Nick Wilson

Nick Wilson
Contestant Profile
Born	June 11, 1990 (1990-06-11)
Hometown	Williamsburg, Kentucky
Occupation	Public Defender; Attorney
Survivor Career
Version	United States
Tribe(s)	David ► Jabeni Kalokalo
Finish	Winner
Alliance(s)	David Alliance
Challenge Wins	10
Votes Against	0
Days Lasted	39/39
Tribe(s)	Dakal ► Sele Koru
Finish:	7/20
Alliance(s)	Cops-R-Us (affiliated)
Challenge Wins	7
Votes Against	8
Days Lasted	35/39

Nicolas Joseph Caleb "Nick" Wilson is the Sole Survivor of Survivor: David vs. Goliath. He later competed on Survivor: Winners at War.

In David vs. Goliath, Nick's laziness around camp put him in danger of becoming the first boot, but he was given a second chance after Pat Cusack was medically evacuated prior to the first Tribal Council. Thereafter, he formed numerous alliances with both his original and post-switch tribemates, including a final three alliance with Jabeni tribemates Angelina Keeley and Mike White. After the merge, Nick and the David Alliance used numerous advantages to overcome the majority Goliath Alliance. While Nick was seen as a big threat to win in the endgame, he avoided elimination and reached the Final Tribal Council due to his alliance and ability to win the last three challenges. After a strong performance at the Final Tribal Council, Nick's social and strategic game, combined with his underdog status, won him the title of Sole Survivor over Mike and Angelina in a 7-3-0 vote.

Nick returned in Winners at War, where he found himself in a position of power pre-merge due to his alliance with Sophie Clarke, Wendell Holland, and Yul Kwon. Following the merge, Nick was targeted for being a low-level threat, but soon found himself in a comfortable spot. Together with Tony Vlachos, he consistently leveraged his swing vote position to flip between alliances. However, his duplicity caught up with him and he was blindsided at the final six. He failed to win the second return challenge and left the game in 7th place.

Profile

Retrieved from CBS.com

David vs. Goliath Winners at War Age: 27 Hometown: Williamsburg, Kentucky Current residence: Williamsburg, Kentucky Occupation: Public Defender Hobbies: Boating on the lake, four-wheeler riding, and tailgating football games and Keeneland horse races. Pet peeves: People getting offended over every little thing and know-it-alls. Three words to describe you: Charming, outgoing, and intelligent. What's your personal claim to fame? Becoming a Redneck Lawyer! I am a first generation college student and the first in my family to get a bachelor degree. I am also proud of myself for being a public defender to help people instead of chasing money—especially because money and the thought of being rich motivated me in school. Who or what is your inspiration in life? Mamaw Joan—my grandma. She is the most selfless person I've ever met. When my mom and dad got divorced she raised me and my four siblings while we stayed with my dad. She taught me life-changing lessons like the value of hard work and the importance of helping others. She also taught me how to enjoy a beer and some bluegrass music. Work hard, play hard, love hard. Her favorite quote was, "If you don't use it, you lose it!" If you could have three things on the island, what would they be and why? A cooler, beer, and a radio. Nothing beats being outdoors and putting a few back. As great as it is at a tailgate, on the lake, or at a bonfire, I bet it would be even more enjoyable on the beaches of Fiji. Which Survivor contestant are you most like? J.T. from Tocantins, Heroes vs. Villains, and Game Changers. I've got that Southern charm. I can be hard headed when in the heat of a competition. I'll either win or get myself sent home with a massive swing for the fences. No regrets! What's your reason for being on Survivor? I think there are three reasons people play Survivor: adventure, money, and fame. My primary motivation is the experience and adventure! It has been my dream to play this game since I was a little kid. I want to push myself even further in life then I already have and test myself. My secondary motivation is the money. If I had a million dollars, I could pay off my student loans, which would open up my career options a little more. Money is not my primary motivation, because I anticipate I will make a million dollars in my career at some point. I do not care about fame. These days, Survivor contestants are only famous for about six months, anyways. Why do you think you'll "survive" Survivor? I know I could be the final Survivor because I am the total package for this game, First, I am an adamant, hard-working son of a gun. I have chased my dreams my whole life and achieved those, despite humble beginnings. Second, I am a likeable, social guy. Third, I am physically fit and stronger than I look. I will do great in the challenges—tribal and individual, physical and puzzle. Fourth, I am very smart and it is hidden well behind my accent and appreciation for small town life. I will definitely be underestimated. Finally, I am a Survivor strategy expert. I am a super fan who has analyzed every season and every move. As I said, I am the Survivor total package. Hometown: Williamsburg, Kentucky Current residence: Williamsburg, Kentucky Previous season: Winner of Survivor: David vs. Goliath (Season 37) Occupation: Attorney Hobbies: Fantasy baseball, hiking, riding four-wheelers (off-road vehicles), fishing, boating on the lake, tailgating at football games and horse races, and anything outdoors! Pet peeves: Know-it-alls, closed-mindedness, judgmental people, unwarranted outrage, or to sum it all in one word: Twitter. Three words to describe you: Charming, cunning, and cheeky. When did you first watch Survivor? Season 1 finale. Do you still watch Survivor? Every Wednesday! I am even considering starting a Survivor podcast. Who is your inspiration in life? Sandra, because I want to be the next two-time winner. What does Survivor mean to you and your family? Survivor has helped me through hard times. For example, it was a great escape from the stresses of law school. And on a more serious note, I specifically remember when my mom had recently passed away, I was moved by Rodney grieving the loss of his sister on Season 30. I bawled my eyes out. It was a much-needed therapeutic experience. My family has always watched Survivor and tried to watch it together when we could. When my dad came to Fiji for the family visit, it was a monumental experience that strengthened our relationship. Because of that moment, we are still closer to this day. What is one way playing Survivor changed your life? It made me realize what is important in life. I don't have to focus my career on making money. I can focus my life on my family and my career on helping people. As Survivor approaches Season 40 and celebrates 20 years on television, what does it mean to be a part of the legacy? It is a dream come true for me to be a part of the 20-year celebration of Survivor. Only two years ago, I was daydreaming about how I could ever even get the opportunity to be cast on the show. Now, I am the winner of one of Survivor's greatest seasons, and I am placed in the same category as the legends I used to look up to! It is a great honor. I am a Survivor legend! How amazing! What a blessing! How will you play differently than in your past season? When I won David vs. Goliath, I never received a single vote against me. I was able to disguise my strategic ability and knowledge of the game under my country accent and chill demeanor. I was able to fly under the radar and build one-on-one relationships with nearly every single player in the game. This time, if I don't receive a single vote the entire game, I will take it as an insult! Everyone has seen how brilliantly I play Survivor. These legends won't fall for alliance names and my Kentucky charm as easily as a cast of complete strangers did. I won't be able to hide behind bigger threats. So this time, I'm going to be even more aggressive. In short, I am going to have as much fun as possible in the beginning. This is my dream come true and I want to take it all in. Then, I am going to TURN IT ON. No player will be safe from the Kentucky Nick sneaky ninja assassin blindside! This game is where legends are made!

Survivor

David vs. Goliath

Nick was initially placed on the David tribe. Early on, Nick was more interested in forming alliances than working at camp, but unbeknownst to him, Carl Boudreaux became irritated with Nick's laziness and began gunning for him should David lose the first challenge. Although David did indeed lose the first Immunity Challenge on Day 3, Tribal Council was cancelled due to Pat Cusack being medically evacuated, thus sparing Nick. The following morning, Nick regrouped and formed an alliance with Christian Hubicki. When David again lost immunity, both he and Christian found themselves as the swing votes for the impeding Tribal Council. Despite Nick wanting Lyrsa Torres out, he eventually joined Christian in voting out Jessica Peet. Upon returning to camp, both Nick and Christian told Davie Rickenbacker that Gabby Pascuzzi was responsible for Jessica's elimination, leading to Nick plotting with Davie and Bi Nguyen about taking out Gabby. However, David won the next Immunity Challenge, putting any plans on hold.

During the Tribe Switch on Day 10, Nick and Lyrsa were switched to the new Jabeni tribe, where they were outnumbered three to two by the original Goliaths. After Jabeni lost immunity on Day 15, Natalie Cole tried to force Nick into giving her his jacket on behalf of Angelina Keeley, earning Nick's ire. Both he and Lyrsa then tried to convince Mike White to turn against Natalie, who had been rubbing her original Goliath tribemates the wrong way with her abrasive personality. At Tribal Council, Mike sided with Nick and Lyrsa, voting out Natalie. When Jabeni lost immunity again, Nick and Mike contemplated on which of Angelina or Lyrsa to take out. Eventually, Nick joined Angelina and Mike in sending Lyrsa home.

When the tribes merged into the Kalokalo tribe on Day 18, Nick became a part of a cross-tribal alliance with Christian and Gabby, along with Goliaths Mike, Alec Merlino, and Alison Raybould. At the first post-merge Tribal Council, he joined the rest of the tribe in unanimously eliminating Elizabeth Olson. The following morning, Nick and Davie found a clue to an advantage. With Carl and Davie's help, Nick was able to find the advantage, which turned out to be a Vote Steal. With the David Alliance down in numbers at the following Tribal Council, Davie played his Hidden Immunity Idol on Christian, and Nick, Christian, and Davie were able to blindside John Hennigan by splitting the minority vote and flushing one of Dan Rengering's idols. Still down in numbers to the opposing Goliath Alliance, Nick used his advantage at the next Tribal Council on Day 25 to steal Alison's vote. Carl then used his Idol Nullifier in tandem with Nick's Vote Steal to nullify Dan's second idol, sending Dan to the jury.

Nick and Davie woke up early the next morning to search for a new idol, with Nick finding a clue saying that the idol was on the other side of the island and that he would have to wait until dark to find it. That night, Nick snuck off to find the idol, and successfully claimed it for himself. Feeling confident, he then took the offer to sit out of the next Immunity Challenge, along with Angelina and Carl. At Tribal Council, he joined the rest of the tribe in unanimously voting out Alec for being a physical threat. With the David Alliance now in the majority, Carl led the charge to eliminate Alison next. Although Nick was on board with the plan, Gabby became irritated with Carl's approach. At the next Tribal Council, both Christian and Gabby betrayed the David Alliance and joined Alison, Mike, and Kara Kay in blindsiding Carl.

Upon returning from Tribal Council, Nick was upset with Christian over Carl's blindside and declared that his alliance with Christian was over. The following morning, Nick met his father Jim at the family visit. Nick and Angelina won the subsequent Reward Challenge, choosing Davie and Mike to join them. During the reward, they voiced their intentions to reach the final four together. Following the Immunity Challenge, Nick agreed with Gabby about blindsiding Christian, but then he, Angelina, and Mike came up with a plan to put two votes on Gabby in case Christian played his idol. At Tribal Council, Christian played the idol on himself, and Gabby was instead sent to the jury.

After Gabby's elimination, Nick made a fake idol and "found" it under the raft in front of Angelina, Christian, and Mike so that they would not search for a real one. However, Davie was leery of Nick's ruse and told Christian that Nick possibly had two idols and that he planned to blindside Nick. Leading up to the next Tribal Council, Nick realized that Alison was a physical threat. He revealed to Davie that his raft idol was fake, and Davie agreed to vote against Alison with him. However, Mike pulled Nick aside and told him that Davie had targeted him earlier, before trying to get Nick on board with voting out Christian before Davie. At Tribal Council, Davie played an idol on himself, prompting Nick to play his fake idol to get a read on his tribemates' reactions. He then played his real idol on himself, but received no votes, and Christian was voted out.

Nick won his first individual immunity on Day 36, and chose to share the reward with Angelina and Mike. On the reward, Nick and Mike helped Angelina find an idol for herself before Nick and Angelina agreed to target Alison next. At Tribal Council however, Nick was shocked when the former Goliath Alliance banded together to blindside Davie. An angry Nick confronted Angelina and Mike over Davie's blindside, and worked to ensure that Alison would go home next. After Nick won the next Immunity Challenge, however, he and Kara considered taking out Mike instead for being a threat. However, they eventually sided with Angelina and Mike to send Alison to the jury. Nick then won the Final Immunity Challenge on Day 38. He then voiced his intention to take Angelina to the end, prompting Kara and Mike to practice making fire. Mike ultimately beat Kara to join Nick and Angelina in the Final Three.

At the Final Tribal Council, Nick was commended for his social and strategic acumen, as well as his immunity wins, but was criticized for his game peaking too early. In the end, Nick's strategic moves, strong social game, and underdog status were preferred over Mike's late strategic dominance and Angelina's selfish gameplay, and he was awarded the title of Sole Survivor over Mike and Angelina in a 7-3-0 vote.

• Challenge History
• Voting History

Episode	Tribe Affiliation	Challenge	Challenge Type	Sit-Out?	Result
1	David	Open	Reward	Yes	Won
		Matchbox 25	Immunity	No	Lost
2		Another Brick in the Wall	Reward/Immunity	No	Lost
3		Tangled Up in Blue	Reward/Immunity	No	Won
Switched Tribes, Day 10
4	Jabeni	Blind Barrow	Reward/Immunity	No	2nd
5		Ball-istic Missiles	Reward	No	2nd
		A Bridge You Must Cross	Immunity	No	Lost
6		Carry On	Reward	No	2nd
		Dishwalla	Immunity	No	Lost
Tribes Merged, Day 18
7	Kalokalo	Ring Leader	Immunity		Lost
8		Raise the Roof	Reward		Won
		Don't Buoy Me Love	Immunity		Lost
9		All Mixed Up	Reward	No	Lost
		Roll Away the Dew	Immunity		Lost
10		Back in Slack	Reward		Lost
		Uncomfortably Numb	Immunity	Yes1	Lost
		Beastie Buoys	Reward	No	Lost
		Word Forward	Immunity	No	Lost
11		Ringo Starz	Reward		Won
		A Hand Out	Immunity		Lost
12		Pole Dancing	Reward		Invited
		Rollerball	Immunity		Lost
13		Step Brothers	Reward/Immunity		Won
		Vertigo	Immunity		Won
		Simmotion	Immunity		Won
Sole Survivor, Day 39
Notes: ^1 Nick elected to sit out of the challenge to eat nachos, margaritas, and beer.

Episode	Nick's Votes	Voted Against Nick
1	No Tribal Council
2	Jessica	-
3	David Tribe Immune
4	Jabeni Tribe Immune
5	Natalie	-
6	Lyrsa	-
7	Elizabeth	-
8	John	-
9	Dan+ Dan1	-
10	Alec	-
	Alison	-
11	Christian2	-
12	Christian	-3
13	Alison	Individual Immunity
	Alison	Individual Immunity
Jury Votes for Nick	Alec, Carl, Dan, Davie, Elizabeth, Gabby, John
Sole Survivor, Day 39

^1 In "Breadth-First Search", Nick used a Vote Steal advantage on Alison, allowing him to cast an additional vote in Alison's place.
^2 In "So Smart They're Dumb", Christian used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating Nick's vote against him.
^3 In "Are You Feeling Lucky?", Nick used a Hidden Immunity Idol, but did not negate any votes against him.

Winners at War

Nick returned as the most recent former winner. Beginning on the Dakal tribe, he found himself in Yul's alliance/coalition consisting of one time and disconnected players. Despite being targeted for being the most recent winner and a low profile player, Nick's alliance protected him, and Amber and Tyson were voted out at Dakal's two tribal councils.

Following the tribe switch, Nick and allies Wendell and Yul were moved to Sele, where Nick found himself in a numerical advantage. After Sele lost the Immunity Challenge on Day 16, he considered voting out Wendell after original Sele Parvati notified him that Wendell tried to sell his vote to her for her Fire Token. At tribal council, however, both he and Yul joined Wendell in voting out Parvati. After losing immunity again, Nick considered voting out Yul for being a strategic threat. He discussed this with original Sele Michele. At tribal council, they joined Wendell in blindsiding Yul.

Following the merge, Nick and Michele, who were working together, were shocked when their ally Wendell was blindsided at the first vote. Despite initially being in the minority, he soon became apart of Tony's majority coalition. On Day 29, he formed an alliance with Denise and Michele, as he felt he had a shot at beating them in the end. On Day 31, he was targeted by Tony's alliance, as he was seen as untrustworthy, but foiled their plan by winning immunity. Going into tribal council, he found himself as a swing vote between Tony's alliance who wanted Jeremy out, and Michele and Jeremy, both of whom wanted Ben out. At tribal council, Nick joined Tony's alliance and blindsided Jeremy.

Following tribal council, Michele chastised him for messing up her's and his games, but Nick felt like he made the right decision. On Day 32, Nick received something from Extinction Island  (Natalie sent it to him), that allowed him to play a disadvantage on someone at the immunity challenge. He had to pay 8 tokens to purchase it. Despite only having 6, he convinced Michele to give him her two tokens by showing the disadvantage.

He used the disadvantage on Ben, giving him an obstacle in the immunity challenge, which allowed Michele to win. At camp, both he and Michele talked to Tony about voting out Ben, as he would be the biggest threat in the fire challenge, but both he and Michele later became apart of Tony's plan to blindside Denise. At tribal council however, Tony flipped on them and joined Sarah, Denise and Ben in blindsiding Nick, shocking Nick and Michele. Nick was unable to win the second re-entry duel, resulting in his permanent elimination.

At the Final Tribal Council, Nick asked Tony if he thought it was fair game to do anything he could to build bonds with people just so they would not target him, and then just vote them out. He voted for Tony to win, ultimately helping him become the second two-time winner of Survivor by a 12-4-0 jury vote.

• Challenge History
• Voting History

Episode	Tribe Affiliation	Challenge	Challenge Type	Sit-Out?	Result
1	Dakal	Marooning	Reward/Immunity	No	Won
		Blue Lagoon Bustle	Immunity	No	Lost
2		Draggin' the Dragon	Reward/Immunity	No	Won
3		Along the Watch Tower	Reward/Immunity	No	Won
4		Beyond the Wheel	Reward/Immunity	No	Lost
Switched Tribes, Day 12
5	Sele	Block in a Hard Place	Immunity	No	1st
6		Rice Race	Reward/Immunity	No	Lost
7		Ball-istic Missiles	Reward1	No	2nd
		Dishwalla	Immunity	No	Lost
Tribes Merged, Day 19
8	Koru	Get a Grip	Immunity		Lost
9		New School	Reward	No	Invited2
		Bermuda Triangle	Immunity		Lost
10		A Bit Tipsy	Immunity		Lost
11		Chain Reaction	Reward3		Won
		10-Foot Pole	Immunity		Lost
12		When It Rains	Immunity		Lost
13		Running Down a Dream	Immunity		Won
		High Step Back	Immunity		Lost
Voted Out, Day 34
14	Koru	Don't Call It a Comeback	Re-entry		Lost
Eliminated, Day 35
Notes: ^1 An unaired Reward Challenge was held on Day 17. ^2 Sarah gave up her reward to Nick. ^3 An unaired Reward Challenge was held on Day 26.

Episode	Nick's Votes	Voted Against Nick
1	Dakal Tribe Immune
	Amber	Amber
2	Dakal Tribe Immune
3	Dakal Tribe Immune
4	Kim	Tyson
5	Sele Tribe Immune
6	Parvati	-
7	Yul	-
8	Adam	-
9	Adam	Denise, Sarah
10	Tyson	-
11	Sophie	-
12	Kim	-
13	Jeremy	Individual Immunity
	Denise	Ben, Denise, Sarah, Tony
Voted Out, Day 34
14	On Edge of Extinction
Eliminated, Day 35
Voted for Sole Survivor	Tony

Post-Survivor

Nick's first photograph as an attorney.

• On January 14, 2019, Nick received the key to his hometown city of Williamsburg, Kentucky and was given his own day, "Nick Wilson Day" on January 16.
• Nick married longtime girlfriend Grisel Vilchez.
• Prior to his 2022 election bid, Nick changed careers and became a prosecutor.

Political Career

• In 2022, under the Republican party, Nick ran and won a seat in the Kentucky House of Representatives, representing the 82nd District which included his hometown of Williamsburg. He was endorsed by outgoing representative Regina Bunch who retired after her term ended.
• In March 2023, Nick voted in support for a controversial legislation seen by many as anti-LGBTQIA, which drew strong reactions and criticism from his former castmates and the online Survivor community.

Trivia

Statistics of Nick Wilson
Longevity
Seasons competed:	2
Days lasted:	74
Challenge Wins
Tribal wins:	10
Individual wins:	7
Total wins:	17
Tribal Council
Total votes received:	8
Exile Island
Times sent to Exile Island:	0
Redemption Island
Duels won:	0
Days spent on Redemption Island:	0
Edge of Extinction
Days spent on the Edge of Extinction:	1

• Nick was the youngest man on the original David tribe.
• Nick was the only castaway to win multiple individual Immunity Challenges in David vs. Goliath.
• Since the introduction of the final four forced fire-making challenge, Nick is the first castaway to win the Final Immunity Challenge and not compete in the fire-making tiebreaker, but go on to win the season.
• In Episode 10 of Australian Survivor: Champions vs Contenders 2019, Harry Hills mentioned that Nick was his favorite Survivor contestant.
• Nick is the youngest member of the original Dakal tribe.
• Nick's 29th birthday was on Day 21 of Winners at War.
• Nick lost 21 lbs. during his time on Winners at War.

References

Preceded by Ghost Island Wendell Holland

Sole Survivor Titleholder David vs. Goliath Nick Wilson

Succeeded by Edge of Extinction Chris Underwood