In 2000, Survivor began an experiment to see if strangers could live together on an island
with only basic necessities, all while competing through strategic gameplay. So, what did the
victors do with their $1 million prize? Let's find out how much these Survivor winners are
worth today.
Arguably the most recognizable male to ever play Survivor, "Boston Rob" Mariano became
the villain viewers loved to hate in Season 4, Survivor: Marquesas. Wildly popular with
fans, Mariano returned for Season 8, Survivor: All-Stars, Season 20, Survivor: Heroes vs.
Villains, and finally won on Season 22, Survivor: Redemption Island. Oh, and there's more?
With this legendary status in place, Mariano mentored players for the entirety of Season
39, Survivor: Island of the Idols. Producers even made a gigantic statue of him and fellow
mentor Sandra Diaz-Twine on the island. Talking about the statue to Entertainment Weekly,
he said -
"You know I loved it, [...] It was my totem. I cried, and I took pictures with it [...] I
couldn't believe it."
Outside of island life, Mariano tried to earn even more money through gambling. In 2007,
he starred in the reality show Rob and Amber: Against the Odds, which followed Rob as he
attempted to be a professional poker player. Despite the difficulty of having to leave
his four daughters at home, and of course Mariano decided to return for the all-winners
Season 40. At this point, he might just have to build a permanent home on the island, close
to his statue, of course.
The other half of the Survivor power couple, Amber Mariano, first appeared on Season 2,
Survivor: The Australian Outback. She, too, was a fan favorite and in her next island
appearance for Survivor: All-Stars, Mariano famously beat out her future husband, Rob
Mariano.
"The winner of Survivor: All Stars…"
But really, both players won that season since he proposed during the live finale.
After the fairytale ending to the season, Amber told CBS that she didn't expect to play
again. Yet, 15 years later, she found herself back again to compete alongside her husband
and 18 other Survivor superstars in Season 40.
Amber and Rob take time to enjoy the simple pleasures and spend time with their four daughters,
with the family's favorite pastime involving Doritos and kicking back to watch Survivor.
Pretty blissful, huh?
As a gifted soccer player, Ethan Zohn graduated college and went on to play professional soccer
all around the world. Things didn't stay easy for long, but in despair, something amazing
happened. As he told CBS,
"I got let go from a job, had a day off in NYC, and sent a VHS audition tape into CBS
on a lark the day before it was due. What happened next literally changed the trajectory
of my life."
Zohn emerged victorious in Season 3 Survivor: Africa and returned once again for Survivor:
All-Stars with other icons like Rupert Boneham and the Marianos.
Though he didn't win on his second try, Zohn used his winnings to found Grassroot Soccer,
a non-profit that provides youth HIV/AIDS education to children in Africa and around
the world. Sadly, Zohn was twice diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma and he endured years
of treatment and transplants, but with a true survivor spirit, he fought the disease and
won. He became a motivational speaker to share his amazing story.
"It's for fighting cancer, it's for everything - we ready? KILO! WOO!"
In the first season, Survivor: Borneo, Richard Hatch from little Rhode Island walked away
as the first "Sole Survivor" with $1 million in cash.
Hatch made his return appearance on the star-studded eighth season in Survivor: All-Stars, but
this time the tribe voted him out. With his winnings, Hatch cruised around the world as
a motivational speaker and as a correspondent for Entertainment Tonight and CBS News' The
Early Show. He used his experience to consult businesses, provide seminars, and earn his
real estate agent license. He even worked as a car salesman and bartender.
With all these jobs, the man must be loaded right? Not quite. Hatch made national news
when he landed in jail for failing to pay taxes on his Survivor paycheck.
"I never did anything deserving of prison time. I never attempted to evade taxes which
is what I was convicted of."
After serving three years in prison, he continued to refuse following the judge's orders and
wound up behind bars yet again. Turns out, all his Survivor opponents needed to outwit
Hatch was a simple tax form.
Prior to participating in Season 14, Survivor: Fiji, Earl Cole was well-established in the
entertainment industry. His experience included work as writer's assistant for the animated
TV comedy, The PJs, and as a composer capable of playing many instruments. Whether his violin-playing
helped or not, Cole earned the title of 'Sole Survivor.' Even better, he became the first
winner to receive a unanimous vote for the victory.
Once home, Cole founded the non-profit Perthes Kids Foundation to help children with Legg
Calve Perthes Disease. As it turns out, Cole had this same rare bone disease as a child,
leaving him bound to a wheelchair. The winner also took time to enjoy life after his big
win, traveling to 35 different countries around the world, telling E! News -
"I wanted this life experience because that's priceless."
And one of the highlights? A return visit to the same island where he earned his million
dollars. Cole explained why, saying -
"I went back to Fiji after winning because I wanted to experience the more luxurious
side!"
If at first you don't succeed ... go to an island full of lying players and try again.
Still no luck? Try one more time. As a then-professional cyclist, Tyson Apostol's first chance at a
million dollars came in Season 18, Survivor: Tocantins in 2009. In 2010, he returned for
Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains – with still no luck. But, he found his third time to be
the charm, as Apostol went on to win Season 27, Survivor: Blood vs. Water, which he played
with his then-girlfriend, Rachel Foulger.
"Tyson's always done Survivor, and that's fine. That's his thing, but I never pictured
myself doing it."
He told CBS that his victory and popularity from the show gave him opportunities to pursue
many different interests.
One of those newly opened doors led to him appearing on TV again, but not on an island.
Apostol and Foulger signed up for the reality series, Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars.
It must have worked, since the two are still married at the time of this writing, with
children. He dished to CBS,
"Survivor has afforded me the luxury of spending lots of time with my kids, for which I will
always be grateful."
Big, loveable, teddy-bear Rupert Boneham first appeared on Season 7, Survivor: Pearl Islands,
losing out to queen Sandra Diaz-Twine. Viewers loved the man and so he played for a second
time on Survivor: All-Stars.
Once again, Boneham lost, but then something amazing happened during the reunion episode.
CBS announced a fan-favorite vote, with the winner also getting a $1 million prize. Sure
enough, Boneham received the most votes and walked away a victor. He tried twice more,
first on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, and then with his wife in Survivor: Blood vs.
Water, but ultimately lost both.
All these defeats weren't enough to deter Boneham, and he used his winnings and popularity
to make quite the career after Survivor. He established the Rupert's Kids organization
to provide mentorship to troubled teens. Boneham also took a chance in politics in 2011 when
he ran for Governor of Indiana as a Libertarian.
When Todd Herzog won Season 15, Survivor: China, he became the second openly gay player
to win Survivor, following the footsteps of Season 1 winner Richard Hatch. But sadly,
this young victor quickly spiraled downward.
According to E! News, Herzog publicly struggled with alcoholism, and appeared frequently as
a guest on Dr. Phil's show. After an embarrassing TV moment when he appeared too drunk to even
walk on stage for Dr. Phil, Herzog told Stat that the show set him up. Speaking to the
outlet, Herzog claimed that Dr. Phil producers allegedly put vodka in his dressing room and
handed him a Xanax before going on stage. A representative for the show told E! News
-
"The show does not give drugs or alcohol to its guests, and any suggestions to the contrary
is errant nonsense."
In happier news, Herzog found love and proposed to his future husband in 2019, as revealed
by People.
Quite the outdoorsman, Bob Crowley had a habit of building numerous structures from recycled
material — all before even appearing on Survivor. With skills like that, he definitely
had a good chance to win. If that's not enough, as of 2020, Crowley is still the oldest player
to win Survivor. During Season 17, Survivor: Gabon, the lovable high school physics teacher
narrowly won the grand prize at age 57. As if winning a million dollars wasn't sufficient,
Crowley won an additional $100,000 when he was voted player of the season during the
live reunion.
He used his winnings to continue lifelong passions and to help others. Crowley and his
wife opened up an eco-friendly campground called Maine Forest Yurts near their Portland,
Maine home. He also started a non-profit organization, Durham Warriors, to welcome school groups,
active military, and veterans – among other non-profit groups – to stay for free at
the campground.
Up until Season 40, Sandra Diaz-Twine remained the only two-time winner of Survivor. This
earned her the nickname 'The Queen' of Survivor -
"I'm Sandra Diaz Twine, and I'm the Queen."
and she'll forever be remembered as perhaps the greatest female contestant ever to play
the game. All reigns start from somewhere, and Diaz began her story on Season 7, Survivor:
Pearl Islands. She dominated the season and won the title of 'Sole Survivor.' Diaz came
back for a second attempt in Season 20, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, and astonishingly, won
again. She tried again without luck in Survivor: Game Changers, but returned to play the role
of mentor in Survivor: Island of the Idols. Yes, that means she had a statue of herself
built on the island.
With two victorious seasons, Diaz-Twine has the luxury to spend more time with her husband
and two children. She happily stays at home and told People,
"I don't do a damn thing."
Diaz-Twine made one last push in Season 40, Survivor: Winners at War, but after falling
short, she announced her retirement from the game. Diaz-Twine said on the show,
"I'm happy to go into retirement and know that I did the best I could with what I had.
At the end of the day, I'm still the queen, and I'll always stay the queen."
"The queen stays queen! (laughs)"
The game of Survivor often favors players with people skills, athleticism, and survival
instincts. This can be easier with a fair amount of life experience, and yet, a young
21-year-old Jud Birza defied the odds when he won Season 21, Survivor: Nicaragua. As
of 2020, he remains the youngest player to ever win a season. Perhaps it was his hair,
which earned him the nickname "Fabio."
After winning the big prize, he acted like, well, a 21-year-old. As E! News reported in
2011, he was arrested for skateboarding under the influence in Santa Monica.
But sitting on a big pile of cash, he posted his own bail of $37,000 and then had a stretch
limo drive him away, filled with friends and beer. He used at least some money for good,
revealing he purchased a farm for his father. Among his other credits after Survivor, Birza
modeled for book covers and starred in the Oscar-snubbed, made-for-TV movie 90210 Shark
Attack.
Before appearing on TV, Kim Spradlin-Wolfe already opened her own business at age 26,
as a whitewater rafting guide, and then later opening a bridal shop. Spradlin-Wolfe and
her winning smile convinced the jury members to vote for her as the winner of Season 24
Survivor: One World. She went into the season intending to play with respect, and this humble
player stayed the same after winning, telling People magazine -
"I really haven't bought anything."
Instead, Spradlin-Wolfe used her winnings to help transition into an interior decorating
career.
Spradlin-Wolfe returned for Season 40 to compete amongst previous winners, and to maybe earn
more spending money.
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