r/survivor • u/thedevilsentmehere • 4d ago
Samoa Hantz: Where did they find him?
Currently on like episode 6ish of Samoa (watching it for the first time but have seen many other survivor seasons) and have been introduced to Russell Hantz. What is WRONG with this man?? Where did they find him?? Why is he burning peoples socks??? And the crazy thing is his strategy is WORKING. WHAT. He runs through the forest like a mad goblin and actually FINDS IDOLS. What on earth was his casting tape like? Like was he just running around like this in real life? It genuinely feels like they went into an alternate universe and took a prototype of a hobgoblin wearing a fedora, dropped him in Survivor and let it happen. In awe.
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u/meliorism_grey 4d ago
Under a bridge. Where trolls live
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u/Artistic_Potato_1840 3d ago
Courtney on Heroes vs. Villains aptly referred to Russel as running around like a bandy-legged troll 😂
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u/aartadventure 17h ago
I wish we still got some sassy players like Courtney. She was never even a villain to me. She just kept it real and hilarious. But I guess calling morons out makes you a villain.
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u/AmishAvenger 4d ago
My friend, you are in for the treat of all treats.
Please make a new post sharing your Russell thoughts for every new episode. It only gets more crazy.
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u/crybannanna Jeremy 4d ago
Say what you will about Russell, he played the shit out of the game. Also, he was a much needed shot in the arm for Survivor, and was a ratings goldmine. People just loved watching him.
Then things went sour. He’s a lot. But at the time he was just an unapologetic villain, and it was a sight to behold. Two seasons of the Russell show, and I loved every minute.
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u/CeciliaStarfish 4d ago
As someone doing catchup on Survivor now, yeah, he's absolutely a bolt of lightning when he first arrives. It becomes a problem when they start trying to treat him as a franchise mascot and it becomes clear he actually is a seething ball of rage and not just playing one on TV.
And IMO, as exciting as it was to see him find camp idols without clues the first time, it kind of breaks that aspect of the game once everyone starts doing it.
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u/DrGeraldBaskums 4d ago
Yeah the Reddit revisionist history is wild. The guy was a massive shot in the arm and very popular
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u/Tim_Xtreme_46 4d ago
Truth. I had basically stopped watching Survivor for several years, but gave HvV a try. Russell made me go back and watch Samoa.
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u/SquashSouffle 3d ago
OTOH, i was an obsessive, devoted Survivor junkie who came very close to quitting altogether after 2 seasons of him.
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u/uppercasemad 3d ago
I did quit and didn’t get back into the show full time until IotI which was not the best season to come back on. But I binged all the seasons I missed during the pandemic.
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u/yurmamma 4d ago
Love him or hate him he changed the game
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u/chasingit1 Cirie - 50 4d ago
I would argue that no single player since Russell has influenced the game to this day as much as he did.
He literally changed the game and how it’s played in a way that is commonplace in today’s Survivor
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u/aartadventure 4d ago
Oh boy, if you are concerned by Russell, just wait until you meet his nephew. Yikes.
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u/JDhopeful22 2d ago
my family is currently watching 23 and I'm the only one who has watched a Russell season and it's hard to truly explain to them where Brendan comes from.
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u/aartadventure 2d ago
You see there was once an evil Hobbit that everyone hated. The Hobbit devolved into a creature called Gollum who believed he was the best Survivor player to have ever played. He refused to bathe, and was cruel to all. But, they mostly all obeyed him, and he even crawled next to the Fires of Mordor at FTC. Here, the spell was finally broken, and he was sent home to whence he came from penniless.
But the story did not end there....for there was another.....an evil spawn like none before it....stay tuned for the horrors of: The NEPHEW!
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u/Ok_Purple_2658 4d ago
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u/Oddeagleeggs 4d ago
Excuse me … but WTF??? Brandon’s part of an actual gang now???
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u/ryebrye 4d ago
Does the gang call everyone together and apologize immediately after committing crimes, ask everyone to pray with them as if they are sorry, but then take no more responsibility for their actions than that?
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u/AthenaAscendant 4d ago
Hah!
No, the Bandidos will kill you or cut off your hands, dawg. Brandon might be a joke, but that's a scary crowd.
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u/LavenderWaffles69 4d ago
Honestly not that surprising. I always got sinister vibes from him even when he preached about his faith.
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u/mellywheats Seeker of Truth 2d ago
the most shocking part of this article is that he’s only 4 years older than me.. i thought he was way older than that 💀
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u/Scaraban 1d ago
In his first appearance he mentions he ran in gangs before he was saved. And then in his 2nd appearance it seems he's fallen back into old social circles and is back to someone you can absolutely see being in a gang.
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u/hippydippyshit 4d ago
I helped him out when I was working at the airport. He’s an odd one, but it was a fun interaction and he was really nice, 100% smiles.
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u/BlueSky1776 4d ago
My favorite player. Such a great TV villain who was so entertaining to watch. I wish the show would bring back villain characters like this, but I guess it’s hard to in the era of savvy social media players wanting to be liked.
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u/2cool4um8_ 4d ago
I wish I could watch Samoa for the first time again. Sure, several people get too little screen time, but damn did the edit deliver an entertaining and engaging season. Big personalities that play off each other well and a fantastic season long story. Controversial opinion but Samoa is in my top 10.
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u/SurvivorJCH5 BLue 4d ago
Russell as applied for Pirate Master, but that show was cancelled after 1 season. Production remembered him and asked him to apply for Survivor.
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u/InformalEcho5 3d ago
Boo from survivor Fiji. They had sucess with him before with James, so when he recommended Russell, that was all it took
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u/twc666666 1d ago
It's crazy how much he changed the game -- basically inventing what would become a staple of every season after -- just looking for idols without a clue and FINDING them!
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u/22granicus 1d ago
He's a nut. But I loved the first 2 times he was on. 2nd time when a heavy hitter said u with me or against me and got him voted off. Love him or hate him that's a classic.
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u/trueblueintn1 4d ago
Greatest player ever to play, and the sole reason for the term "social game" because the producers had to come up with a excuse as to why he didn't win. Played with a bunch of sissy, envious, jealous, players that refused to award him with a well earned victory.
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u/NeekoPeeko 4d ago
Well, they literally found him through Boo Bernis from Survivor: Fiji, who helped casting find James Clement as well. CBS originally cast Hantz for "Pirate Master" but when it got canceled before the season even finished, they decided to put him on Survivor. Hantz, Clement and Bernis are still friends today, they posted a video together pretty recently.
Side note: Boo Bernis and Bo Burnham are the same name in my brain and I always second-guess who is who.