In an emotional interview, the original fan favorite also comes to terms with his previous disappointing outings.

Survivor 50 star Colby Donaldson reacts to playing for first time without Jerri Manthey

In an emotional interview, the original fan favorite also comes to terms with his previous disappointing outings.

By Dalton Ross

Dalton Ross is a writer and editor with over 25 years experience covering TV and the entertainment industry. *Survivor* is kind of his thing.

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January 31, 2026 9:15 a.m. ET

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For a reality television icon who parlayed his fame on *Survivor* into an acting and hosting career as well as two more appearances on the gold standard competition show, Colby Donaldson sure does have a lot of regrets.

Colby was the American golden boy after his 42-day run on *Survivor: The Australian Outback* — still the most-watched season of *Survivor*. While Colby may have lost the game at the end to Tina Wesson — after taking her to the final two rather than securing a definite win against Keith Famie — he won hearts as the franchise’s most popular player up to that point.

But his subsequent outings on *Survivor* left much to be desired for the proud Texan. First, jilted *Australian Outback* tribemate Jerri Manthey got her revenge on *All-Stars*, taking Colby out early in the game. Then, Colby made it all the way to fifth place on *Heroes vs. Villains*, but it was an uninspiring performance that left both the player and host Jeff Probst frustrated.

But those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Which is why the now 51-year-old rancher went back and watched every painful moment of his past two *Survivor* stints to figure out what went wrong in the hopes of not repeating it on his (hopefully) triumphant return for *Survivor 50* (premiering Feb. 25 on CBS). And Colby did not like what he saw, placing the blame for his anemic outings squarely at his own feet.

In an emotional and wide-ranging interview just days before filming on *Survivor 50 *began, Colby talked about his painful *Survivor* past, why he is in a much different (and better) place going into season 50, and how it feels being on *Survivor* for the first time without Jerri.

*(This is one of 24 deep-dive, on location interviews with the *Survivor 50 *cast. Links to the other interviews will be posted at the bottom of this article as they become available.)*

Colby Donaldson of 'Survivor 50'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**: Okay, Colby. Tell me why you're going to win *Survivor 50.***

**COLBY DONALDSON:** Well, if anything, I got a hell of a lot more life experience now at 51 than I did the last time I played. I have a feeling that will serve me well. I think if anything will inherently improve, it will be my social game.

Look, I've been excited about season 50 for a long time. Even as they narrowed the field down, I knew I was still a long shot. But if I was going to prepare for this thing, I needed to study, right? And if you're going to study film on your opponents, you've also unfortunately got to go back and study tape on yourself and look at all that you did wrong.

It was easy to watch *The Australian Outback*. It was much more difficult to watch the second two passes. But even watching Australia, what I picked up on all these years later with some perspective on it was that I made the choice to take Tina to the end. A lot of people say that cost me a million dollars. I would argue that the way I handled Jerri Manthey probably cost me a million.

**What do you mean by that?**

I had opportunities to salvage something in there, right? She had enough of a crush on me that I could have done damage control. And in watching that back, I remembered being on the banks of the Herbert River and Tina and Keith wanting to get rid of Jerri, and I didn't want to yet. I certainly had her as an ally, and I thought it was too early and I wanted to get rid of Elisabeth just because she was such a threat. And they said, “No, we like Elisabeth, we can't stand Jerri. We want to get rid of her.”

I got outvoted by a majority. So we did the final Tribal Council, Jerri was hurt, and she asked us all to explain ourselves and our actions, and I didn't think I would get Jerri 's vote and I arrogantly didn't answer. Not only did I give a poor answer, I just didn't answer. And that was a missed opportunity, and I was able to so clearly see that now looking back, going: Damnit, I had a chance right there. I could have actually said the truth. I could have said, “Jerri, I didn't want to get rid of you. Keith and Tina did, and Tina's sitting right beside me.”

I don't know if it would've swayed her, but it was worth a shot, and I didn't take a shot. I missed it. I missed an opportunity. Now who showed up on the beach at *All-Stars* and voted me out? And I went back and watched that and at the end of the episode when she holds up the parchment, Jerri says, “Is this revenge vote? You bet your ass it is, Colby.” Boom!

Now I'm out of two games because of Jerri. Who shows up in *Heroes vs. Villains?* Jerri. So I begin to see the weight of my decisions.

Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor 50'.

**And how did that feel, watching it all play back?**

It's been fun to go back and watch that stuff. It wasn't disappointing or disturbing, it was enlightening, but it put a smile on my face, especially once I got the call that I was actually going to get to come back. Because now I get to right those wrongs, I get to do things differently, and I just look at that young version of myself, and I just wouldn't handle people that way.

The way I handled Shii Ann at *All-Stars*, I wouldn't treat people like that now. Whether I have that much connective tissue with someone or not, I didn't give her the respect she deserved and it cost me that relationship, and she certainly voted against me in the blindside, too. So I don't know whether that's a result of me being a student of the game now as much as it is just me growing up and maturing.

On the beach for 'Survivor 50': An exclusive, all-access first look at the biggest season ever

Watch cast members of 'Survivor 50' vote their first players out of the game (exclusive)

**I was going to ask you about game regrets, and it sounds like you certainly do have some.**

No question. And it's a big driver of why I'm here. I'm very proud of the way I played in Australia the first time, even though I didn't win. I walked away from that game laying it all out there in the Outback, and I know my family was proud of me, friends of mine, and even fans. I gained a lot of fans because of the way I played.

I don't know that I can say that about *All-Stars* and *Heroes vs. Villains*. I was in my mid-twenties when I played the first time, and that was a very impressionable age of my adult life. I'm 51 now. I'm in that reflective period, so I'm reflecting on all things in life, and when I do, *Survivor* has had a huge imprint and impact on half of my life. Literally half of my life has been post-*Survivor*, and I would love to come back and finish the way I started.

Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor: The Australian Outback'.

Monty Brinton/CBS

**Jeff Probst was pretty harsh in his assessment of your return outings back when you played. Tell me about that and hearing that from him, because you're a proud and competitive guy. And then he basically was saying you didn't have it. You didn't have the drive.**

Probst wasn't the only one giving me grief and giving me s---. If you recall, I got called “Superman in a fat suit” by James. Doesn't feel good. And as a prideful guy, you got to absorb those bullets. They're coming, and the gun was aimed in the right direction. I needed to take those hits because things weren't working for me, brother. I wasn't having the success at the challenges I had once had. I wasn't catching the brakes that I had caught before.

That's why I called Russell out on that at the final Tribal, asking him, “Are you sitting here telling me that there was absolutely no luck that got you to this place?” And he said, “None whatsoever.” I just don't buy that. For anyone that plays this game, you have to have a little *Survivor* fortune along the way.

Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor 50'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**Now more than ever.**

But the biggest thing is how I responded to that, or the lack of response. And I think that's what frustrated Probst and the rest of the production team the most. When my alliance got blown out of the water and I was clearly on the wrong side of even the Heroes tribe, let alone once we merged with the Villains — I'm not proud of the way I handled that. And the biggest takeaway I have now in reflecting back on *Heroes vs. Villains* is some illumination that ironically came from Russell Hantz of all people.

When he landed, he said, “I'm finally glad to be on a beach and play with people who respect the game.” He was referring to everyone else. He had just finished his first season and he was proud to be part of an all-star returning team. I didn't play that season respecting the game the way I should have, and I'm not proud of that.

So it's not just how I played the game, but it was the absence of respect that I had for it, and that was felt by the producers in my interviews. It was felt by my tribemates and the challenges it permeated, and that's not me. [*Begins to tear up as voice starts to crack.*] And so that's also been a real part of my inspiration and drive to come back and do it again, to right a lot of those wrongs.

Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**What's the emotion you're feeling right now, Colby? Because I can see you're getting emotional.**

This game doesn't define me, and my life has never revolved around *Survivor*. It's just been a huge part of my life. It's something that I've always been proud to be associated with, and I know this is my last run at it. If I get a call in five years, let's face it, the old body won't still be holding up in five years. So I know this is truly my last run.

I see all these younger players and new-era players, and I feel a certain obligation to pass the torch in a weird turn of phrase. Look, there's no question these new-era players are going to be able to help me. This game has evolved so much. I'm going to need the help just in terms of pace. Everything about it is so much different. So I'll be leaning on them, but I think I bring some value and some strength that might help their game. And maybe that's in the way I approach life. Maybe it's just the grit I have because I've lived so much life at this point.

It's also a high priority for me to have fun this time, and I wasn't having fun the last time. Probst called it out at the final live show. And I wasn't. And that's not production's fault. That's not Samoa's fault or the game or the Villains’ fault. That was my fault. And that's not going to happen this time.

7:23 The Cast of ‘Survivor 50’ Reveals Who They Want to Vote Out First

**Maybe this had nothing to do with it, or maybe it did. I was there on day 1 of *Heroes vs. Villains* at that first challenge where Coach slowly and methodically moved you over to his mat in that very physical battle. Did that throw you off when that happened?**

Man, great God, Dalton. Great question. [Starts to tear up again.] Sorry…

**No, you're good…**

It didn't help. And the thing was, again, I had to go back and watch all of that. I was actually performing really good in that challenge. I gassed out.

**Yeah, it went on forever.**

It went on forever. And I gassed out and he outsmarted me in that challenge because I gassed out and then he overpowered me. And there's no one you would rather not have beat you than a guy that refers to himself in the third person and calls himself the Dragon Slayer! I say all that with the utmost love for Coach. He knows that. And I hope so much that we get to play together this time because we're rivals for sure. But so were Boston Rob and I, and Rob and I always had a mutual respect for one another, still do. And he's one of my closest friends. I'm bummed he's not here. But with Coach, it was the same way.

It's astute of you to recognize that, because you know me and how competitive I am and my reputation for challenges. So to come out of the gate and get beat in a physical challenge was brutal. But again, it's how I responded. I shouldn't have allowed it to affect me the way it did. Just like Stephenie and Tom getting voted out, just derailed everything. I should have pivoted.

I'm stoked to see Cirie here because that was a huge tactical error that Tom and I both made by not approaching Cirie and trying to bring her in and play with her. It’s easy to armchair quarterback it now, but I got to use all this knowledge to my advantage. I've got to be humble enough and not prideful to look at those as an exercise and see where I came up short and vow not to repeat at least those mistakes.

I'm going to make mistakes along the way this time, no doubt, but I'm going to try my damnedest not to make the same mistakes. So that was tough.

Colby Donaldson of 'Survivor 50'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**What kind of place were you at in your life then that maybe didn’t have you all-in for *Survivor* at the time?**

I had already moved to L.A. by the time I *did All-Stars*. I had hosted a couple of shows by the time I did *Heroes vs. Villains.* I'm not sure I went back for the right reasons. And there's no doubt if you had Probst sitting here and the three of us were sharing a beer, he would tell you that the only reason there was any interest on CBS and *Survivor*'s part this time with me was because they felt like the old Colby was back.

I'm back in Texas. My bio is going to say the same thing now at 51 that it said when I was 25 years old. I'm still welding, I'm ranching, I'm building hot rods, and that's what I was doing then. And so it's this full-circle opportunity for me, and I'm back for the right reasons. And so I think that affected the way I played. I think it affected my enjoyment. And you can't have that lack of clarity and play this game well, and I don't think I had complete clarity when I played those two times.

Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor 50'.

**You can go in and be in the best mental, physical, emotional state you want, but the game since season 20 to now is completely different. Does that put you at a disadvantage in terms of the speed of it?**

Those of us who haven't played in a long time, you bet this game has evolved in a way that doesn't play to our strengths. Even the compressed time. It'd be nice to sit here and say, “Oh, well, we had it so much tougher.” Hell, I'm the only one on this beach that's gone 42 days! But that's not a real advantage.

Maybe because we've been that long, 26 days doesn't seem intimidating, but the reality is there are so many disadvantages that we face as old-school players that far outweigh any advantages that we have. There's no question. But I got to tell you, Dalton, that's the reason I didn't look at the polling they were doing to let the fans decide different factors and elements of the game. I intentionally didn't follow that because the only way I succeed in this new era is with my ability to adapt.

I haven't tried to figure anything out: Is it three teams? Is so-and-so wearing this color? Does that mean they're going to be on this tribe? None of that matters to me because it's wasted energy. I'd rather land on the beach and have Probst tell us exactly what's going on. And just because Probst tells us doesn't mean it's going to last very long. So I don't give a damn who's on what tribe because it's probably only going to be a couple of days until there's a shakeup of some kind.

Tina Wesson and Colby Donaldson on 'Survivor ; The Australian Outback'.

Monty Brinton/CBS

**Do you know all these players? Have you been watching *Survivor?* **

I've gotten back into it. And so the last few seasons I've watched just organically. I've seen a lot of new-era seasons. I have gone back as a student now and studied other seasons that I did miss because there was a time period when I was focused on other things. When I was in the running and they were narrowing it down, I started studying and going back. It was the only shot I have at succeeding, is understanding how the new era works and how it differs from back when I played.

**So how did you manage the pre-gaming that happens between contestants back home?**

Pre-gaming is real. It's a real deal. And I'm a lone wolf, right? I've sat here for 15 minutes and told you how much *Survivor* means to me and how much I love the game. But I don't go to watch parties or reunions or get togethers or autograph signings, and all of my close friends from *Survivor* are sitting at home right now. Ethan, Boston Rob, Tina, Tom Westman — all my allies are not on this beach, brother. So I'm coming in solo.

I don't necessarily think it's going to kill me. I'm going to have to hustle. I'm going to have to hope that there are some friends here in terms of those I've played with before. But here's my approach this time at 51: I'm certainly not the youngest, but I don't think I'm going to be the oldest. And without question, I'm not going to be the strongest or the fastest, but I'm not going to be the weakest or the slowest. I'm coming in right in the middle. I don't think I'm considered a threat on anybody's list. Certainly not a top half or a top tier threat in any way. And that's a good thing.

Some of these new-era players probably don't even know who the hell I am. Hell, two-thirds of the crew doesn't know who I am! And that's okay. Again, my ego is not affected by it. But if they were to go back and study and watch my most recent season and they were to watch that version of Colby play the game, that actually plays to my advantage. They’ll be like, “This dude sucks!”

Colby Donaldson of 'Survivor 50'.

Scott Duncan/CBS

**Well, who are the people you want to play with?**

Jonathan and Joe. Those two dudes. And again, they should be guys I'm intimidated by or threatened by or that I want to stay as far away from, but no, I can't wait to meet those guys and play with them. They seem to me to have an old soul, both of them. I think they're two new era guys that would maybe want to connect with some old-era players. And so I'm stoked to play with them and meet them.

We haven't even seen their season, but I'm going to target, and not in a bad way, one of these players off of season 49. I think they're ripe for aligning. They didn't have a chance to pregame, and I'm not a pre-gamer. So I think that makes them an asset and not a liability.

**Is it weird to be out here without Jerri? This is your first time out here without her.**

My first time. Dude, it's disappointing. And people are probably going to be shocked to hear that, but I really wanted Jerri to be here. She certainly had it out for me after Australia, and she took it out on me in *All-Stars*. But a lot of time passed between all *All-Stars* and *Heroes vs. Villains*, and we both matured a lot. We grew a lot. And I think she let a lot of that stuff go.

So much so that by the time we merged and we were both still in the game — none of this aired because it didn't make for compelling TV since neither one of us made it to the end, so it just wasn't part of the storyline — but Jerri and I actually took off every day and went fishing. There was a freshwater stream coming in, and we weren't catching big fish, but we were catching enough of them that we fed the tribe every day.

And the camera crew went with us every day. Now, there was no romance, so there wasn't anything to film there. We were like brother and sister, but we got along. And that was 16 years ago. There's no doubt in my mind we would get along now if she were here. And so I would love to see Jerri on the beach if for no other reason, because she'd be a friendly face, I'd have an ally and no one would suspect it.

I haven't talked to Jerri in 16 years, but I can tell you what, there's no bad blood. And all that's water under the bridge. And so if she were here, we'd go at it again. And I know she wanted to be here, so it's a bummer.

**If they bring the Loved Ones visit back this season, is your brother Reid going to be coming back out?**

Man, you talk about regrets. Talking to my brother that way. He's my big brother, and I love him to death. And that was not a shining moment for me. When Probst said, “Don't worry, Reid. He's been like this for 27 days.” [*Laughs*] You remember that? And Probst was laughing because Probst knows my brother and me and our dynamic. He knows that's the contentious dynamic my brother and I have anyway, but it was exacerbated by my time on the beach. It's not easy for me to look at. I'm not proud of that. But fans will run into him [at the] airport and they'll go “Damnit, Reid!” It's classic.

But to answer your question, Reid won't be coming out. because you know who will? My best friend back in Austin [*Survivor: Pearl Islands* player] Burton Roberts. Burton survived an unbelievable cancer this year. He's cancer free for the first time in almost two years. And he was not expected to survive. And I know he leaned on Ethan a lot during that time because we're all friends anyway, but obviously with Burton and Ethan both being cancer survivors, it was incredible.

And so I asked Burton before I left, “If there's any chance they do a visit, do you think your doctors will let you go?” He's like, “Man, I'll be there for you.” And he's my best friend. So if I were to get a visit, it would be from Burton.

***Want to be kept up with all things Survivor? Dig deep and sign up for 's free Survivor Weekly newsletter to have all the latest news, interviews, and commentary sent right to your inbox. ***

**Other *Survivor 50 *deep dive player interviews:***** • Survivor 50* star Ozzy Lusth opens up about hitting 'rock bottom of my life'** • *Survivor 50* star Aubry Bracco opens up about the 'freedom when you fall from grace' **

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