Exclusive: Kellyn Bechtold talks 'Survivor' -- Laurel Johnson didn't mind being told what to do, but my heart goes out to her!

Kellyn Bechtold was eliminated from Survivor: Ghost Island during the latest broadcast on CBS.


Kellyn, a 31-year-old career counselor from North Manchester, IN, who currently resides in Denver, CO, was voted out of the Lavita tribe on Night 35 of the game through a 3-1 re-vote at Tribal Council instead of Donathan Hurley, a 26-year-old caretaker from Kimper, KY.

On the first vote at Tribal Council, Kellyn and Donathan tied with three votes apiece, while Domenick Abbate also received one vote from Donathan.

"This journey for me came at the exact right moment in my life... I'm so thankful for a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I will never ever forget," Kellyn, who became the season's seventh jury member, said following her ouster.

During a recent exclusive interview with Reality TV World, Kellyn talked about her time on Survivor: Ghost Island. Below is a portion of what she had to say.


Reality TV World: Are you shocked Laurel Johnson chose to stick with Dom and Wendell Holland again? Do you think she was afraid to make a big move or just resigned herself to playing to get to the end instead of playing to win because she's such good friends with the guys?

Kellyn Bechtold: I don't know. It's interesting watching it back, because watching it back, it looks like she was considering coming over, but she had completely stone-walled me, like she wasn't giving.

So my final fight over the last few days, I wasn't even trying to work with Laurel and Donathan. My only hope was to get Dom and Wendell to split up.

So if that told you anything on how tight she was with them, I felt there was more of a wedge between Dom and Wendell than there was between Laurel and Dom and Wendell. So I spent my time trying to convince Dom and Wendell they shouldn't take each other [to the end].

And Laurel was just locked in. Look, sitting at home on our couches and me being out there, it was really frustrating. But if you think about it from her perspective, she feels at this point in the game, she thinks she has a sure shot to the Final 3.


And boy, after you've been out there for a month, it is hard to give up your shot at getting to the Final 3. So, you know, my heart goes out to her, and at the same time, I was so frustrated with her that I could almost not stand it while I was out there. (Laughs)

Reality TV World: Well like you said, she was at least considering a flip. So how much of a role do you think Wendell and Dom bringing Laurel on their local-school Reward played in her decision to stick with them?

Kellyn Bechtold: Yes, I do think that did [play a big role], and also the way the [Immunity Challenge] went down, where she kind of beat Wendell but didn't really beat Wendell. And then she said last night, "I just don't feel right about this."

I know I'm outwardly playing with emotion throughout the entire game and I'm an emotional person, and it seems like Laurel is the calculated one, but man was she playing with her emotions last night!

Letting the fact that maybe or maybe not you didn't actually beat Wendell, "I feel bad so I'm not going to vote him out," like, that is a whole lot of playing with your heart right there!


Reality TV World: I wonder if Laurel would've made the same decision if Dom and Wendell invited, say, Sebastian Noel on the latest Reward with them.

Kellyn Bechtold: I don't know. When we didn't go on the family Reward and all of us girls were back at camp, she wasn't budging then either. I mean, she listened to us; she wasn't rude. But we could tell it was a longshot for her to even be moving at that point, so apparently she didn't mind being told what to do and getting to sit back and eat dirty rice while everyone else was having a good time.

Reality TV World: At the time of your vote off, did you assume Donathan would be voted out next due to his behavior at Tribal Council, or, did you think maybe Angela Perkins would be the obvious choice since she seems to be a bit of an outsider?

Kellyn Bechtold: Oh gosh. So from my perspective, while I was talking to Wendell about possible jury votes, I was trying to go through, "Well this person would vote for blah, blah, blah." Well then he speaks up and tells me, "Well, we can't take Sebastian, because he's the one who will get the likeability vote!"

And I was like, "Wait a second! What did he just say?!" And he was just like, "Oh nevermind, nevermind." So I said to Sebastian, "Look, Wendell just told me that they are not taking you to the end. They are not taking you! He just told me. He slipped up."


And when Wendell and I later talked about the game, he was like, "Oh yeah, I totally f-cked up. You got me to spill those beans."

And so at that point, I was also going to Sebastian and saying, like, "Wendell says they are not taking you to the end. They told Laurel and Lauren thinks she is going. Please, Sebastian, will you just come with me?"

But he didn't come with me and he also didn't tell me about his darn extra vote! So I must not have been all that convincing. (Laughs)

Reality TV World: What do you think are the chances Dom and Wendell will actually go to the end together, if possible, or turn on each other?

Kellyn Bechtold: You know, it was really -- from my perspective, as I'm going out of the game, I still think they have to realize their best bet is they have to make the big move.


I understood why they weren't making the move at that point, but starting with my vote and then starting to get down to six, I am thinking it is both in their best interest to pull off a final big resume move to go after your No. 1 ally. Like, there should only be one big dog sitting at the end, and that's what I was thinking as I got voted out.

Reality TV World: Had you stayed in the game and went to the end with Dom and Wendell, do you think you would have had a shot to win? Because they seemed to think so because you had so many friends on the jury.

Kellyn Bechtold: No, I don't think I would've beat them. No. It's a really interesting thing to think about what people's perception would have been, because it was in my best interest to keep up with this whole "Naviti Strong" mindset, because the moment Wendell and Dom sniffed anyone strategizing at all, they were toast.

So, I think everyone would have perceived that I just rode the "Naviti Strong" and the Naviti-family thing to the end, and that Dom and Wendell had decided to take me there. And honestly, watching the season, it looks like it.

But no, I didn't want to go with them... I think I could have beaten everyone else -- which may be a little full of myself (laughs) -- but I think I could've beaten anyone else. But Dom or Wendell would have landslide beaten me at Final Tribal.

To read the first portion of Reality TV World's exclusive Survivor interview with Kellyn Bechtold, click here. And be sure to check back with Reality TV World soon for the concluding portion.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski