This week on Survivor 41, the Yase Tribe snatched one of the immunity wins, sending Ua to Tribal Council, where Brad Reese was seemingly blindsided.
But in an interview with Parade Magazine, Brad says he wasn’t that blindsided.
“I had the feeling beforehand,” Brad told Parade. “The show really didn’t show it. But when all your power is taken from you, and this ‘monster’ that Jeff has been talking about strips you clean. I kind of knew I was in trouble, which is why I knew I had to find the idol. And I think I did a good job. JD’s like, ‘Brad does nothing but sit at camp.’ Well, I had him pretty fooled! I was looking for that idol. It didn’t just fall out of the sky; I had to look for that dude.
“When I found that, I was like, ‘This is what I need!’ But I immediately saw ‘Beware’ on it, which I had never seen before. This monster grabbed me and threw a twist at me that I wasn’t prepared for. When that neuters you and takes you down where you can’t vote, play your Shot in the Dark, steal a vote, or use an idol, you’ve got nothing. The four things I had zeroed out. So I thought, ‘I can’t play aggressive.’ I backed off, and I trusted my alliance.
I laid it all out to Shan, saying, ‘Use me how you want to use me.’ But JD never felt worried that night. When we went off to Tribal Council, he wasn’t worried. That’s a bad sign. He’s a good enough player where he won’t feel confident when it’s him. And he was feeling confident. So I knew I was in trouble, and when the second Brad vote came up, I knew I was done.”
Brad also answered what we’ve all been wondering since Week 1: Why did he say Sara and Shan they had to go right to their faces?
“So here’s the deal … when you’re on that island, this is the first time I’ve been vulnerable in my life, right.” Brad explained. “And I’ve prepared; I’ve listened to podcasts, and I know you’re not supposed to do that. All my friends are like, ‘Brad, what are you doing?!’ But I had dodged that question for hours. Everyone kept asking me who I was voting for. Ricard was the one I wanted gone. And I felt Sara was in line with Ricard. And so I thought, ‘Well, I don’t think I can get Ricard. But let’s get Ricard’s number one.’ And I think I was probably wrong in that, but that was my inclination.
“So I walked around that corner after dodging them for four hours. And here they are! Ricard’s like, ‘Just the man we wanted to talk to!’ And I didn’t want to talk to him. You could see I just don’t want to be here. I knew I had to do something. And I look at Sara, and Tribal Council was getting close. I could not look into Sara’s eyes and lie to her. I just couldn’t do it. So I was like, ‘You know what? I’m going after the worst in the challenge.’ I said in a confessional, ‘Brad opened his mouth and laid an egg.’ I knew the second I opened my mouth I was wrong.”
For the full exit interview with Brad Reese, check out Parade.
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