Rizo Velovic Plans to Cement His Legacy on 'Survivor' Season 50 (Exclusive)
Rizo Velovic isn't just happy to be back in Fiji. While some returning players come back to Survivor with a chip on their shoulder or unfinished business, the Survivor 49 standout has a much bigger goal for the 50th season: legend status.
"To me, it's like, holy s--t. Now it's time to really put myself on that Survivor Mount Rushmore," the tech sales rep, 26, exclusively told Men's Journal on location in Fiji. "I feel like for me personally, I'm in the 'cement my legacy' boat rather than having something to prove."
Velovic is the youngest player competing on the milestone season, a fact he plans to lean into by seeking out "maternal" strategic shields. In fact, he has his sights set on a "mother-son" dynamic with Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers legend Chrissy Hofbeck.
"Chrissy’s relationship with Ryan [Ulrich] is something that I want to work with," he explained. "I want to work with someone that's like-minded… Chrissy and Genevieve [Mushaluk] are the two that entice me the most."
And despite his own "RizGod" persona, it wasn't lost on him that he was surrounded by legends he grew up watching on TV. From witnessingBenjamin "Coach" Wade "randomly grunting" at Ponderosa to seeing childhood idols like Colby Donaldson andJenna Lewis-Doughteryin the flesh, the self-described super fan played it cool–all the while modeling his game after Big Brother icon Dan Gheesling.
"Arrogantly, I was like, dude, they'd be crazy not to put me on 50," Velovic told MJ of his casting. "But the fact that I'm here now with the people I idolized and grew up watching? It's f--king unreal."
Below, Velovic opens up more about his "surreal" sighting of the Dragon Slayer, why he’s avoiding an alliance with a player he actually loved to watch, and why he plans to be 100 percent honest about his previous placement.
Men’s Journal: So I know you can't talk about your season yet, but tell me about coming back. Do you feel like you have unfinished business?
Rizo Velovic: Honestly? No, I really don't. I think coming back, back-to-back mind you, is kind of cementing my legacy, if you will. I'm a super duper fan. Out of everybody that's here, I can put the mortgage on it that I know more than all these people. I know how they've all placed. I know more about their Survivor journeys than they probably even remember. I'm one of those people that are always on Twitter; I'm a Survivor super fan. So for me, playing 49 was about living my dream, and I feel like I really did do that. And now the fact that they're like, "Alright, Rizo, we want you back on 50," to me, it's like, holy s--t. Now it's time to really put myself on that Survivor Mount Rushmore. I'm hoping that I can do that for 50 because I know there are some people that have unfinished business, and some people that probably don't want to tarnish their reputation. I feel like for me personally, I'm in the "cement my legacy" boat rather than having something to prove.
Men’s Journal: You’re at Ponderosa with all these legends. Were you nerding out or were you keeping it cool?
Rizo Velovic: See, Ponderosa is so interesting because the behind-the-scenes is like—obviously, we can't talk to anybody, and you don't really want to make facial reactions, because just like you, none of these people know who I am. If I act a certain kind of way, that might give a first impression of like, "Oh, this kid." Granted, I'm the youngest one here by a long shot at 25. I think the next youngest is Charlie [Davis] at 27, but after that, it's kind of just 30s and 50s, so it's kind of crazy. Looking at all these people, I almost started tearing up inside. My first season I ever watched live was Tocantins, so JT [Thomas] is like my favorite player ever. Seeing Coach here is actually f--king surreal. I'm an 8-year-old kid seeing that Exile Island episode in the final five of him just grunting and doing these weird-ass things, and I'm like, "Dude, he's not f--king real." And here I am 17 years later, and that's actually him. He’s at Ponderosa just randomly grunting. I’m already thinking, what am I going to have Coach anoint me as? He anointed the Warrior, the Wizard—can I be the Prodigy?
Men’s Journal: Who else has stood out to you?
Rizo Velovic: There are so many people. I can't believe I'm playing Survivor with Jenna. When Jenna Lewis first played Survivor, I couldn't walk. Colby is here. Stephanie [LaGrossa Kendrick]—I love Stephanie. Even seeing the 30s, like Chrissy. I love Chrissy. I love Rick [Devens]; I liked watching him. I don't know if I'd like playing with him, but there are a lot of people that I really enjoy. In the nine days I had of a break, you're online reading, "Oh, who's gonna be on 50 with me?" I feel like a lot of people aren't happy with the cast in terms of the online community, and I'm thinking to myself, "Alright, there's 750 f--king people. You have to cast different personalities." I think the group that we have are gonna play the game hard.
Men’s Journal: Who are you looking to align with from this group?
Rizo Velovic: I would say everyone, because I think I can easily work with everyone. But if I had to dwindle it down to two men and two women: For the women, my No. 1 is Chrissy. As a super fan, I know what Chrissy is capable of. Except for three people—Chrissy, Genevieve, and Jonathan [Young]—everybody is playing with somebody they've played with before. Jonathan is someone I couldn't care less to work with, but the top two women for me are Genevieve and Chrissy. They're both strategic forces. Chrissy has the record for most immunity wins; that is someone I want to align with because it's a shield for me. And Genevieve worked really well with Sam [Phalen] in 47, and I really like Sam. I think for me as a fan and as a player, Chrissy and Genevieve are the two that entice me the most.
Men’s Journal: And for the men?
Rizo Velovic: I would love, as a fan, to say Coach and Q [Burdette]. I’m the "RizGod" guy from the 49 preview. A world where RizGod, Coach, and Q are all strategically talking game would literally be f--king hilarious. But the two men I would pick—and I know he got a lot of backlash—is Joe [Hunter]. Some people might say Joe plays boring, but I'm here to win, and Joe is a very loyal person and very predictable. I know what I'll get out of Joe. He met Kyle [Fraser] on the show and said, "I'm playing for him." Well, I want him to play for me! The second one would probably be Charlie. I think Charlie and I are very similar. What works for my benefit with Charlie is that I don't think he’s friends outside of this with the people from his season. I want to work with people that aren't really well-connected because I'm not well-connected. Nobody knows who I am.
Men’s Journal: Are you going to play up the "I'm just a kid" vibe since you’re an unknown commodity and the youngest here?
Rizo Velovic: Yes and no. I can't really say, "Oh my god, I'm just a super fan, I'm happy to be here," because I'm on Survivor 50. If I just go in and act like a fan, they're gonna be like, "What the f--k is this kid doing here?" They picked me, so that must mean something. I do want to play into that younger, happy-go-lucky character because I'm pretty sure at least 40 percent of this cast have kids my age. If I can play into that—like with Jenna Lewis, Stephanie, or Chrissy—I think we can balance each other out. Chrissy's relationship with Ryan [Ulrich] is something that I want to work with, like a mother-son dynamic duo. As an unknown commodity, what better way to entice them than let them know how I did in 49? I'll be open. I will tell them how I did. I won't say how I played, but I'll say how I did and what the dynamics of my season were. It's better the devil you know than the devil you don't.
Men’s Journal: There is someone else here from your season to corroborate what you say too, right?
Rizo Velovic: Right. I'm not like Russell [Hantz] going into Heroes vs. Villains where I can say whatever I want. Someone else from my season is here. If I say one thing and they say another, then one of us is cooked. And I don't want it to be me.
Men’s Journal: Who do you plan to target? Who do you not want to work with?
Rizo Velovic: Truthfully, I really do think I can work with everyone. But it pains me to say it—because there's been nothing more than I wanted to play Survivor with Q—but realistically, I don't think I can work with Q. I think Q has a Survivor God complex. Whenever I see Q talk about 46, he talks about how he would have won the game. Working with Q, it would just be a lot of whatever he wants, and then I'm just kind of like, "Yes Q, yes Q, yes Q." I can put my ego to the side, even though I call myself RizGod, but I just think Q's ego is a lot stronger than I can handle. My ride-or-die? Absolutely not.
Men’s Journal: How do you prepare in nine days?
Rizo Velovic: It sounds crazy. Coming into 49, I'm a kid from New York City, so I had no camping experience, no outdoor experience, literally nothing. I came out to 49 and had no idea—I was so scared of s--t in the water, and I fucking did the thing. In my nine days, I was like, "What else do I have to prepare?" I know what I'm capable of. I'm going back on 50, arguably the most anticipated season of all time. I'm just gonna reflect on my game, soak it all in, hang out with my family, and then back to Fiji I go.
Men’s Journal: Is there any player you’ve modeled your game after?
Rizo Velovic: Before 49, my favorite player of all time was JT. I said if I can play like JT, I'd be golden. I'll tell you this: I played nothing like JT. The person I've always modeled my game after is Dan Gheesling from Big Brother. I think how I played 49 is very similar to BB10 Dan Gheesling.
Men’s Journal: Love that. So were you surprised you were picked so soon for 50?
Rizo Velovic: I'm a very humble person. Both my parents immigrated from Albania. I'm the first Albanian person to ever play Survivor, so that was a big thing for me—to represent my people and my country. My parents sacrificed a lot for me. My dream wasn't to be a doctor or a lawyer; it was cringely enough to be on Survivor. Arrogantly, I was like, "Dude, they'd be crazy not to put me on 50," but you never expect it. 49 wraps, and before I even go on my flight, I get a Zoom call from Jeff [Probst]. Jeff's like, "Rizo, before you go home, just wanted to say, how would you feel doing 50?" I was like, "You're trolling, right? This is not real." He’s like, "Nope, it’s real." I go home and my parents and girlfriend are crying because they missed me, and I’m like, "Stop crying, because I'm gonna be gone again in nine days for Survivor 50." They were losing their minds. It's f--king unreal.
The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.