Survivor’s [Spoiler] on the ‘Mergatory’ Rock Draw That Sunk Her Game: ‘I Was Genuinely in Shock’
The following contains spoilers from Wednesday’s episode of Survivor 46.
That may have been the wildest rock draw in the history of the “mergatory.”
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In Wednesday’s episode of Survivor, Moriah was dealt a tough hand after losing the merge challenge to a team full of physical threats. With Siga’s tight-knit relationships out in the open, the former Yanu and Nami tribes knew they wanted to split up their adversaries, thus putting Moriah’s name on the chopping block alongside Nami’s Venus.
Despite Venus’ attempt to switch the target to Charlie, Moriah couldn’t shake her strategist perception, and she was voted out of the game in an almost-unanimous vote. (Read our recap here.)
Below, she talks to TVLine about her chat with the “stubborn” Q, the rock draw for the record books and how name-dropping Survivor: Kaôh Rōng runner-up Aubry Bracco partially led to her downfall.
TVLINE | Siga’s tight knit bond ultimately threatened the other two tribes. Was there any hiding how close the Sigas were?
MORIAH GAYNOR | I really don’t think so. In Survivor, you’re looking at everything at all times, and so before the merge, we had a little thing called challenges which happened in front of the other tribes. You look over at us and they called us “perfect hug height” because we’re this little tribe that just kept doing OK. There really was no other explanation than we notably worked well together. We were good at encouraging people. We played the challenges smartly. So, when you’re performing like that, that’s a narrative that people have already developed based on what you’ve shown them.
TVLINE | Looking back, how should Siga have played that situation at the merge? Was there anything you guys could have done to avoid or change that perception?
I think it’d be tough to battle that perception. Not only do you have these challenges, but you also have these journeys. So the tribes have, in a way, already talked. Information had already been shared. The other thing is that for “mergatory,” when you have a five v. five with three in the middle, it’s not really about picking up a stray. It’s about convincing those three in the middle that you’re the right side to go with. And we know that Nami was a hot mess. It was apparent from the beginning. You have Venus standing off in the corner. You have some people walking off into the woods. They’re like, “Yeah, we just do our own thing here,” and it’s just such a different mentality. So, in a weird way, we couldn’t compete with Nami saying, “No, no, no, we’re the bigger mess,” because that was never gonna fly. We would bring something else to the table to offer [Yanu] and say, “No, they’re a mess and that’s a bad choice for you.” So at least for “mergatory,” it was about making this case of, “Come with us to the Final 8.”
TVLINE | Q didn’t like that you name dropped Aubry in your discussion with him. Did you ever think a small detail like that would’ve made such an impact?
Actually, I did. I’m aware of the way I talk, the way I walk, the way I look, and that was gonna be something I was going to be battling in this… you have 12 hours to meet, assess and evaluate 13 people. I knew that especially with him, I was going to be fighting an uphill battle just because he’s a very direct, traditional Ole Miss footballer, and I’m like, “I don’t think you’re gonna read me, man.” So in this conversation with him, when he asked my favorite player, I’m wasn’t going to lie. I wanted to bring it out in the open and address it head-on because it’s very clear that I would like Aubry, so I wanted to at least craft it in a way of, “I liked her because of her impact on me.” Even in our conversation that they show, I never said anything about her game intentionally. I never said, “Oh, I loved her in this season or that season.” It was very much, “I loved her because this is the impact she had on me. This is what I took away from watching her play.” So that was something I did think about and I tried to at least get away with the framing, but even just invoking the “A” name was spooky-scary, you know?
TVLINE | Well, listen, at least Aubry is getting the respect that she deserves here!
Yes, very much so!
TVLINE | Why do you think the group targeted you as opposed to Charlie, like Venus wanted, and did you ever consider just cutting the rope on Siga?
Absolutely. It really comes down to who’s at the [merge feast] table making the decisions. You have a clear majority. You have seven at that table and you have six of us at camp, so whatever name they’re bringing up is the name. The only two people on Siga at that table were Tim — he and I just didn’t really have that many conversations — and Ben, who I had written his name down like 24 hours ago. There was no way in hell they’re giving up Charlie or Maria’s name because they’re aligned.
Regarding cutting ties with Siga, I put out feelers. There is a reason Venus said — even when we’re talking and Tim is kind of babysitting me — she was even able to read, “Mo’s giving off a vibe. I can tell she’s ready to jump ship.” I was just like, “Get through “mergatory.” Figure it out.” But even at Tribal, I literally said in front of 12 people, “No, I’m on the bottom. The Siga vote wasn’t unanimous.” And the first thing someone said was, “Is that true?” I am declaring this on national TV in front of 12 of you and you’re still fact checking me? So, at that point, they painted me as a strategist. They painted me as a super sly, sleek, crafty player. Anything that I say they’re going to think is a lie.
TVLINE | Q made it seem like your reveal was too little, too late. When you told everyone you were actually on the bottom of Siga, did you think that was going to make a bigger splash?
No, I mean Q is a very stubborn player. He’s a very stubborn person and especially at “mergatory,” you have seven people. The second they come back with that name, you know you’re done. You’re kind of sunk. It’s a tidal wave. They have seven people. A majority. I think the too little, too late for me was not going on a journey and meeting them earlier. Making an impression. Once your name is out there…
TVLINE | That challenge rock draw was something. Thoughts on how those teams shook out?
I was genuinely in shock. I was worried about bugs in my mouth at some point because I was just standing there, mouth agape, for probably three or four minutes. I was literally in shock because I’m also doing this mental math of like, “Could it actually have worked out worse?” And the answer is no, it couldn’t. Not only did we have the physically weaker players, but there was literally zero Yanu on our tribe. And the only two people from Siga not with me were the two people who probably could have been painted as bigger targets and probably the people who would least go to bat for me. I’ve had a few months to ruminate on this, but I do not think there was a single rock draw that would have been worse for me.
TVLINE | Was the puzzle at the end of the challenge as close as the edit made it seem?
Not only was it a little bit closer at the end, it was a bigger comeback too. When we got to the puzzle, we were a full section and a half behind. And we were able to do the first section with Maria and Liz. Then when Soda and I got to the middle part of the puzzle, originally I was going to do the left and she was going to do the right, but I ended up helping Soda on her side until about halfway, then swinging back and doing my side. So we were able to catch up and I think we only lost by seven or eight pieces, which is incredible considering we started behind by like 40.
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