“He Played Me”: An Interview with Survivor: Vanuatu’s Julie

In many ways, Julie was Survivor: Vanuatu winner Chris’ most valuable tool. He claimed they had a brother/sister relationship, but he also used her to get information and to argue on his behalf when it came time for the female alliance to decide how to vote. With the game said and done, what does she have to say about how she and others played?

RealityNewsOnline: Hello, Julie, and thanks for taking the time to answer these questions from RealityNewsOnline! Obviously, going into the game you didn't know the tribes would be split by gender - what was your original plan and how did it change when you saw how things would play out?

Julie: An original plan did not exist. Many might think I would "prefer" men, but I enjoy great people in general... I was pleased with the women I got to play the game with. flirting doesn't see gender!

RNO: Several times we saw your allies in yelling matches with Twila (first Mia, then Ami), but in each case you held back and let them hash it out. Was that a planned strategy on your part to avoid conflict or did you just not want to get in the middle?

Julie: I am very diplomatic, and knew it would show a vulnerable side that I wasn't going for in this game. I channel my energy different.

RNO: The guys all told me that Ami treated them poorly while they were around. Did you see things the same way?

Julie: The only side of Ami I saw was playful, engaging, warm – but we didn't deal much with each other when it came to the game, she was just a fun playmate out there.

RNO: Why did you agree to go along with the vote against Eliza (the one that turned against Leann) while keeping Chris?

Julie: The main reason was my brilliant idea to keep Chris around longer, because I enjoyed him. Secondly, at that point in the game, Eliza was SO paranoid (entitled) that she wouldn't do any work around camp – bottom line, it wasn't my name being offered up.

RNO: You seemed to help Chris out a lot when the teams merged – did you two have an actual alliance or was it simply the whole brother/sister thing?

Julie: Chris and I had an alliance to "help each other out" – does that mean it is less then the "final two" promise, I don't think so, it meant more to me. Yes we had a great friendship.

RNO: Did Chris' obviously emotional response to what you said at the final tribal council influence your vote, or were you pretty sure you were going to vote for him anyway?

Julie: Either way, another pile of BS wasn't going to change the fact he played me – and played the best game, so yes I was going to give it to him, even though I might have though I would make up my mind at final tribal.

RNO: Do you think he was being truthful, or was it more (as Scout put it) bullsh*t?

Julie: COMPLETE BULLSH*T, that is why he's sitting pretty (or fat – hehe) with a million dollars.

RNO: In the live reunion, you said that watching the show put Chris in a whole new light – can you expand on that?

Julie: He was the one who shocked me the most, it was hard for me to see that he could find our relationship authentic and meaningful after seeing his play so hard, and really go overboard with the dramatics.

RNO: If you could change one thing about how you played, what would it be?

Julie: Nothing – I can't compromise my friendships, they last a lifetime even in a game like this.

RNO: Is there anything else you'd like to tell our readers?

Julie: Survivor ROCKS, it’s damn TOUGH... inconceivable to judge correctly from your couch!

RNO: Thanks again, Julie!

David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

Be sure to sign up for our e-mail update so you can stay informed about new articles on the site! And take a look at the rest of the site. You can find all of our recaps and other info on this show at the Survivor: Vanuatu page, and take a look at our The Simple Life page and our Average Joe page. You can even buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store!

For more news about Survivor, be sure to check out SirLinksALot and Survivor Fever!