Survivor

This group of strangers

has agreed to be abandoned in the Fijian islands.

They come from different backgrounds...

I was born three months early with mild cerebral palsy.

The doctor said, "You know, he's not gonna walk.

He's gonna be in a wheelchair."

Cultures...

Growing up in Nigeria was likeSurvivor.

You know, it was like survival of the fittest.

And experiences.

I played Division I lacrosse.

I was in a moped accident that caused me

to lose my left leg above the knee.

And then I became a Paralympian.

And I hold the United States record for the 100-meter.

But despite their differences,

they must rely on each other in order to survive.

My biggest asset as a teacher is being able to connect.

I always hear people get on this show, and they say,

"I'm not here to make any friends."

And I'm like, "Well, I am."

Be my friend.

Let's have an authentic and genuine connection and bond.

That way, when I get to the end, you can vote me the million.

And then we can go out for pizza and coffee afterwards.

Being 19 and as young as I am, I am way more than just my age.

I'm actually attending Brigham Young University right now.

So, I'm, like, a student, pet cremator,

business owner hybrid. I'm all this.

I'm all these things. Like, look at me.

I think I'm just a fun and "energible"...

I don't know if that's a word... "energible" person.

And I don't think I cater to one specific group.

I can cater to anybody.

I am unapologetically Survivor's biggest fan.

I mean, I've lovedSurvivor

longer than I've known my husband,

my kids, my nursing career.

I've spent the last 22 years imagining this moment.

It's finally here. I get one shot at it.

What am I gonna do with it?

Growing up in a tough environment,

I'm a very adaptable and a very resilient person.

That's how I've gotten to where I am today in life.

When I've been tired, when I've been beaten down,

when I've been told no, that's my time to shine

and kick ass.

I'm gonna play the game as hard and as fast as I can...

just like I do my life.

Just like the way I surf.

Just like the way I go out on a weekend.

And I'll be honest with you, I've already spent part of it.

So I really need, I really need the million bucks.

They'll form a new society

where they decide the rules

of how this million-dollar game is played.

I'm not gonna sit around and wait

for other people to determine my game.

I make my fate. I make my game.

It's up to them who stays and who goes.

One thing I do as a psychologist

is get people to do things that they don't want to do.

They'll figure it out once their torch is getting snuffed.

Each player must learn

to adapt to their new society,

or they'll be voted out.

I want the game to be chaotic.

I want no one to know what's going on.

For me, that's my comfort zone.

In the end, only one will remain

to claim the million-dollar prize.

I want this so bad.

I used to daydream about seeing my name up

in the opening credits.

I'm buckled up and I'm ready for the ride.

Let's do this.

Who will have what it takes

to outwit, outplay and outlast all the rest?

This is Survivor 43.

Come on up.

When you pull up and you see Jeff standing there,

it's just the most surreal thing that you can imagine.

I honestly felt like

kind of out-of-body experience.

And I'm like, "Whoa. Shoot. I'm here."

Like, I am a part of it, and

it's intense.

All right.

- - Welcome to Survivor 43.

It's here.

- Oh! - Yes.

I can feel the energy.

Woman in the front right in the yellow dress.

- What's your name? - My name is Jeanine.

- 'Cause, you... It's... - Yeah. Sorry.

This has been... Honestly, I just...

I can't even believe I'm here,

and this has been a dream for not only my lifetime

but my father's, and so it's-it's just

a dream of two lifetimes, really.

What's the connection with your dad and Survivor?

This was his first favorite American TV show

when he immigrated from China, so,

he used to be a sweet potato farmer back in China,

and to now be a biology professor

- with his PhD here... Wow.

And having a daughter be on the show

is just beyond all of our wildest dreams.

Guy in the back, in the blue shirt... what's your name?

- Oh, James. - James, how about you?

When'd you find Survivor?

When Richard Hatch was sitting on the tree.

- - Day one. - Day one.

I remember Earl winning,

uh, his season.

For me, it was just good to see that...

You know, I'm from Philadelphia, and to see somebody that

looked like me, similar background, go to an island,

live on dirt, and come out and win a million dollars...

it just got me excited about the game,

and I've kind of been watching ever since, so...

Guy in the back right with the beanie?

- Yes, sir. - What's your name?

- Gabler. Mike Gabler. - Gabler.

When did you discover Survivor?

Jeff, I've been watching since the very beginning

when our children were still being created.

And my wife, basically, when they hatched...

we-we started watching as a family like everybody else did,

and we make it a Survivornight every week.

- I'm proud to be here. - Glad to have you here.

Woman in the middle... what's your name?

- Noelle. - Noelle,

when did you first start watching Survivor?

I first started watching Survivor

probably when I was about ten years old.

My mom loved this show, but she said

she could never play it.

So I said, "You know what?

I'll apply and I'll play for both of us."

And then I lost my leg, Jeff.

- And then, hey. - You lost it after you applied?

Yeah, I lost my leg when I was 19 years old,

and losing my leg is the best thing

that's ever happened to me, you know?

It made me realize the importance in life.

Having something like this happen to you...

it just really made me think, "You know what?

This is... it's just a leg."

And I don't want to look back and regret my life.

I want to look back and be proud of it.

And the beautiful game of Survivorand how it has evolved

is the reason why I even wanted to keep showing up

and keep applying and try to get on the show, because

it's almost accepted and encouraged to be different.

And I'm just grateful to be here and to be able to prove myself

and show that amputees are badasses.

You know, I got a few leg jokes along the way,

- so I hope I can tell you guys. -

All right, so I've heard a lot.

Let me see if I can encapsulate what we've just talked about.

Survivoris a lot of things.

First and foremost, it's a game.

It's a great game, and one of the things

that makes it so great is, anybody can play

because there really aren't many rules.

You form a community with a bunch of strangers

where you decide how that society will function.

You decide how the game will be played...

slow, fast, safe, dangerous.

You are forced to rely on each other

to live in a jungle on an island

while simultaneously voting each other off the island

in pursuit of a million dollars.

Pretty tremendous. But Survivoris also an adventure.

All of you got up off the couch,

applied because you want that adventure.

You want to leave that normal life behind for a moment,

fly across the world to be tested

in ways you can't imagine.

It's terrifying,

and yet you're all smiling.

- - Because it's also exhilarating.

So if you can just let go

of expectation and instead give yourself permission

to play, you can change your life.

You can change how you see yourself,

you can change how you see the world, you can change

how others see you, because being here takes courage.

I'm glad each of you are here.

I hope Survivorgives you what you seek,

and I also hope you'll stay open

to receiving what Survivorthinks you need.

Shall we get into it?

All right.

Tribe names. Wearing red, you are Vesi.

- - Yeah.

In the middle, in yellow... Baka.

- Baka! -

And on the end, in blue... Coco.