Survivor: Caramoan -- Fans vs. Favorites saw its first major blindside in Wednesday night's episode.
Corinne Kaplan, a 33-year-old clinical consultant from Los Angeles, thought she had enough people on her side to vote out fan Sherri Biethman, which would then give her enough numbers to blindside Phillip Sheppard at the next tribal council. But she didn't and was voted out in a move that clearly surprised the "favorite."
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Her elimination ends the streak of fans on the losing end of the vote, leaving seven favorites and four fans. But after the tribes merged in Wednesday night's episode, the fans vs. favorites alliances broke down, leading to the end of Corinne's second shot at the $1 million prize.
On Thursday, she spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about being betrayed by Dawn, her biggest regret and what she really thinks about Phillip.
The Hollywood Reporter: How surprised were you at being voted out? Did you have any clue?
Corinne: I knew something was wrong. I didn't know what, but it felt like something was wrong. It wasn't supposed to be anything worse that a tie. I was surprised Erik had flipped for sure. Malcolm said he had him. But I was blindsided.
THR: But you actually thought you had Erik and Dawn on your side, which would have made it a 7-5 vote for Sherri?
Corinne: Yes, I really thought I had Dawn. I didn't know Dawn went back and told them all that stuff. When push came to shove, Cochran showed in [Dawn's] season he wasn't loyal to her. I put a lot of eggs in Dawn's basket. That was an error on my part.
THR: When did you find out she had told everyone what you told her?
Corinne: When I got home from the game.
THR: How surprised were you?
Corinne: I was more hurt than surprised. Honestly, they showed very little of this, but she was my best friend out there. I cared very much for her. The reason I told her is because she was slowly melting down. She went to the well and cried. She was hysterical when Brandon was voted out. She was my best friend and I wanted her to feel safe. I presented her with options to soothe her and give her comfort. She started to freak out, so we went to the well and I said, "Listen, there are a lot of options for us. We're in a good situation. We're not power players. We're not going to get voted out. We can flip if we want." I kept saying, "we, we, we, her and I." Everyone is saying, "Why the hell did you tell Dawn?" But we were in an alliance, and I thought we were going to the end. I presented her options and tried to make her feel better. I didn't say, "Let's do it." I said, "Here are our options." I don't know why she would burn somebody who was so good to her for so long. For 22 days, I held her hand while she cried.
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THR: Have you spoken to her since you were voted out?
Corinne: I refuse to, actually. I didn't give her my phone number. She's sent me a lot of letters on Facebook, apologizing. I think she genuinely feels badly about it, but she stole the game from me. She stole memories from me that I can't get back. It's hard to forgive that. If it hadn't happened, I would have been friends with her forever. I would have met her kids. I genuinely adored her. She took away something I'll never get back. That's hard to forgive.
THR: Why did you and Phillip clash so badly?
Corinne: I don't know where to begin with that. I obviously have a big personality, and I don't get along well with everybody. But certain people drive you insane. Someone had to get mentally evacuated from the game because of him; he drove Brandon insane. I started with more marbles than Brandon; I didn't go insane. But I was at my breaking point. He was truly, really awful.
THR: Other than confiding in Dawn, do you have any other regrets?
Corinne: My biggest regret was the first vote out, I didn't know Franny [Francesca] and I got to know her post-game. If I had know her personally, I would have taken out Phillip and aligned with her. I only knew her three days at that point. That would have changed the course of the game for everybody; Brandon wouldn't have gone crazy. It would have been a totally different game.
THR: Would you go back and play a third time if asked?
Corinne: I always put my job first. If my job says I can go, why not? It's a great adventure, a free trip. I would always go back if my job would let me. I'm not like other schmucks; I won't campaign to go back. It would not break my heart if I never talked to Jeff Probst again. I have a real job and a career outside the game.
THR: You made the jury your first time around, but not this season. Was that hard to take?
Corinne: That was the hardest part of the whole thing.
THR: Who are you rooting for to win?
Corinne: For sure, Malcolm. When I left, and for months, I've felt so bad, all I could think was I [may have] ruined Malcolm's game. I didn't want to affect him negatively. I felt so bad, like I disappointed Malcolm. I kept wishing the whole time, please let Malcolm go far and win this. I don't want to be the reason [if] Malcolm doesn't win.
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THR: At the point you were voted out, you were the only person who knew Malcolm had a hidden immunity idol. Did either of you have plans to reveal that to anyone else?
Corinne: We agreed not to tell anyone else, and not to tell anyone else unless we asked each other first. I knew Malcolm was not going to say anything. That idol was also mine. If he had told anyone, I would have been pissed. It was a joint secret. We would have had a conference call before anything was said.
THR: What was the biggest difference between your first and second times on Survivor?
Corinne: The people. The first time around, everything was new and fresh. Once I went to Cancun on spring break with some friends, and it was the best trip ever. The next you we tried to re-create it -- the same hotel, the same location -- and it wasn't as good. That how this feels. It's just never as good the second time.
