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Survivor 50 interview with Rizo Velovic
We're back, baby!We're back! Like I never left.We've officially entered the church again of "the man, the myth, the legend, R-I-Z-G-O-D, RizGod, baby!"We have. I'm super pumped. I mean, I'm sure you're gonna ask; we'll talk about it. But literally, maybe it's 12 days ago now that I was literally just here playing Season 49. And 12 days later, here I am talking to you about Season 50. So you know it's been done before: Russell, Malcolm Rupert. But the fact that now I am in one of that illustrious company is pretty f—king unreal.Let's talk about that quick turnaround. What's your headspace right now? Is it a matter of keeping your heart rate up, like a light jog? Or did you have to take time to decompress and reset before your second season?I think I'm one of the more sadistic people in terms of my love for Survivor. After 49 finished, I was like, "Dude, I can do this thing again. This was the best thing I've ever done in my life. Like, I'll literally do it again." And to put it into perspective, hours before I board my flight back home from Fiji, production pulls me to the side. And I walk into a room, and Jeff Probst is on a Zoom call. I'm like, "Oh my god, Jeff does this with everybody. This is great." I'm like, "Jeff, what's up, man!" We're best friends at this point. And then he does his whole spiel. I even forget what he said. But long story short, he basically said, "How do you feel about coming back for 50?" So I knew I was gonna be on 50 before I even talked to my family. So I went home and my parents, my girlfriend, everybody's waiting for me. They start crying, "Oh my god, Rizzo, blah, blah, blah." And I'm like, "Damn it, I'm gonna start crying now!" And I was like, "Guys, you've got to stop crying. Because in nine days, I'm gonna be back in Fiji playing Survivor 50." And the turnaround, honestly, the whole time, has just been reflecting and like, "I just did that." Three months ago, the premiere of 48, when it's all "this is what you're gonna vote for, for Survivor 50," I didn't even know I was playing Survivor 49. So I'm literally voting for what legends I want to see play 50, and how I want the game to be. Only later to find out that I'm not only playing Survivor 49, but I'm now playing Survivor 50 with all these people I idolized growing up watching. I basically voted for the game I'm playing now. So, to go back to your question, I don't feel mentally or emotionally taxed at all. The only thing I'd say is physically, I was already a skinny guy. So the weight that I lost, I didn't gain back. But it'll come back eventually. You don't get to play Survivor twice, let alone Survivor 50. So I couldn't care less.Let's talk about your perception right now. When we talked before 49 started, you had spoken about the "RizGod" persona, and how you wanted to keep that in the confessionals. Unfortunately, you and the "RizGod" moniker are highlighted in the trailer for 49, which this cast saw just before coming here. So how do you think people are viewing you, considering what they got of you in that 15-second clip?So I'm actually super stoked that my preview to the whole world is literally my schtick. It's so great. But in terms of my perception, I'm maybe 10% worried, 90% I'm really not. Because at the end of the day, I'm playing with Coach, I'm playing with Q. I'm playing with literally insane people. And I'm playing with great strategists like Aubry, Cirie. I'm playing with comp beasts like Jonathan, Joe, Colby. Everybody has a reason for being here. And if they think my reason for being here is I'm this young super fan that has a self-proclaimed nickname, I'd honestly rather that be my perception than if they had the opportunity to actually watch 49. Because I think if people watch 49 and I came back, I would have been in a lot more trouble than my little silly nickname, to be honest. And that's the most I'll go into it. And the "RizGod" thing, I told you back in 49, it's kind of endearing. It's a confessional kind of thing. But once you get to talk to me and get to talk to Rizo, I don't really come across that way. And this is the oldest average age cast we've had in a long time. I mean, besides Charlie and Dee, I'm the youngest by a long shot. There's a lot of people in their late 40s, early 50s. I'm probably the same age as most of these people's kids. So that's kind of what I'm gonna play into. Like, "Listen, I'm a big superfan. I had this 'RizGod' thing, but let me explain why I call myself 'RizGod.'" That's kind of the direction I'm heading.Are you going to tell the truth about what happened on 49 when asked? Or are there some things you're not going to disclose to everyone else?So if I was by myself, I think I would have fabricated the truth. However, knowing that Savannah is here with me, I'm telling everything.You didn't collude on a story going into this season?Well, the thing is — I can't go more into detail, that's all I'll say. We didn't, no. Because the thing is, if I could say one thing, and if Savannah says another thing, both of us are screwed. And I think the better mantra is just to be honest and forthcoming. Because when I think of all the people who have done back-to-backs, historically, they've all done really well. Russell went back-to-back FTCs. Amanda went back-to-back FTCs. Rupert went to the Final Four. Everybody's done well. I mean, I'm hopeful that nobody really cares. Because I look at people like Colby and Ozzy, and I bet my bottom dollar they haven't watched Survivor in the last few years. So I don't think they really care about me being on 49. But these new era people definitely care. Kyle won and then saw my face. And, in my opinion, I might be wrong. But I think the new era players are a lot more intertwined than maybe the old-school players. I don't know when the last time Cirie and Colby had a heart-to-heart conversation. Obviously, they played Heroes vs. Villains. People have played other games with each other. But as a fan, looking at new era, they go to all these charity events, all these meet and greets. They go to all these watch parties. Just because Genevieve is the only one from 47 doesn't mean that she doesn't know Q or Tiffany or Charlie. So I think the new era players are going to be more threatened by me than the old school players, which is why I prefer to work with pre-new era personally. Because I think I can intermingle with them better.
Related: Meet the Full Cast of Survivor 50Well, let's give you a chance to showcase that preseason philosophy. We're gonna play a game called "Friend or Foe." I'm going to give you a name of someone on the cast, and you have to tell me if they're someone you want to work with, or someone you see as an enemy or threat. Starting with Jenna.Friend. What better way to have a story? Because, well, the first time Jenna Lewis played Survivor, I couldn't even walk yet. She's the first season; I'm the most recent season. And honestly, I like how Jenna played Al-Stars. She was loyal, and she did target all the winners. But with two winners being here, that means she's not going to target me first. And I feel like she's looking for a home. She's only played with Colby. If I'm forthright with, "Jenna, I want to work with you," I think we should go a long way. How about Colby?Friend. I think Colby isn't threatening to me at all. I think if Colby was 26, like in Australian Outback, I'd be like, "Holy s—t." But Colby is in his 50s now. If he plays this season like how he played Heroes vs. Villains, I'd rather him work with me and just be a number. And I think that's what I anticipate. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Colby comes out and is bats—t crazy. But I don't think so, so I'm gonna go with Friend for Colby. Stephenie.Friend as well. I am a big Stephenie fan. And I know she's played Snake in the Grass and Traitors with Cirie, and this is her fourth time. But I think she has a lot to prove in terms of Survivor. When she played Heroes vs. Villains, I think she was the second boot. And then Guatemala, she went from hero to villain. And I feel like she still has a lot to prove left in her Survivor journey. And why not let me help her?You mentioned her before. Give me your thoughts on Cirie.Oh my god, Twitter, don't hate me. But I'm gonna go with Foe. Because listen, as a fan, sure, I love Cirie. But as a player, it's a totally different ball game. Cirie's played Survivor six times now with Australia vs. the World. She's won The Traitors. She almost won Big Brother. I think she won Snake in the Grass. You name it, she's done well in everything. Okay, maybe [I'll work with her] for a vote or two. But she is not on my long-term plans.I know you're a Big Brother fan as well. Are you gonna try to talk to her about her time in the house?I'll ask. But I don't want to be a kiss-ass. Be like, "Oh my God, how was playing with your son on Big Brother?" I don't think so.How about Ozzy?I'll lean Foe. Because I just don't have any intention with working with Ozzy. Ozzy literally has played four times, and it's been the same game every single time. It's either he comps his way to the end, or he gets super arrogant and cocky, and he gets blindsided as one of the first few jurors. So I would go with Foe.Coach.100% Friend. And here's the reason why. If I get South Pacific Coach, Foe. But if I get the Coach that I fell in love with…If you remember, I talked about Survivor: Tocantins being my love. JT and the tooth is who I love. And I still remember as an eight-year-old kid watching the Final Five episode with Exile Island, which is doing the tai chi and literally breaking down mentally. And if you would have told eight-year-old Rizzo, 18 years later, he would be playing Survivor 50 with Coach, I would have thought it's a fever dream. Coach and RizGod speaking strategy is something I never thought would happen. But it's a very good possibility. If I can make that happen, I will make it happen. So Friend.He could give you another nickname!Oh my god, the Prodigy. I already know. I've already had it planned. Mike, you don't understand. I've been thinking of this very moment my entire life. I don't want to even call me the "RizGod." You have the Warrior, the Wizard. Now I want to be the Prodigy. Because I want to be the next generation. I want to be the next JT for the next era of people. So I want to be the Prodigy by Coach.How about Aubry?I lean more Friend than Foe. I think Aubry is another one that has a lot to prove, because obviously, and we'll get to the next person that is going to come up. But the word "robbed" gets thrown around so much nowadays. And Aubry played a great game, but I don't think she was robbed. And then she comes back in Game Changers, has a pretty small edit, doesn't really show her Kaôh Rōng Aubry. And then she gets dog walked by new players on Edge of Extinction. So I think Aubry has a lot to prove. And as a strategist, and someone that feels like they have a good strategy for the game, I feel like we can align more than we'll be against each other.You were just alluding to her. Give me your thoughts on Chrissy.Chrissy is Friend. She is the number one person I want to work with in this cast. She is top of my list. Ryan is my mom's favorite player. And the reason why we love HHH is because I viewed Chrissy like my mom, and my mom viewed Ryan as me. It almost felt like, if we ever played Survivor, we'd play like that. So this is almost me paying homage to my mother and working with Chrissy.But Chrissy, and there's a lot of people that agree with me. But I genuinely feel like she was robbed, probably the most robbed person ever. And I'll give a brief explanation. When you think of Charlie, when you think of Ozzy, when you think of all these other players that were runner-ups, they could have controlled who they sat with at the end. Chrissy literally couldn't control it. Ben had an idol at eight, seven, six, five. And then she gets told it's Final Four Firemaking in the last minute. How can you even control that? I think it was just the "Ben bombs" the jury was eating up. I think Chrissy played a complete game that she should have won, which is why I want to work with her, because she has a lot to prove. But also, out of 24 people on this cast, 21 people have played with someone. Only three people haven't: Chrissy, Genevieve and Jonathan. And as someone that is an unknown — I mean, I'm gonna tell everyone how I did. But I want to be that known factor to Chrissy. I want her to feel like I'm her new Ryan, and I hope we can turn the tables. I don't know Chrissy's relationships in terms of the alumni. The only thing I know is that her and Angelina are pretty close, because I saw a picture on Twitter before I got out here. But also, in terms of pregame, everybody is doing a lot better of a job than 49 in terms of not giving it away — for many reasons. But I will say Chrissy has shown that her and Angelina are really cool. Like, they'll giggle or whatever from time to time. So that's probably my only worry. But Chrissy is number one on my list.So then talk to me about Angelina. Does that give you any pause on the possibility of working with her?Honestly, all the David vs. Goliath people are all Foes for me, and I'm gonna tell you why. Angelina, if she was by herself, would be a Friend for me. But I think the tightest group of people from that season are literally all here. I mean, Mike White, Christian and Angelina, obviously, were all on White Lotus. I don't really care about White Lotus, but that's nothing to ignore. Angelina literally went to the end with Mike. And already, right off the bat, if she's close with Chrissy, if she's close with Mike White and Christian, I'm nowhere near the top of her list. So with 24 people, if I'm not at least in your top two, I don't need you. RizGod, next! Same thing with Mike White. And already Mike White's gonna have his ass kissed because people want some 10 seconds of fame after this show. I'm not here to get on White Lotus. I'm here to submit my legacy as one of the greatest players of all time. So while I would love to vote with you for a vote or two, I couldn't care less. And then Christian I would want to be a Friend. If I meet up with him, and Angelina and Mike White are not here, that would be a Friend. But same premise as the other David vs. Goliath cast members. I'm not gonna be in the top of his list. So it's a Foe for me. Rick.I'm gonna have to go Foe. I think Rick Devens is just too much. I think Rick Devens is kind of cracked like me, in a sense. We're really out there, we're really energetic, we're a lot. But I don't know. I loved watching Rick Devens. I don't know if I'd like playing with Rick Devens. There's a reason he got voted out in the premerge. The Edge helped him come back, and he, like Ben, found idol, idol, idol, and then lost in the firemaking. So to me, that's a great shield, but I don't see myself aligning with Rick Devens.
Rizo Velovic on 'Survivor 50'Robert Voets/CBS
Related: The 50 Best ‘Survivor’ Challenges Ever — According to the People Who Made Them (Exclusive)How about Genevieve? So like I mentioned with Chrissy and Charlie, Genevieve is a big, big Friend for me. And I think just looking at her game, and looking at the cast, it's people that have a second chance. It's people that trying to correct their mistakes. It's people that are trying to not tarnish their Survivor reputation. And then there's people that are trying to cement their legacy. I feel like I'm in the "cement their legacy" part. I think Genevieve is probably trying to correct some mistakes.And I don't think Genevieve played a bad game at all. I think Genevieve is one of the better strategic minds of the new era. But I think her dealing with the emotional side of Survivor really tripped her up, and really maybe lost sight of the end for her. And looking at her endgame, she was very closely aligned with Sam. And I feel like I have a lot of similarities to Sam in terms of our age, our likes and not likes. I think I could get along with Genevieve very well. And she has not played with anybody. She needs somebody to play with. Why can't it be me? And I don't think I come across as this — this is so funny — egotistical person.Let's just rewind and show that promo again.Right! But I am a very down-to-earth person. And I think she is as well, and I think we can align in that fact.Let's get into 48. Because when you played, you had only watched the first half of the season. So you really didn't get to see the dominant performance Joe put together in the endgame. What are your thoughts on him based on what you know, going into this season?So, while Chrissy is the number one person I want to work with of the women, in terms of the men, it's Joe. Joe's number one on my list. And I think it's very simple. And I know Reddit, Twitter, everybody was like, "Joe's boring. He doesn't need to come back." Now I'm playing. Joe's literal entire story of 48 was, "This is not about me anymore. This is about me helping Eva win, or me helping Kyle win." Like, what the f—k?! Help me win! That's who I want. Joe is the epitome of the best ally you can ask for. Someone that's honest, someone that's truthful, and someone that's predictable. That's exactly what Joe is. And Joe can win a lot of challenges, which is fine, that's a shield for me. And honestly, game aside, on some real personal s—t, I love Joe. Because, like I told you, my brother is autistic. And going through the whole process, obviously, I didn't see 48. So my story was, "I want to inspire my brother." And autism was never spoken about on Survivor. And literally, I think the last episode before I came out here, or the second to last, Joe having that moment with Eva. To me, it was like, "Wow." On a human level, we need more people like Joe in this world. And I'm dying at the fact that just literally thanking him personally. It's not like my brother would ever play Survivor. But if he did decide to play, knowing that there are people like Joe out there who will help somebody who probably needs that kind of help, it means the world to me. So personally, I want to work with Joe. But strategically, he just makes so much sense as an ally. How about Kamilla?Foe, 100%. I think Kamilla played a great game watching as a fan. But Kamilla's whole mantra was, "I will throw you under the bus. I will lie. I love lying. Lying is fun." And I agree; lying is fun! But lying is not fun when we're working in this game together. And I didn't have that much opportunity to hear exit interviews. I tried a little bit, but I was so locked into 50. But I feel like maybe Kyle and Kamilla weren't as tight at the start as the show kind of led on. And to me, that just means, who was Kamilla truly loyal to? Kamilla was loyal to all, and if you're loyal to all, you're loyal to none. And to me, I don't want to play that game. And I don't want her, because a lot of her game was literally just making up lies, and people believed it. So that means that she's good at doing that, which is not something I want to align with.Kyle.Kyle is like Dee. But I prefer going farther in the game with Dee than I do Kyle. Only because I think recency bias is against Kyle. I think if Kyle and Dee were flopped in terms of [timeline], and I had time to reflect, I would feel what I feel with Dee with Kyle. But listen, Kyle's loyal. Kyle is not a disloyal person. He made strategic moves and did everything, but he was a man of his word to the people that he was loyal to. So that's enticing for me. And he's always gonna be a bigger threat than I am, and that's what I want to work with. And listen, Kyle has two other people on his cast here, and he's tight with both of them. Dee and Emily Flippen, on their season, weren't tight. Dee literally idoled Emily out. But I know postseason 45 is like a cult. They all love each other. So 48, it's like Kyle, you have too many options! And very similar to how I feel about David vs. Goliath, I don't think I would be a top priority. We're both New York natives, so I feel like we can connect. So right now, I lean Friend. But in entirety, it would be a Foe.Obviously, you can't get into any specifics on what happened on 49 right now. But what are your thoughts on your relationship with Savannah going into this season?I will say this, I think I'm not shocked they picked both of us to be on 49. I don't know if I can give an answer to Friend or Foe, but I'll say this. If there was anybody on 49 to be picked, I'd prefer it to be her.Which previous player do you wish were out here on the island with you right now?I can literally give you 10 names. I'll give you four: Two men and two women. Every era has been represented in 50 besides 21 through 29. Obviously, Ozzy and Coach played in South Pacific. But to me, when I think of that era, I think of Malcolm. And the fact that he's not here is crazy to me. Because Jeff, production, the fans, the casual audience, online, all love Malcolm,. And I feel like Game Changers isn't a good way to end his story. And I thought, "What better way than a legends season?" Well, Survivor 50's not legends, but you know what I mean. This is his time to come back. And the fact that he's not here, and nobody from 21 to 29 is not here is shocking. In terms of women, Jerri Manthey not being here sucks. Not only because Colby is here, butshe is literally the OG of Survivor icons. I mean, Jenna Lewis is great. I love Jenna Lewis and Borneo representation. But I feel like Jerri is the first most notable Survivor woman to ever play. So her not being here sucks.In terms of the next man, I'm gonna say Sean Rector. But I feel like a lot of people say that, so I'm gonna switch it and do Dom from Ghost Island. Ghost Island sucks, but Dom is the closest Survivor that didn't win Survivor. And I'm shocked that he's not here. Because I feel like we need a lot more strategic minds on 50.I feel like we have a lot of comp beasts, a lot of legends and a lot of good social players, but not a lot of strategists. I think there's maybe five that I can count, so maybe that's a lot. But Dom not being here is shocking to me. And then I know I'm not shocked that she's not here, because she made it very apparent online. But put the pride aside, Survivor. Why is Carolyn not here? I can assume her going on Traitors was like her Survivor 2.0. That was her redemption arc. So Survivor's like, "You did that. We don't have that opportunity." So I get why she's not here. But she is such an interesting character that we really never seen before, and she played the game well. And for her to not be on 50, to me, is almost a travesty.Finally, what celebrity or fictional character would you bring out for a Loved Ones visit? When we did this only a couple of months ago, you went with John Cena and Derek Jeter. Do you want to double down on that double dose?No, because it's fun, we'll do it again. So the one answer that I didn't say was Luka Dončić. Luka Dončić means a lot to me, because I told you on 49, being a part of an Albanian representation means a lot. Tere isn't many Albanian people out there. And Luca is not Albanian, but he's from the Balkans. And we're the same age, so as a 16-year-old kid, I followed his journey playing at Real Madrid and then going to the NBA and being one of the biggest NBA stars. That is inspirational to me. It's like, dude, if you made it from the slums of Slovenia, I can make it too. So I would love nothing more for him to come out here and say his little spiel, "Lock in, man." He's a man of very few words, but those few words would go a long way. And then if I had to pick another one, I'm gonna go with Paul Walker. I know he's no longer with us, but another person that I looked for inspiration as a kid was Paul Walker. Brian O'Connor was the coolest person to me. The Fast and the Furious is my favorite franchise. Because, when I look at Brian O'Connor or Paul Walker, this guy goes from a police officer to a bandit to the most wanted man in America. Fast 7 had such a good ending. It's cinema. I remember as a 13-year-old kid watching that, and I cried. And it's so f—king crazy how the world works. Because he literally said — I forget the quote now. But it's basically like, "If I die behind the wheel, don't worry. That's how I wanted to die." And that's literally how he passed away. So it's so fitting. And I would love for him just to come here and like, have that moment with me.
Related: Survivor 50’s Kyle Fraser Explains How He Plans to Win Again: ‘I’m Attracted to Scary People’ (Exclusive)
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