Exclusive: 'Survivor: Kaoh Rong' castoff Darnell Hamilton talks (Part 1)

Survivor: Kaoh Rong -- Brains vs. Brawn vs. Beauty castaway Darnell Hamilton was voted off his To Tang tribe during Wednesday night's premiere broadcast on CBS.


Darnell, a 27-year-old postal worker from Chicago, IL, became the first castaway voted out of Season 32 on Night 3 at the game's first Tribal Council session. The Brawn tribe had to vote one of their members off because they had lost the Immunity Challenge, which Darnell took full responsibility for.

Darnell ended up going home instead of Alecia Holden.

During an exclusive Thursday interview with Reality TV World, Darnell talked about his short-lived experience on Survivor. Below is the first half. Check back with us soon for the concluding portion.

Reality TV World: You knew you were one of two castaways potentially going home. Did you think you were the No. 1 target going into Tribal Council and did your feelings on that change once it became time to vote for the first time?


Darnell Hamilton: I knew I was A target; I didn't know I was THE target. I knew after the goggle situation that Scot Pollard was really upset with me and I knew that was a big, big, big factor. And even going into the challenge, you know, logically, I'd say, "Well, they will probably keep me because they're going to need somebody good for the challenges," but you really don't know. So, it was kind of shocking to me.

Reality TV World: It's easy to say the tribe made the wrong choice when you get eliminated because it's personal to you, but from a strategic and challenge standpoint, do you think they made the right move for their games in keeping Alecia over you or a big mistake?

Darnell Hamilton: I believe -- what I would say to this is, for the team, it's a big mistake. But for someone's game, it was a critical move. I mean, if they felt like, "Hey, he's not going to work with me. He's going to be a threat," hey, then take the shot. So, from a team standpoint, I don't think it was a great move.

Reality TV World: There's been speculation whether there was a tie vote between you and Alecia at first because the tribe was really torn on whom to eliminate or they were just concerned one of you might have a hidden Immunity Idol. What's your take on that?

Darnell Hamilton: I believe it was a hidden Immunity Idol. We wondered if any of us had it.


Reality TV World: Do you think they were more worried about Alecia having one? Because viewers saw Scot asking her about it and she basically answered, "Maybe I do; Maybe I don't." Or maybe the tribe questioned you as well and we just didn't see it in the episode?

Darnell Hamilton: I think it was either or -- if any of us had it. But I think there was more concern Alecia may have it.

Reality TV World: Did you personally think Alecia might've found one?

Darnell Hamilton: I didn't know because Alecia would take off from the beach and we were like, "Where is Alecia?!" So we had no clue.

Reality TV World: You lost your tribe's mask in the water, but in terms of what your tribe could take away from that and your overall physical ability, you didn't show them you were slow or weak in challenges or bad at puzzles. You made a mistake you'd never repeat, you know what I mean? So why do you think your tribe ultimately determined you the weaker link over Alecia?


Darnell Hamilton: I think it was, to be honest, more of a strategic [decision]. I think there were a lot of reasons. Pollard was just like, "Oh, he lost the goggles, he's got to go. Somebody has to go." [Kyle Jason], I think it was more of a strategic decision. I mean, he felt I was getting close -- he felt I was closer to the other castmates on the island. So I guess he was like, "Let me use this opportunity to take him out."

Reality TV World: Is it safe to say you think Scot blew your mask mistake out of proportion? You mentioned earlier he was so upset about it.

Darnell Hamilton: I think he did blow it out of proportion. I think he just got so caught up in his emotions. So I was thinking, "You know, Darnell, Scot plays in the NBA and stuff like that, so it's just emotion for him." It was also an ego thing for him. So he took advantage of an opportunity like, "Hey, I'm upset, so let's get Darnell out." Because you know, Alecia is an easy vote out for later, so.

Reality TV World: Alecia talked up a big game about being daring, adventurous and tough. But members of your tribe trashed Alecia for doing nothing around camp and stuff. We didn't see you bad-mouth her, so what did you personally think of "Blondie?"

Darnell Hamilton: No, I didn't bad-mouth Alecia because, I mean, I just see her as being different. I don't really like criticizing anybody, you know, because everybody is different and comes from different walks of life and things like that. So, I mean, I just looked at her as different, you know?


If you think about it, Alecia is on the Brawn tribe. You could easily look at her and be like, "She doesn't belong here." So it's hard to come into a situation like that -- with a whole bunch of brawny, strong people and you're the littlest person.

Reality TV World: It's funny you said that because I was going to ask if anyone was wondering why Alecia ended up on the Brawn tribe, just like the Beauty tribe was questioning Tai Trang's placement. Did a conversation about that take place? Did anyone on the tribe ever ask Alecia about it?

Darnell Hamilton: Everybody was wondering. (Laughs) It was just weird! I mean, it was like, "She's on the Brawn tribe? What?!" We thought, "Maybe there's something [about her] because we all have something," you know? She didn't do that much around camp, but it's something! She's out here for a reason, and we were all trying to figure it out. So, yeah, everyone was wondering.

Reality TV World: Do you regret volunteering yourself to dive in the challenge? Because when you take on a big role like that, you have an automatic target on your back if you don't succeed. So do you think it would've been a smart move to avoid picking an important job in the challenge so soon?

Darnell Hamilton: No, I think it was necessary because I took into consideration that Alecia said she couldn't do it, [Cydney Gillon] was not really a good swimmer, [Jennifer Lanzetti] just had the bug in her ear, and Scot was just worried about flipping the boat. (Laughs)


So there weren't that many options apart from I also have swimming in my background. And I was also coming from the standpoint of, "Look, this is my opportunity. If I do good or great, then I don't have to worry about alliances. Really, there won't be anybody trying to vote me out." So it was like a win/lose situation.

Check back with Reality TV World soon for the concluding portion of Darnell's exclusive Survivor interview.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski