The season finale of Survivor:Ghost Island airs tonight on CBS. Read a live recap and join the discussion here.
The episode begins with Jeff Probst greeting us in the live studio in Los Angeles. He introduces all the castaways before we hear a Jeff voice-over give a rundown of all the contestants. Sebastian, Donathan, Angela, Laurel, Wendell, and Domenick are the Final 6. Which three will make it to the Final 3? And who will the jury vote as the winner? Let’s find out!
The tribe returns to camp after tribal council. Domenick says Donathan went bananas. “It’s such a wacky situation,” Domenick says. He said Donathan was working with them, but now he’s made it clear he’s against them. In his confessional, Donathan says he was more worried than he should’ve been. As for Sebastian, he admits he’s been hiding behind the “big boys,” but he’s ready to play. He has an advantage and he doesn’t want to be in their shadow anymore.
The next morning, Domenick and Wendell talk about the upcoming vote. As bothered as they are by Donathan, they agree that Sebastian needs to go next. Wendell says everyone loves Sebastian since he’s played a clean game.
It’s time for the immunity challenge, which is a massive maze in the shape of a skull. Jeff explains to the castaways that they must make their way through the maze collecting bags of puzzle pieces. The first to complete his or her puzzle will win immunity. He or she will also win a food reward. The challenge begins, and Donathan falls behind everyone else. Wendell and Sebastian are in the lead, but the others are not too far behind. They all need to collect three bags of puzzle pieces, and Sebastian is the first to get all three. Wendell and Laurel are the next two to get their bags, and Domenick and Angela soon join them. Donathan is still trying to find his final bags as everyone else is assembling their puzzle. Donathan does manage to get the rest of his bags before anyone else has completed his or her puzzle, but Domenick and Wendell are close to completing theirs. Wendell is the first to complete his puzzle. Wendell wins immunity! He can choose two people to join him on reward, and he chooses Sebastian and Angela. Laurel calls it a strategic move by picking those two to join him. In her confessional, Laurel expresses her annoyance at Wendell picking her two enemies to go along with him to the reward.
The tribe returns to camp, and Wendell says he’s glad to have finally won an individual immunity. He feels good about his chances since he has immunity tonight, as well as a hidden immunity idol for the next round. In his confessional, Wendell admits he’s feeling bad about wanting to blindside Sebastian tonight, but he hopes he can get in his good graces with this reward. As for Sebastian, he’s feeling good that Donathan will go home tonight. However, tonight is the last time he can use his advantage. He wants to make a move against Domenick or Wendell.
While Wendell, Sebastian, and Angela are at the reward, Laurel is venting her frustrations to Domenick back at camp. Domenick offers a sympathetic ear, but he says in his confessional that Laurel is being too emotional about Wendell’s decision. Later on, Donathan admits to Sebastian and Angela that Domenick and Wendell have not talked game with him today. They agree that Domenick is a threat. They want to vote him out tonight. Sebastian even tells Angela and Donathan about his extra vote advantage. In her confessional, Angela says she feels good about finally being in on a plan.
However, Angela later talks to Domenick and tells him about the plan. She even reveals Sebastian’s extra vote advantage. Domenick tells Angela to vote for Sebastian, and he even lets Wendell know about the plan. Domenick doesn’t want to play an idol this round, but he believes he may need to tonight.
It’s time for tribal council. Donathan tells Jeff he believes he’s going home tonight, and Sebastian agrees. However, Domenick calls his bluff and says that he knows about the plan to vote him out. He also calls out Sebastian’s extra vote. Sebastian admits he does have an advantage, but he doesn’t know how “the cat got out of the bag.” Domenick gets very rambunctious and continues to rail into Donathan. He even pulls out his idol and fake idol (claiming the fake one is real). Donathan responds by just saying he knows he’s gone. Domenick and Wendell vent their anger at Donathan by saying he should have just worked with them. Donathan says he doesn’t want to work with them and he wants to play his own game. Domenick stands up and hands Jeff the fake idol before the vote. After he does this, we hear Michael whisper to the jury that that wasn’t the real idol. Jeff asks where are they now, and Wendell says he doesn’t know how he’s going to vote. Laurel says she believes something is still in the works. Afterwards, it’s time to vote.
Before Jeff reads the votes, Domenick reveals that he played a fake idol. If he receives any votes, they will count.
The first vote is for…
Domenick
Donathan
Sebastian
Sebastian
Sebastian
Sebastian is voted out and the eighth member of the jury. He also did not use his extra vote advantage.
The next day, it’s time for another immunity challenge. They must make their way through an obstacle course and collect puzzle pieces along the way. The first to complete his or her pyramid puzzle will win immunity. The challenge begins, and Wendell takes a bit of a lead with Angela trailing behind. Eventually, they are all working on the puzzle at the same time. Jeff points out how everyone in this group has won immunity before except for Donathan. And right after Jeff says this, Wendell wins immunity!
The castaways return to camp after the immunity challenge. Domenick is considering taking Donathan with him to Final 4 since he’s weaker at challenges than Laurel. Domenick and Wendell express their concerns with Laurel about her connection to Donathan, and Laurel says that she needs Donathan on the jury since he’ll vote for her. Later on, Domenick and Wendell discuss the vote. They are concerned about Laurel being a threat. We hear a confessional from Wendell, and he hopes he’ll make the move that benefits him.
It’s time for tribal council. Laurel admits there is pressure tonight, and Angela says that Wendell and Domenick have been away having conversations together back at camp. Donathan agrees that Wendell and Donathan are calling the shots, and he points out that he’s never won a challenge. Domenick says Donathan is making sense, and he admits his mind is not made up. Wendell says he has a unique opportunity to use his necklace to save someone, but he is worried about making the wrong decision. Wendell says it’s an individual game. Laurel says they have saved each other throughout the game, and she hopes loyalty will trump viewing someone as a threat. However, Donathan points out that they’re getting to the very near of the game. Afterwards, it’s time to vote.
Before Jeff reads the votes, Domenick plays his hidden immunity idol on himself. Afterwards, Wendell plays his hidden immunity idol on Laurel.
Jeff reads the votes. The first vote is for…
Laurel
Donathan
Donathan
Donathan
Donathan is voted out and the ninth member of the jury.
We return to the live studio, and Jeff talks to Donathan. He asks if he’s changed, and he admits that he has and he’s found his voice. Jeff also reveals to Donathan that pop star Sia was moved by Donathan’s story, and she wants to give him $10,000 to help him take care of his family.
It’s Day 38 and time for the final immunity challenge. While balancing on a wobbly beam, they must use a long instrument to stack a tower of balls. The first to stack his or her balls will win immunity. In addition, he or she must choose one person to take to the Final 3. The challenge begins, and it’s fairly even. However, Domenick’s tower comes crashing down and he must start over. Wendell takes a lead with Angela right behind. Laurel’s tower collapses too, so she must start over too. Wendell only has one more ball to place on his tower, but it falls apart. Angela now has the lead, but her tower also falls. All of a sudden, Domenick is now in the lead. However, the competition gets tighter as Wendell is close to catching up to Domenick. However, Domenick completes his tower first. Domenick wins immunity. Before tribal council, Jeff tells them they must go to Ghost Island first.
The Final 4 arrive at Ghost Island. Domenick is glad to have made it to the Final 3, but he’s concerned about making the wrong decision of whom to take to Final 3. In his confessional, Wendell says he knows Domenick won’t bring him to Final 3, so he’s just hoping he’ll win the fire making challenge. He’s confident in his ability to make fire. Domenick approaches Laurel about making fire, but she tells him that she cannot beat Wendell in a fire making challenge. She tells him Angela is better to go up against Wendell. Domenick later approaches Angela about making fire, but she’s also hesitant. She also tells Domenick that Laurel has never upset anyone on the jury. She says Laurel is a Yale graduate and won’t go down fighting when she’s pleading her case to the jury. However, Domenick still wants Angela to be the one to go up against Wendell in the fire making challenge.
Domenick goes up a hill and is faced with three urns from three previous seasons. They are urns from seasons where the final immunity challenge winner chose the wrong person to go to the Final Tribal Council. One is from The Australian Outback, one is from Cagayan, and one is from Game Changers. The immunity challenge winners were Colby, Woo, and Brad, but they lost to Tina, Tony, and Sarah respectively. He gets to choose which urn to bring with him to the Final Tribal Council. In his confessional, Domenick ponders whether he should give immunity away and face Wendell in the fire making challenge himself.
It’s time for tribal council. They discuss Domenick’s decision, and Laurel says that Domenick’s goal is to take out Wendell. She says she’s not the one to compete against Wendell since she’s not great at making fire. Jeff asks Angela what her plea is, and she says Laurel is a threat since the jury likes her. Jeff asks Wendell his thoughts, and Wendell tells him that he did not make a plea. He knows that his only chance is winning the fire making challenge. Domenick reveals the voting urn from Cagayan and says he doesn’t want to make the same mistake Woo did. Domenick announces he wants to bring Laurel to Final 3. Angela and Wendell will compete in a fire making challenge.
Wendell is superstitious about the color orange due to Malolo’s losing streak, so he doesn’t want to sit at the table with the orange flag. Angela doesn’t care, so she switches with him so Wendell can sit at the table with the purple flag. The challenge begins, and Wendell is the first to have fire. He builds his fire as Angela continues to struggle. Wendell’s fire burns through the rope. Angela is eliminated and the tenth member of the jury.
On the morning of Day 39, Wendell is emotional about making it to the Final 3. He says he is a super fan and believes he can win the game. Laurel says she’s an underdog, and she wants to make sure the jury knows her game. She said she was able to be the deciding factor on whom went home and saved Domenick and Wendell on multiple occasions. As for Domenick, he admits that Laurel has a lot of former Malolo tribe members on jury and Wendell is a big threat. However, he believes the jury will respect great game play. He thinks it will be an epic tribal council.
It’s time for Final Tribal Council. Kellyn begins the discussion with the social aspect of the game. She asks them what was their plan coming into the game. Laurel said she planned to play an athletic game, but she was on the losing tribe Malolo. Michael points out that Laurel was the only one on four tribes, but he says Laurel stuck to Domenick and Wendell all the way to the end. Laurel says they may be flashier, but she helped saved them. Michael says Laurel had the chance to make a move and switch things up, but she didn’t. Laurel says she wasn’t there to make big moves, but she made sure to stick with the top alliance.
Michael says Domenick played the better social game, but Wendell says that Domenick is from New York and a talker. Wendell says he did have genuine conversations with people. Desiree asks to hear more about his game, and Wendell says he protected Domenick from Chris. Chris asks who was the mastermind in this Final 3. Wendell says he was the mastermind, which causes Domenick to snicker. Wendell says he was the one to bring in Laurel, but Donathan speaks up and says that it was Domenick who brought her in. Domenick says there was no mastermind and he made his own decision. Kellyn asks people who was brought into the Domenick and Wendell alliance by whom. The consensus is Domenick, but Sebastian says he was buddies with Wendell.
Wendell brings up his work ethic around camp, but Michael wants to know more about the strategy. He wants to know more details about the hidden immunity idol. Wendell says he used his idol to save Laurel, showing loyalty. Michael says loyalty won’t be enough for him. Domenick brings up the Sebastian vote. He says it may have looked distasteful in the way he acted that night, and Kellyn says it definitely was distasteful. Sebastian says it was ridiculous. Donathan says it was an attack. Domenick thought it was an act, and he’s hurt that he’s being viewed as malicious. He apologizes for the aggressive way he went about it. Michael gives him kudos for the play. Chris says he still has mutual respect for Domenick. They may have been at odds, but Chris says that Domenick “played his ass off.”
Laurel says she knows she didn’t take out Domenick or Wendell when she had the chance, but she believes she wouldn’t have made it to the end if she allowed Domenick or Wendell to be voted out. Domenick says he knows he hurt people’s feelings, but he says he plays with passion. He also claims he played a great game. He tells them to vote with their heart. Wendell says he wanted to put his heart out there for people to know who he is. He wanted to play a clean game, and he says he made strategic moves. Afterwards, it’s time for the jury to vote.
We see Michael and Chris vote for Domenick, and Sebastian and Kellyn vote for Wendell. But who will win?
Jeff reads the votes. Usually he reads them back in Los Angeles after the season has wrapped up, but he’s reading them now. Everyone is shocked that Jeff is reading the votes already.
The first vote is for…
Domenick
Wendell
Domenick
Wendell
Domenick
Wendell
Domenick
Wendell
Domenick
Wendell
For the first time ever in Final Tribal Council, it is a tie! As a result, Laurel will cast the deciding vote.
We’re now back in the live studio. Jeff gives kudos to all the castaways on a great season before he reads Laurel’s vote.
Laurel voted for…
WENDELL HOLLAND WINS SURVIVOR: GHOST ISLAND!
It’s time for the reunion show!
Jeff asks Wendell if he felt confident when it was Laurel casting the deciding tie-breaking vote. He says he knew Domenick had a good relationship with Laurel too, but he felt good when it was Laurel casting the vote. Jeff asks Laurel about her decision. She says it was hard, but it came down to Wendell’s social game and her personal relationship with Wendell. Jeff talks to Michael next. He says people are impressed by his maturity at such a young age. Michael says he just hangs around older people, and he says he graduated high school early. Jeff talks to Chris about his rivalry with Domenick. Chris says it was a real rivalry, but they do have a mutual respect for each other.
Jeff talks to past castaways James Clement and Erik Reichenbach. James was blindsided with two hidden immunity idols in his possession in Survivor: China, and Erik gave away his immunity necklace before getting blindsided in Survivor: Micronesia. James says he’s able to see the humor, but he can’t watch the show anymore. Erik says you have to laugh at it now. Jeff asks Kellyn if people do get inside their heads when it comes to advantages, or is it all a coincidence. She says you just have to embrace everything about the game.
Next we see a preview of the upcoming season. Survivor: David vs Goliath. The theme is a tribe of underdogs going up against a tribe of people who had advantages in life. The season will premiere in the fall, likely after Big Brother 20 wraps up. The show ends with Kevin Hart plugging his new show TKO: Total Knock Out.
And that wraps up the season finale of Survivor: Ghost Island! Thanks for reading, post your thoughts in the comment section below, and come back June 27 for the premiere of Big Brother 20!
