TVGuide.ca: I could see the disappointment on your face when you lost the Redemption Island challenge. What was running through your head when you got voted off?
David Murphy: The finality of it all really set in. It was more of a disappointment in myself than anything. Not only had I not done as well as I wanted to, but I didn’t do as well I as I should have done and as well as people expected me to do. It was a let down on a variety of levels.
TVG: When you heard what the challenge was, did you think you had a chance to win?
DM: I thought I had a shot to win anything. My problem with it was that I over thought it. I spent way too much time trying to make it stable and make it something that would stand up if there might be a breeze or anything like that … the last thing I wanted was to get to the verge of winning it and have it come down. Unfortunately, I did it a little too slow.
TVG: Looking back, do you regret throwing the challenge to get rid of Russell?
DM: It was kind of a difficult situation to be put in. I was not entirely supportive of doing it that way, but I couldn’t really do anything about it. I couldn’t really go against what the alliance wanted to do at that point in time because I already knew that I was kind of teetering with the alliance. I knew that I was sort of at the bottom of it based on the way the relationships had been built and the personalities clashed, so I wasn’t in a position to be very outspoken about it. It turns out, the one time I bite my tongue is the one time that it comes back to haunt me. Throwing the challenge, I wasn’t in agreement with, but getting rid of Russell was going to have to happen sooner or later. Better him than me and as long as I wasn’t aligned with him than whenever he has to go, he has to go, but I was not too gung-ho about throwing the challenge to do it. It is what it is.
TVG: Why do you think Omepete has been so strong?
DM: If you look at them versus Zapatera, they are having fun. Before the merge, Zapatera wasn’t having fun. That was the bottom line. There was a struggle, internal conflict and the chemistry wasn’t there.
TVG: Do you think there is anyone that can make a dent in the Omepete alliance?
DM: It’s going to be difficult, but with the whole Redemption Island angle, that could change the way things play out drastically. It gives people obviously an opportunity to get people back in the game and the further you go into it, the more the dynamic at the camp changes. Walking back in, you may be viewed as a better option than someone who was formerly part of their alliance and feels betrayed.
TVG: Phillip is one interesting character. What are your thoughts on him?
DM: If he is doing this all as an act to get to the end of the game, then he is doing a very good job but I’m not entirely convinced that there isn’t some truth to how he is acting or some reality to it. It’s hard to say. You wake up everyday out there and you get a different side of Phillip. It was never truly a normal side, but there were days that were crazier than others and you wonder what the hell is going on here. What is this guy thinking!
TVG: Now that you are on the jury, who gets your vote for a million dollars?
DM: At this point in time, my mind is still fairly open. It’s really a matter of who is playing the best game. As it stands right now, somebody has got to make a big move to take Rob out of the driver’s seat. If someone steps up and does that, that person is going to have a pretty good chance to win or if someone is able to make it back from Redemption Island and can make it to the end, that person would stand a good chance to get a fair number of jury votes just for the adversity they had to overcome.
Survivor: Redemption Island airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Global/CBS.
Look for interviews with the latest eliminated contestants every Wednesday.
Do you think anyone can take Rob out of the game? mezer@tvguide.ca or comment below.
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