Yahoo Lifestyle The “Survivor 45” players share first impressions of their castmates
First impressions are everything. At least they can be when it comes to the game of Survivor. And those first impressions are not made when Jeff Probst officially welcomes the cast on the first day of filming. Rather, the contestants start taking notes — both mental and actual — on the other players during the pre-game portion of the experience out in Fiji.
The castmates are not allowed to talk to each other during this time, but they certainly can — and do — observe. And those observations can impact whether they end up aligning with or against other folks once the game begins.
Robert Voets/CBS (3) Hannah Rose, Kaleb Gebrewold, and Dee Valladares of 'Survivor 45'
So what did the cast of Survivor 45 (which premieres Sept. 27 on CBS) make of each other in the days before the game? We asked them exactly that, and you can see all of their answers in the video above.
Brando Meyer has his eyes on one player in particular: "There's this huge guy, he's got this fauxhawk going on, super muscular." He's referring to Sifu Alsup, although nobody knew anyone's actual name at this point. "I've been calling him Tank in my head because that's just the vibe that he gives me, and I think that he would be really cool to work with." However, Brando did see one potential negative in an alliance with Sifu: "He eats so much food that it might be hard to keep him energized."
Alliances that can change the game are often made over the seemingly smallest things. Drew Basile was eyeing a potential alliance partner simply because he saw her playing Pokémon. Emily Flippen wanted to form an alliance with another woman due to their mutual love of Crocs. And Sabiyah Broderick had one player she already felt connected to simply because they stayed on the same floor of their Los Angeles hotel.
Robert Voets/CBS The cast of 'Survivor 45'
Of course, the pre-game portion of Survivor is also when people pinpoint the folks they don't want to work with, and Hannah Rose already had a few of those on her list going into season 45. "The ones who stand out as the ones that I'm like, 'Oh, I really don't want them on my tribe,' or 'They're an easy target' are the ones who have this… 'pick me' vibe," says Hannah, continuing with her impression of some of her fellow castmates. "Look at me, I'm going to stand here and clear my chi in front of everyone. Or, I'm doing yoga at the airport. Or, We're all walking up an escalator and I'm going to take the stairs kind of vibe. It's like, 'We get it, we get it. You have to stand out.' Or the ones that will talk loudly so that we can all hear what they're saying. I'm ready to vote them out already. I'm already annoyed with them."
To see the first impressions from the cast about the cast, and to bear witness to all the incredible nicknames Kaleb Gebrewold has already bestowed upon his fellow players, watch the video above. (Note: Somehow, Jake O' Kane and Sifu Alsup's first impressions either got lost in the jungle or were consumed by the Smoke Monster, so we can only assume they either loved or hated everyone else in the cast.) Also make sure to check out all the exclusive photos and bios of the new players — and why they think they'll win.
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