Hayden had our own agenda. So it was a lot tougher for me and Hayden than I think for a lot of them.

Reality TV World: You and Hayden had a fairly long discussion when deciding whether he was going to switch places with you on Redemption Island and it seemed kind of obvious he didn't want to switch and you did. While it seemed like you ultimately made the decision, were you hoping Hayden would just stand up, walk down and take your place -- no questions asked?

Kat Edorsson: Absolutely, are you kidding?! I wanted him, like right when I got into that duel and saw the puzzle, I was like, "Hayden, get your butt down here and switch with me, like I'm never going to make it out of this duel alive." So I wanted him to come switch with me so that I could have a better chance of staying in the game and he could came back in for the merge.

So that was my ideal strategy, but then he used those three words that kept playing in my head. And he was like, "Baby, long-term, who do you think will be able to do better in this game?" And I mean, he said "long-term." So I was just like, "Alright, well I guess if it's long-term, then I'm out of here."


So, I mean, he was going to do better in the game than, I always thought, probably better than me. So if he were to win the money and we were to split it, I think he'd have a better chance of winning than I would.

Reality TV World: During that conversation with Hayden and the "long-term" topic, you guys seemed to be talking like even though only one of you could technically win Survivor's million dollar prize, you'd be winning it together. Was that because you had already agreed to split the prize if one of you two won, or was that more of a reflection on where you see your relationship going?

Kat Edorsson: I think it was a little bit of both, honestly. And, you know, Hayden and I, we -- it was just so rushed. We probably started saying, "I love you," to each other not because we didn't love each other the whole time but just because we're not the type of people to just throw that word around, you know?

So when we first started saying, "I love you," to each other, it was a lot on the island and maybe a month or two before that. So when we were in that situation and we were saying "long-term," it was a reflection on where we see ourselves going after this show and then what could possibly happen for our future. So it wasn't just Survivor, but like, our future, you know?

Reality TV World: That's what I thought. "Long-term" wasn't the next 20 days or whatever, it was beyond that. (Laughs)


Kat Edorsson: Yeah, it was beyond that, which is why I said, "Alright, see ya! I'll get out of here."

Reality TV World: I thought Survivor has always had something in the rules that forbid players from making deals where they agreed to share the prize -- which, given the "loved ones" format of this season, would seem to be more of a feasible situation than ever before. Could you clarify what the rules are on that? Has that actually been one of the rules before, and if so, was that changed or something you guys discussed with the producers before the season?

Kat Edorsson: Yeah, no, I can't really touch base on that because those are like the strict rules of Survivor, but I do know that there's a rule you cannot split the money with other people in the show.

That's a rule, you can't do that. So how Hayden and I, or how anybody on the "loved ones" season is going to reflect on how the money is going to be used in their own benefit, I mean, that's going to be [figured out] on their own.

I'm not really sure what everyone else was thinking, but I know the rule is that you cannot split the money. So if he buys me a lot of shoes, then he's going to buy me a lot of shoes, you know what I mean?

Reality TV World: I guess [Rob "Boston Rob" Mariano and Amber Brkich] got around that. (Laughs) So there is one way around it, at least!


Kat Edorsson: Yeah, uh-huh!

Reality TV World: Just one last question on Hayden. Did you really think he was a better player than you and therefore truly had a better shot at winning the game, or did you just kind of feel like he hadn't had the chance to play Survivor before and this was his opportunity.

Kat Edorsson: Ugh, I mean, he's a really good player. If you met the guy, he's just a really good social player. Everybody wants him around and I wouldn't say that I wanted him to have his chance, because clearly, he already had a chance and he won the game.

So now it's my chance! (Laughs) But I'm supportive in any which way. If it's going to be Hayden, I'm happy. If it's me, I'm happy. If it's neither, I'm not happy. So it's hard to say, but I'm supportive of him.

I think that he would've done better in the game. I don't think he would've done better in Survivor in general. I think he would just be better in this particular [season of] the game, because this is not like normal Survivor, it's Blood vs. Water, which is something that no one has ever played except for the 20 of us.

Above is what Kat had to say about her relationship with Hayden. Check back with Reality TV World on Friday for more of Kat's interview, including her perspective on her tribemates and decision-making during the game.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski