The 10 Cockiest Survivor Players Of All Time (And Why They Lost)

Survivor is a reality show, and, like all reality shows, it draws in a wide variety of personality types. Every season contains “clichés” of sorts like the old guy, the beautiful woman, the athletic jock, the “smart one,” etc. While not nearly as prevalent, Survivor has seen its fair share of cocky individuals.

Like all games, the players of Survivor know when they’re doing well and when they’re performing poorly. Some people are more humble in their approach to victory—or perceived victory—others are more outwardly boastful, and a surprise few are just straight-up cocky.

10 Russell Hantz

Russell Hantz is one of the most notorious villains in Survivor history. He is also undeniably one of the cockiest people to have ever played the game. Russell’s arrogance is on full display throughout Samoa; he constantly proclaimed himself to be the greatest player of all time, and he wasn’t above calling the other players idiots and morons for falling for his schemes.

His arrogance was knocked down a peg throughout Heroes vs. Villains but was still quite evident, especially in his Final Tribal Council speech. He didn’t win either season, with both juries hating his aggressive gameplay, remorseless actions, and boastful nature.

9 Alicia Calaway

Alicia Calaway was arguably the first villain of Survivor. Her appearance on The Australian Outback was quite notorious, mixing a cocky attitude with aggressive confrontations.

Her fight with Kimmi Kappenberg was especially notable, and she generally held a holier-than-thou attitude in regards to her tribemates and her position within the Survivor canon. While she made it to jury in both Australian Outback and All-Stars, she never won owing to poor positioning and a bad social strategy.

8 Andrew Savage

It’s easy to make a joke about this man’s name and his approach to Survivor; a great Survivor villain, Andrew Savage is both cocky and a little bit patronizing, like calling Jon Dalton “Little Jon.” He’s a self-righteous leader who loves ordering others around and orchestrating eliminations, especially those of alliance defectors like Kass McQuillen.

He also grows especially bitter if he’s on the outs, as was evident when he flipped off Abi-Maria Gomes in Survivor Cambodia. Savage was blindsided on both of his eliminations, the result of a flip and a hidden immunity idol.

7 Phillip Sheppard

Redemption Island is often considered to be one of the worst seasons of Survivor, and it’s largely due to a forgettable cast. However, Phillip Sheppard is certainly not forgettable. Phillip immediately earned infamy for his constant boasting; every chance he got, he reminded people that is an ex-federal agent—even though his actions seemingly contradicted this.

He is also a very proud leader, arrogantly leading the Stealth R Us alliance in Caramoan and assigning people goofy nicknames. His eccentricity caused others to ridicule him throughout Redemption Island, and he lost to Rob in a landslide 8-1-0 vote.

6 Rupert Boneham

Rupert Boneham is an obvious fan favorite and a Survivor legend, having played the show four different times. But, there’s no denying that he is a cocky individual.

He became overly proud and overbearing throughout Heroes vs. Villains, and he’s also a poor loser, having fought with Jon Dalton after receiving a vote against him and angrily glaring at the contestants in HvV after being eliminated. Despite playing four times, Rupert has never won the game owing to being perceived as a strong physical and strategic threat.

5 Boston Rob

Rob Mariano is one of the greatest Survivors to ever play the game, being a massive physical and strategic threat. Boston Rob is very smart and very strategic, and he knows it. He is often arrogant in his approach to the game.

He gleefully throws people under buses, betrays allies, and often gloats to the camera regarding his intelligence and moves. Unfortunately, this cockiness often came back to bite him, and it’s the primary reason why he lost All-Stars to his now-wife, Amber Brkich.

4 Corinne Kaplan

Corinne Kaplan first appeared on Gabon and instantly made a name for herself through her caustic personality. She disliked many players, and she wasn’t afraid of showing it. She constantly conjured demeaning and often offensive nicknames for the people she didn’t like, and she reserved a particular hatred for third-place finisher Sugar Kiper.

Poor social and strategic gameplay resulted in her dual eliminations. She found herself in a minority alliance in Gabon, and she failed to hide her true intentions in Caramoan, resulting in her target turning against her.

3 Dan Foley

Dan Foley from Worlds Apart was quite aggressive in his candid confessionals. His outspoken opinions regarding his tribemates often landed him in a world of trouble, and Foley became known as one of the biggest villains of the modern era.

Not only was he arrogant, but he was often delusional in his grandeur and rude in regards to other players. In the end, Dan went home in a shock elimination following nullified votes, but no one in his alliance particularly trusted or even liked him owing to his unlikable behavior.

2 Coach

Coach Wade is one of the most polarizing figures from Tocantins. Regardless of what individual people think of him, there’s no denying that Coach is a cocky individual. He constantly boasts about his accomplishments and calls himself The Dragon Slayer.

He also showed a severe lack of humility by constantly calling himself a noble and honorable figure even though his actions were often anything but noble or heroic. Coach eventually found himself at the bottom of the merged tribe following the exits of his closest allies, and he ended up placing fifth.

1 Amanda Kimmel

Amanda Kimmel has played on three separate occasions, and, on two of those occasions, has made it to the Final Tribal Council. Unfortunately, a poor social game and terrible FTC performances resulted in back-to-back losses.

She inflated the importance of her own game in China—with Todd Herzog strategically dominating most of the season—and she also grew quite cocky while in the Black Widow Brigade. However, that wasn’t just an Amanda thing, as the entire alliance was cocky. A mediocre showing in Heroes vs. Villains ended her Survivor career without a win.

About The Author

Nathan Sharp
(852 Articles Published)

Nathan Sharp is a writer from outside Toronto, Ontario. He has a love of movies and television, having enjoyed them for more than twenty years. His preferences include drama, action, and horror, with the former being a particular point of interest and fascination.

He also has a love of video games, particularly those of Rockstar.

Whether it be about film, television, or video games, Nathan loves a good discussion and has written hundreds of articles for Screen Rant.

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