Exclusive: 'Survivor: Kaoh Rong' castoff Debbie Wanner talks (Part 2)

Survivor: Kaoh Rong -- Brains vs. Brawn vs. Beauty's merged Dara tribe voted Debbie Wanner out during the most recent broadcast on CBS.


Debbie, a 49-year-old chemist from Reading, PA, was blindsided and voted out of her tribe on Night 24 at the game's eighth Tribal Council session once the girls decided to betray her.

Debbie, a former Brains tribe member, became the eighth person voted out of the tribe although 10 castaways have left the game overall -- two of them due to medical evacuations.

During an exclusive interview with Reality TV World on Thursday, Debbie talked about her Survivor experience. Below is the concluding portion. Click here to read the first half. 

Reality TV World: Aubry Bracco accused you of playing a very emotional game. What's your response to that? Would you disagree?


Debbie Wanner: Absolutely! The one who was actually neurotic and paranoid from Day 1 was Aubry, who I adore by the way. Because she went from being a thumb-sucking crybaby wallflower who wanted to quit, to a metamorphosis when became this Greek goddess. So, I adore Aubry, but the facts are, had we done what I wanted to do -- now, in the end, I don't know.

The guys could have put those idols together. [Tai Trang] could've used it as a "Super Idol" and taken somebody out. But I don't think they would have. And certainly neither one of them played the idol -- [Kyle Jason] or Tai respectively -- to save their own butts at that vote. So, [Scot Pollard] would've gone home.

Reality TV World: I was going to ask you why you were so convinced Julia Sokolowski was with you, but you said earlier in the interview you weren't. So could you elaborate on that a little bit? Going into Tribal Council, where did you think Julia stood?

Debbie Wanner: Well Julia and [Michele Fitzgerald] had a really, really tight bond. And it was apparent in everything. They were just so close that Julia had to make a choice. Now, the girls outnumbered the guys clearly. It would've made absolutely no sense for Julia to flip and then say, "Oh okay, well here I am."

The girls can still -- because I count [Joseph "Joe" Del Campo] with the girls. Joe was the leader of the Cambodian Angels there. So, we would've just taken Julia out next. And why would she put herself on the chopping block when it was so much simpler for her just to go with the girls for this vote?


Reality TV World: So do you think it would be best for Julia to stick with the girls going forward now that you're gone? The rest of the girls don't seem to really trust her.

Debbie Wanner: I would stick with them! Because the girls still have the numbers. Because, again, Joe's a girl for this purpose. (Laughs) He's on the girls' team. That's obvious.

Reality TV World: When I talked to Neal Gottlieb, he considered Scot and Jason bullies out there in the game. And obviously their behavior has only worsened as the weeks go on. Julia said in the latest episode she wanted to work with the Brawn guys because if she got to the end with them, no one would vote for them since they were so disliked. Do you agree or do you think the jury would vote for who played the best game and that person could end up being Scot or Jason?

Debbie Wanner: Well, I would absolutely affirm that they were bullies beyond anything Survivor has ever seen before. And the treatment that they're getting is mild compared to the reality. Having said that, I found positive attributes in both of them. Scot's a gentleman. He's very articulate for instance.

Jason has the love of his daughters and I've got an autistic nephew -- Asperger's syndrome -- so I related to Jason. I would've taken, you know, that's hard to say. Do I see it that nobody would've voted for Jason and Tai in the end? No.


I think people would've given Jason the money simply because he's got such a compelling story. Medical care is expensive and everybody knows it. And he wasn't lying about his daughter. So, you know, maybe the person I would've liked to have taken to the end would've been Tai and Aubry, quite frankly.

Reality TV World: Why do you personally think Tai and Aubry would be smart people to take to the end?

Debbie Wanner: They just couldn't be loyal. They just couldn't make up their mind. They pissed people off on both sides of the fence continuously, so. And Aubry, she did make it -- physically she was okay. But anyway, those two, because of their inability to be loyal to anybody or anything.

Reality TV World: Julia did end up voting with the girls and Joe. When she was making the argument about why it would be a good move to take Scot or Jason to the end, it didn't seem like she was thinking about the fact flipping on her entire alliance would end up costing her votes at the Final Tribal. Would you view that as a huge flaw in her strategic gameplay at that point?

Debbie Wanner: If Julia had a flaw, it was even going over to the guys in the [Reward] Challenge for the Chinese food. If she was going to pick a side, she should've picked it right then and there. That was her flaw.


Reality TV World: When you shared your voting plan with your alliance, did you think about that fact you should've left Julia out of the discussion? Was that intentional to include her or was that just impulse on your part, like you sort of blurted it out?

Debbie Wanner: Well, there were six of us and so the idea was 2-2-2, split it three ways. And, you know, I actually didn't even think about it because I really didn't have -- I had no qualms about it. It never entered my mind to include her or to not include her.

The person that I actually had more conversations with was Aubry, like, "Okay Aubry. What do you want to do?" I kept asking her, "What do you want to do? What do you want to do?" And she wouldn't name a target. And there's a reason people withhold information.

You know, it's hard to go out there and be bold on Survivor because it puts a target on your back and I did know that. But Aubry came up with no alternative. So, even right then and there, I knew it was me -- without Joe having to later tell me, "Oh, it's you." I said, "I know because she wouldn't name a name."

Reality TV World: Aubry clearly didn't put on a good act for you then. (Laughs)


Debbie Wanner: Nah! No. She didn't. But that's okay, I love her.

Reality TV World: How were you cast on Survivor? Did you apply for the show, and if so, was it your first time?

Debbie Wanner: I applied. It was not my first time. I never watched the show, but my kids caught the first episode and said it was like the book Lord of the Flies. I said, "Really? People literally kill each other?" So, my daughter said, "You would be great for this. You're fit, you're fun, you're smart." And so, that was it. I made one hell of a tape and they called me the first time I sent it in a tape!

Reality TV World: Would you be up for playing again potentially?

Debbie Wanner: Maybe! (Laughs) Only if you go with me!

Reality TV World: Okay, I'll give that a "maybe" too! (Laughs)


To read the first half of Debbie's exclusive Survivor interview, click here.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski