Joe Hunter Admits He's 'Scrambled' Over Returning for 'Survivor 50' With Allies Who Betrayed Him (Exclusive)
Joe Hunter is back in Fiji, but his head is still in the game he just left. Filming for Survivor 50 began just a week after he saw his Season 48 journey end at Final Tribal Council, and the "hard currency" of trust he values so much seems to be in short supply.
The fire captain, 46, isn't hiding the fact that his emotions are still very "fresh." "I just basically on national television saw two people that I played with a week ago give me a wedgie or pants me," Hunter exclusively told Men's Journal of castmates Kyle Fraser and Kamilla Karthigesu, both of whom are back on the beach with him for the milestone season. "I’m completely scrambled with them, to be honest."
For him, the decision to return so quickly was a "great sacrifice." With young kids at home, he admits that missing the "developing years" of his "little people" is the only part of the experience that stresses him out. But the call for Season 50 was an honor he couldn't pass up. "You can’t get those hours or minutes back," he told MJ. "With my job and what I do, you’re never guaranteed to come home. So the moments that I get, I don’t take it lightly…to me, this is a big deal coming out here, but it's also a great honor."
While he respects the "brilliant" strategic minds of New Era players like Genevieve Mushaluk and Emily Flippen, he finds himself gravitating toward the "like-minded principles" of old school legends like Colby Donaldson and Benjamin "Coach" Wade.
Below, Hunter breaks down his "jumbled" reunion with his Season 48 castmates, the "awkward" vibes at Ponderosa, and why he’s playing for more than just the million dollars.
Men’s Journal: Talk to me about being back so soon after your season wrapped. How are you feeling?
Joe Hunter: Oh, I mean, well, first and foremost, right? The biggest, probably strongest emotion is gratitude just for being here. I mean, more than anything. Because if you look at the big theme of this, and the overall picture of 50, just to be considered, let alone be here, I feel is an honor. I’m just trying to also enjoy that moment of that. And then, I mean, think about it—how do you put into words when you have a combination of players from basically Season 1 over the past two and a half decades to now? Age range of late 20s to mid-50s. Some have played, this will be their fifth time. Some four. Some have won five challenges, and on and on. So, I mean, going into it, I just try to remember the basic things that got me to the end last time, and hopefully I'll do it again.
Men's Journal: Are you going to try to play the same game or switch it up?
Joe Hunter: Well, you know, for me, there's kind of just really one way to do it, and it’s this simple: once I had kids, that changed everything for me. Because maybe when I was 21 or 22 playing this game without kids, maybe I would be different. But here's how I look at it: one, here I am trying to raise little people. And it’s no disrespect to those that play it another way. But to me, it's like, "Hey, here's how I want you to live your life. Here's how I want you to try to act." But when it comes to money, "Do whatever you want"? It’s a tough sell for me to say, "Hey, even if it's a game, lie, cheat, steal, do whatever you have to." And so I’m trying to frame it more coming into this game, instead of thinking about what are you willing to do for a million dollars, it’s: what am I not willing to do? Right? And set that hard line, and that’s just what I’m going to do.
And then when it comes to my game, listen—I think people focus on people like Kyle [Fraser] and Kamilla [Karthigesu]. They focus on other alliances and focus on the blindside. The blindside doesn't work without someone trusting you. What did they do the best out of anybody to get there? They trusted each other. Look at any other duo or group; at some point they had an undeniable amount of trust. So my argument would be sure, and we’ll look at the seasons where no one trusted anybody. What happens at Tribal? There's eight names. Every name is thrown out, right? My name... but when you have trust, you need that to then vote somebody out. It’s like, "Hey, we got to gang up on this person." So my sell, I guess, will be: I exactly am what I am, and it’s hard currency. It’s hard cash right now for you. Sure, if you want to use it as "I don't strategize," fine. If you want to use it as whatever you need to get me to the end with you, and then let’s see who can last.
Men’s Journal: Do you want to find your Eva [Erickson ] out here? Or is someone going to try to be your Eva?
Joe Hunter: You know, there's only one Eva. But I would honestly say that that’s the hope. I mean, I know that everyone says, "What’s kind of your motivation?" But honestly, helping people, helping a group, and having that investment in someone does help motivate me. It helps me stay focused more on the task at hand than getting to the big picture. Because I think a lot of times people think about how many challenges they want to win, or what tribal is going to look like. I’m like, listen, if we just focus on one step at a time and keep it small, it takes away some other pressure. And I’m just trying to focus on genuine relationships. That's really it. It sounds simple, but it’s harder to do than people think.
Men’s Journal: And that's what got you very far.
Joe Hunter: That’s my goal. I think people always ask—or what I saw playing it back for my season was—"Why aren't they writing down his name? Why aren't they writing it down?" There was a reason. There was a reason. And it's not that it’s fake. It’s like my currency is going to be, "Hey, I want to be in a healthy and strong relationship." It’s vulnerable, yeah, and you can’t deny it. And so to me, it comes with a great risk, because you can get knocked flat on your butt. However, somebody is going to need it. And I just hope I pick the right group or person.
Men’s Journal: Are you concerned about how the tribes will be divided?
Joe Hunter: It’s the only part of Survivor that I truly stress about, because it’s the one part really out of your hands, and it can dictate your entire game. I mean, and when people want to deny Survivor luck, it is true. Now they have a scheme, but who you end up with, without a doubt, will dictate...I mean, it could dictate to the merge. Depending on if your tribe is winning, and then if there's a tribe swap and that tribe wins, you could win out to the merge. And yeah, that is terrifying.
Men’s Journal: Are you hoping Kyle and Kamilla aren't on your tribe?
Joe Hunter: I mean, look, so the juice behind it is, like, it’s hard, right? I just basically on national television saw two people that I played with a week ago give me a wedgie or pants me, and then one slapped me afterwards. So, it’s fresh. If I want them on my tribe, that’s tricky, because you don’t want to burn bridges with anybody. So on one hand, I don’t want to say no, but on the other hand, do I think they have a bigger target than me? I do. I mean, I could be delusional, but I think that they do, and I don’t want to be associated with that yet, because then we could be seen as some big scheming plus. When, on the other hand, I don’t want to start a war with them either, right? But here’s the reality of it: when you look at why they didn’t write my name down, the real truth behind it is, sure, a lot of it was gameplay, but we shared real truths, the three of us, of personal life, and then it was for them wrapped around the seat in the game. So how do you then move forward? It’s like an ex. It’s like, "Hey, some of this was true, some of it was not." So I’m like, completely remember the bad 100 percent, and I’m completely scrambled with them, to be honest.
Men’s Journal: You're big on loyalty, which feels very old school. Do you think you might find yourself gravitating to some of those older era players?
Joe Hunter: Oh, without a doubt, yeah. Again, I’m not going into this like, "I am not going to work with these so-and-so." But I will say this: when you look at the new school—and I’ll give examples like Genevieve [Mushaluk], Emily [Flippen], Aubry [Bracco]—extremely brilliant strategic players, okay? And that is complicated. They know game within game within game, where I tend to lean towards right now is... do I want to work with them? Absolutely. But who I’m gravitating towards is Colby [Donaldson], [Benjamin] Coach [Wade]—Coach, for sure—Stephenie [LaGrossa Kendrick], and it’s because it’s only based on past gameplay, but they seem like they have like-minded principles as I do. And that’s to answer your question: with old school players, if we want to call it that, 100 percent that’s what I’m leaning towards.
Men’s Journal: Are you picking up vibes at Ponderosa? Give me some of your observations.
Joe Hunter: I mean, the vibe, for example, Colby is like Kevin Costner, Yellowstone. Without a doubt, I see it, it’s 100 percent real. And then I look at someone like, you know, let's go with Kyle, for example. Now that I know—like Denzel Washington, but like in Training Day, like the bad one, you know? There's little things that I look at, and it’s also what trips you out as you go. But is that also part of the game? Like, is the image you're getting the book I’m reading, the crossword puzzle that I’m doing? Or is it...? And that’s what’s beautiful about this process, is where does it start? Where does it end? And so it’s so awkward also to have no communications at all with a human being. Even as you pass, you normally are like, "Hello, hello." To do nothing, and even that’s its own message. What if someone smiled and we’re not supposed to? It never stops. It’s brilliant.
Men’s Journal: Who is someone you don't see yourself working with?
Joe Hunter: I know that’s the juice, and I’m not trying to avoid it, because I normally get a vibe. But here’s what I’ve noticed with this season: I was kind of anticipating that—who am I going to get along with and who is somebody that I’m not getting a vibe from. I think—and I could be wrong, because they might be like, "Oh, I don’t want to work with Joe"—I’m not getting that vibe from anybody yet, because I feel like it’s a bunch of pros. Like, you can tell this is a group of pros. Even if they feel that way, which according to the numbers they have to, no one is giving that tell yet. I’m even watching closely and they're so stoic you can't get a read either way; they’re giving nothing. No look, nothing. And so it sounds lame, but I honestly...I will know Day 1. Once people start talking, the second we talk. But more importantly: the first challenge.
Men’s Journal: The first challenge? What do you mean?
Joe Hunter: So during the first immunity challenge, you see people at their raw form because it’s typically the most heightened sense of emotion they have. So things like fear, anger, aggression, compassion, weakness—whatever it is—is truly displayed in that moment, because it’s this anticipation. And normally someone doesn't want to go home. So instead of watching my tribe, all I do is stare at every other player. Because there’s normally a gap; like whether it’s a relay format, you’re not normally all every single tribe mate together performing something, right? There’s a stage where either I’m going first or last, and the second I’m either done or about to go, I immediately only stare at every person in the tribe. Who’s yelling? Who’s not? Who’s coaching? Who thinks they can dictate the tribe? Because normally, they’re not thinking someone’s watching. They don’t have that ability to go, "They’re watching me; I’m going to play it all right." If they’re screaming, or are they super down on themselves? Are they overly confident? You can tell a lot, because it’s raw emotion. So I gain a lot from that within the first couple minutes, and then I immediately, if they look, I look right back as if I’m not looking.
Men’s Journal: Interesting. You don’t have a lot of information in this game, especially from the other tribes. And so, that’s information, right? Is there anyone you don't want to see on your starting tribe?
Joe Hunter: Yeah, you know, I had to think about that, then it was right in my face. I guess I would say Kyle and Kamilla. And again, it’s not a personal attack on them, but the real answer is, they’re the only two that have me jumbled in terms of: what do you do with that? What do you do? And I would ask my close friends this, if they’re in this spot: "Yeah, you sit on the couch, I would do this or get them back." But if you really think about well-managed gameplay, I am who I am. I can't be fake. So I’m going to have to address it, which I don’t want to. And then what do you do? And the only other two are the two that I don't know from 49.
Men’s Journal: I was going to ask about that. What are you picking up from them?
Joe Hunter: Oh, one of them won, for sure, without a doubt. 100 percent. I mean, I can tell you right now: the girl, Savannah. She won. She’s got winner calves. So here's the deal, check it out. I can just tell by her swag. Here’s what went down between the two of them, okay? If you think about the turnaround time, the risk in that, I’m thinking, "You don't have kids, I'm assuming." That's very difficult to be away from your home for like a week or two, gone from your family life and what you have. You are extremely focused in this game. You are extremely dedicated to this process. Because anybody would argue, 50 or not, a week or two is quick to come right back—very quick.
You think about your body recovered—mentally, emotionally, physically—you're still processing what just happened, and you’re willing to go back into the fight with the best of the best. In theory, only winners do that. And you had a probably pretty good experience, and/or because if you had a horrible experience, you wouldn't be back right away. And then you look at those two and look at everybody else in the group. Either we have Jenna [Lewis-Doughtery], we have Kyle, we have winners like Dee [Valladares], or you have people who made second, made third, made fourth. You have people that had multiple seasons. They’re not going to pick someone that was first voted out, no offense to them, or they have massive potential, which is just as dangerous. So they had to do something. And the fact that we have no game film on them? We got nothing. I got nothing on them. I don’t know what they do. They could tell me anything. They could say, "Hey, I was voted out at the merge, but it was a big to-do." They could come up with anything. It’s dangerous. It can also be great for me, but it's those four—I guess it would be tough. In order, for sure, I would say Kamilla, followed by Kyle, then the two rogue agents.
Men’s Journal: Talk to me more about the winners. How do you feel about them?
Joe Hunter: Well, the easy answer is, of course. I want to work with Dee or any of the winners, because they obviously have a formula I didn't. So I would love to work with the winner. However, if history be told, look at the past—should you want to get the winners out? Probably. Do I think that they’re a bigger threat? We have Kyle, Dee, and Jenna. Jenna won too. Did she win or did Chrissy [Hofbeck] win? I think she did. I think she won back in the day. Anyways, we have more than one winner, more than one for sure. And would I get those people off early? In a perfect world, that’s tricky. I don’t see the advantage to keeping them. I don’t see the advantage, because they know the entire game and know how to win. They’re hungry for it. But I will say those on the bottom of the mountain climbing it sometimes are more hungry than the people at the top.
Men’s Journal: What does your family think about you doing this again?
Joe Hunter: It’s really hard with the kids. And I mean that, wholeheartedly. It’s difficult because I didn’t get it until I had them. I was like, "Yeah, I heard it all 1,000 times," and then once I had them, I’m like, "Wow." Because they’re at an age where they’re developing as people–6 and 11. Very soon one's going to be 7, the other going on 12, but they’re becoming little people. And what I mean by that is now it’s bigger topics: "Dad, why is this person mean to me at school?" "Why am I left out?" Or "Hey Dad, how do I handle this?" Adult things. You’re like, "Wow." Now when I miss, it’s not like, "Oh whatever, it's a couple weeks of diapers." It’s like, "Wow, they grow every day into really little people." I take a lot of pride in that. We talk nightly about big topics, you know? And you can’t get those hours or minutes back.
And with my job and what I do, you’re never guaranteed to come home. So the moments that I get, I don’t take it lightly. If I was just gone a month, I’m like, "No." I know a lot of people that said that—going to work—and never came home. So I don’t look at the world like that. Every minute matters. So to me, this is a big deal coming out here, but it's also a great honor. So it's a great sacrifice.
Men’s Journal: Were they excited, though, watching their dad on TV?
Joe Hunter: And that’s the thing I try to tell my friends. "Joe, what are you going to do in terms of with this game not winning? Now what are you doing?" I’m like, my kids, truly, they never said, "Dad, you got third," or "Dad, why didn't you win?" They were so proud of how I acted out here. And they asked all these questions: "He was really mean, and you didn't even yell at him!" The little moments that my family and friends are proud of—how I played—to me, that's what is really cool to try to do again.
Men’s Journal: You didn't take home the win, obviously, but do you think that could help you at all in this game?
Joe Hunter: I’m going to hesitate with that...Yes, I would say that it absolutely helped me. Because if you don’t win, you do have this "what if?" And even though it’s beautiful and I love her and it was great, I think people have questions about the Eva thing. Okay, "What would you or her do to each other?" Right? And not in a negative way, but like, what would happen? And so I think not winning always leaves the questions of, "Well, what if?" or "What would you play like?" So I definitely think it helped, because at the end of the day, I feel winners have a bigger target. I just do. I can’t see, especially if we’re talking about my past season. It’s so fresh. You just saw it.
Men’s Journal: If you do come back and you don't win again, what do you want to take away from the experience?
Joe Hunter: You know, it sounds really corny, and I wouldn't have had this experience or this feeling until this first season, but I’m sitting there and I thought... like the Eva event happened, and then I got to tell my story about my sister, and like—it chokes me up, because that was so real and raw. And my family, seeing your kids proud of you and your friends really proud of you is like a blessing. And so being here at this point, I feel like I can’t lose, and I’m just not going to compromise who or what I am for that. And so I’m super excited to just be considered for such an epic season.
The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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