Castaway: Tony Vlachos
Hometown: Jersey City, N.J.
Age: 42
Previously Played On: “Season 28: Brawn vs. Brains vs. Beauty” – WINNER
“This season I’m going to answer that age-old question, is it better to be loved or feared?” Tony Vlachos tells Erin Cebula about returning to the game for “Survivor: Game Changers”. “I wish I was loved, because I think I’m feared and I’m going to have a big target.”
And he’s not wrong. The season-28 winner is one of the biggest characters in the show’s history. A fierce competitor, Vlachos is best known for his high-profile leadership and trademark “spy shacks” that he used to eavesdrop on his tribemates.
Because of his unique way of playing, Vlachos thinks he might have a few castaways looking to take him out. “I think I have an illuminating target on my back,” Tony says. “I have one on my back, on my head, on my chest — I don’t know which way to turn out here.”
So who does Tony think is his biggest enemy this season? “All of them,” he reveals. “These are all ‘all-stars’, they all have in their head, We are all great players, and I don’t think they’re going to let themselves get conned again by someone like me; they wouldn’t be able to live with themselves if someone like me conned them!”
The New Jersey native also shares the reason he chose to return for another season.
“People keep asking me that and I keep telling them, ‘As long as I keep winning, I’m going to keep coming back.’ The day I lose is the day I stop coming back. That means the hunger is gone, the passion is gone, the drive is gone, the motivation is gone; but right now I still have it in me and that’s why I’m giving it another shot.”
