A Letter to US Fans of Survivor

In partnership with

America. 

You have now borne witness to Australia’s David, our Golden God. 

His epic domination of the Deal or No Deal Island finale made global television history. Not to mention finishing the job that Boston Rob couldn’t 😉

Survivor: Australia vs. the World is coming soon. 

You’ll learn that down under, we’re built different.

Squint your eyes and cover your ears and we might seem similar. JLP is a hotter version of Jeff. We cast more brawny players, though our diversity agenda hasn’t quite caught up.

But there are two key cultural traits that set Australians apart from Americans—and they manifest in the game of Survivor.

Sweeping generalizations can get you in hot water, but sit right down, folks, because here’s the tea.

1. We don’t really like successful people.

2. Self-deprecation is survival.

Tall Poppy Syndrome in Australia is real.

ChatGPT tells me: “Tall Poppy Syndrome originates from the idea of cutting down tall poppies to make them the same height as the rest, symbolizing an aversion to individual success that stands out.”

In short: We criticize, tear down, and resent people who are just a bit too successful, beautiful, rich, or funny.

Trying too hard? Bad. Chill out. Don’t take things too seriously.

And this is where Point 2 kicks in.

If you stick your neck out and express an opinion, you can always retreat to safety with self-deprecation. Criticize yourself. Cut your own poppy down before someone else can. Don’t give the haters a window to sneak their attacks through.

Jump between Points 1 and 2 enough times, and you can turn anyone who stands for anything into a paralyzed, stuttering mess that everyone can laugh at. The joke is on you, sucker.

In the States, you can stand up at Final Tribal Council, declare, I AM THE GREATEST AND HERE’S WHY, and possibly win—unless your name is Russell Hantz. Not in Australia. Humility, hard work, and grit Must. Be. Acknowledged.

So in a game where you have to convince others that you played the best game, how do Aussie players navigate this contradiction?

The truth is—many don’t. Countless Australian Survivor players stick to the status quo, making for some regrettable gameplay.

For fear of standing out, they reluctantly go with the flow, hide behind vague concepts of “mateship,” and sail off into the sunset when their goose is cooked. Nothing gained, nothing lost.

(This was particularly true in the early days of Aussie Survivor, though in the AG era - AFTER GEORGE - Aussie players are becoming more Hollywood and less Hobart. But let’s not allow facts to derail the argument.)

So, in a global contest of the best of the best, will our Aussie players be lambs to the slaughter—easy prey for Parvati, Tony, and Cirie?

Hell bloody no.

Because in Shonee, George, and Kirby, we have players who know how to weaponize these annoying cultural traits to their advantage.

Shonee.

To people’s faces, Shonee leans into both aspects—pretending to be silly, unserious, and sometimes bored by the whole shebang. To the big egos, her focus on margaritas over manipulation screams, “she’s no threat.”

But behind the façade, Shonee quietly plots to take down the big dogs—and when she strikes, she delivers blows with the heat of Lady Liberty’s flame.

In All-Stars, while everyone else was ignoring her, Shonee found a clue to an immunity idol, LIFTED THE WATER WELL to retrieve it, and then played it correctly. Most players struggle to do one of those things well.

With her sassy one-liners and easy-going schtick, Shonee assembled a formidable posse and took out a swathe of enemies.

At the merge, she deployed Wonder Woman-like social powers to flip a crucial vote and take down alpha-dog Zach—a rare disruption to golden god and DONDI star David’s stranglehold on the game.

With a single devastating eye-roll, wannabe haters were reduced to shrivelled sultanas.

And that barely scratches the surface of our soon-to-be four-time player.

George.

The reason George is George is that he takes a sledgehammer the size of Texas and smashes these stupid social rules into smithereens.

He shocks the socks off timid souls. Upon impact with King George, people recoil like they’ve gulped a mouthful of piping hot tea.

Did George just say that?

Is that an idol tattooed on his chest?

That’s not in the spirit of the game!?!

By breaking this social contract, George carves out space to play on his own terms. He attacks the establishment—the alphas and haters—while fighting for (or at least appearing to fight for) the underdogs, the battlers, and the down-trodden. 

In Brains v Brawn, George blew up the first tribal council to save players traditionally looked down upon as weak. Even in his chaos, George still invests in allies. His friendship with Kara springs to mind, but Gerry almost gave up the game to let George through to Final Tribal Council!

So is George the truly benevolent King of Bankstown or a ruthless tyrant?

Depends on who you ask.

Kirby.

Never in Australian Survivor have we seen such a proud and strong Indigenous Australian woman in the game—and what a pleasure it was to watch.

At the start, Kirby laid in the long grass, observing, analyzing, assessing. She disguised her career as a professional athlete. She mocked her own fitness, constantly pointing to Viola’s incredible 10-pack of abs.

Don’t shine bright. Don’t stand out.

But as the game evolved, Kirby stopped playing by “the rules.”

Who the hell wrote these rules anyway? Certainly not Kirby.

The old guard was dull, and Kirby wanted to have fun. She drew lines in the sand and claimed to be the best. And the reason it worked?

She flipped Point 1 on its head.

Kirby was confrontational, forcing her opponents to take a stand, to own their positions—something most Aussies hate. Squirming at the direct attack, many would respond by trying to call out Kirby’s brashness.

With deft charm and a grin, she would point out the folly of getting emotional.

It’s just a game, after all.

Like moths to a flame, players scrambled to exist in Kirby’s orbit.

That’s power.

So, what have we learned?

To be a great Australian Survivor player, you need to understand—and exploit—the hidden social codes that shape our culture.

Play too big, and you’ll get cut down. Play too small, and you’ll fade into irrelevance.

But the best players?

They know when to strike, when to self-deprecate, and when to let others destroy themselves.

And what about the US players?

Parvati, Tony, and Cirie are legends for a reason. They’ll sniff out these quirks in no time and twist them to their advantage.

But there’s one more secret weapon the Yanks can deploy.

Despite all our talk of cutting down tall poppies, deep down, Aussies love a bit of American flair.

If a US player leans into a little silliness—flashes a bit of that reckless, larger-than-life charm and mocks themselves just a wee bit—we’ll eat it up.

Because, for all our “we’re built different” bravado…

a part of us secretly yearns to be so bold.

Now let’s rewatch that DONDI finale one more time. Congratulations DAVID!

-Mark Warnock

Mark was 3rd place on Survivor Australia’s epic Titans v Rebels season.

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