Survivor: Heroes vs Villains
Season	20
Filming Location	Upolu, Samoa
Season Run	February 11, 2010 - May 16, 2010
Filming Dates	August 9, 2009 - September 16, 2009
Survivors	20
Winner	» Sandra Diaz-Twine
Runner(s)-up	»» Parvati Shallow » Russell Hantz
Tribes	██ Heroes ██ Villains ██ Yin Yang
Opening Sequence
Series Chronology
Previous Season	Samoa
Next Season	Nicaragua

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains is the twentieth season of the CBS competitive reality television series Survivor.

This season was a celebration of the ten year anniversary of the show and opted to have returning players who were known for their honor and integrity (Heroes) or their deception and duplicity (Villains) - it also marked the first two-time winner; Sandra Diaz-Twine.

ProductionEdit

Unlike previous seasons where a break in production occurred between seasons, the twentieth season was shot twenty days after Survivor: Samoa was completed, taking advantage of the existing infrastructure from that season. Casting for Heroes vs. Villains was done simultaneously with casting for Survivor: Samoa. Heroes vs. Villains features ten former Survivors known for their acts of integrity and honor, the Heroes, and ten former Survivors known for their deeds of deception and duplicity, the Villains. The cast was officially announced during the 36th People's Choice Awards on January 6, 2010. Jeff Probst , the show's host, stated that while they wanted to do another season where they brought back former players for the show's 10-year anniversary and 20th cycle, they did not want to simply do another All-Stars season. On reflecting on the most popular players, they realized that these players were either seen as likable or despised for those respective seasons, and opted to use that as the theme for this season.

According to Probst, the production initially selected 50 players from the past seasons, paring those down to twenty and keeping one spot open for a possible player from Survivor: Samoa. Some selections were made to match players that production thought would be exciting to see, according to casting director Lynne Spillman. While the players have been classified as Heroes or Villains, Survivor's creator Mark Burnett does not expect these players to maintain these roles in the game, and to do what they need to survive to the end. Rather than the usual slogan "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast", the slogan for this season is "Return, Revenge, Redemption". All challenges in this season will be based on challenges used in previous seasons. Due to the back-to-back filming of Survivor: Samoa and this season, the other players did not have an opportunity to see Russell Hantz's gameplay in Samoa; however, the players were told by the production crew that Hantz was considered "one of the 5 most notorious male villains of all time" prior to the start of the game.

The 2009 Samoa earthquake & tsunami occurred shortly after the completion of filming for this season; a CBS spokeswoman stated that no crew members were harmed from it.

Richard Hatch, the winner of the original Survivor, was asked to return for this season. However, he had to apply to leave the country since he was under house arrest. His request was denied by a federal judge in Rhode Island. Jeff Probst also revealed to TV Guide that Corinne Kaplan of Survivor: Gabon and Shane Powers of Survivor: Panama were also asked to return, but Kaplan declined due to work obligations and Powers was replaced by Russell Hantz of Survivor: Samoa, although Jonathan Penner of Survivor: Cook Islands and Survivor: Micronesia has stated he accepted an offer though was replaced by Hantz. Twila Tanner of Survivor: Vanuatu was asked to be back, which she accepted, but was cut at the last minute. Yau-Man Chan from Survivor: Fiji and Survivor: Micronesia was also asked to return but turned the offer down. In addition, Jeff Probst revealed in an interview that the producers would have liked Elisabeth Hasselbeck from Survivor: The Australian Outback and Colleen Haskell from Survivor: Borneo, neither of whom would have accepted the offer. Jenna Morasca, winner of Survivor: The Amazon, was asked to return but declined, because her boyfriend Ethan Zohn, winner of Survivor: Africa had cancer. Shii Ann Huang of Survivor: Thailand and Survivor: All-Stars was asked back but turned it down due to being pregnant. Alicia Calaway of Survivor: The Australian Outback and Survivor: All-Stars had also turned down an offer to appear. Taj Johnson-George of Survivor: Tocantins turned down an offer to return, as did Sierra Reed of the same season. Tom Buchanan (Survivor: Africa), Natalie Bolton (Survivor: Micronesia), Ozzy Lusth (Survivor: Cook Islands and Survivor: Micronesia), Ace Gordon (Survivor: Gabon), Jean-Robert Bellande (Survivor: China), and Tina Wesson (winner of Survivor: The Australian Outback) were all strongly considered to return but were not chosen. Rudy Boesch of Survivor: Borneo and Survivor: All-Stars was also strongly considered, but the producers deemed him too old to compete. Brian Heidik, winner of Survivor: Thailand, was in talks to compete in the season, but producers were too "repulsed" by him to have him back. Jeff Probst has revealed that Yul Kwon (winner of Survivor: Cook Islands), Terry Deitz (Survivor: Panama), and Michael Skupin (Survivor: The Australian Outback) were considered to return but not chosen. Jon Dalton (Survivor: Pearl Islands and Survivor: Micronesia) has said in an interview that he was initially cast, but cut when Hatch could not make it. 

Twists/ChangesEdit

• Heroes vs. Villains: Ten of the most heroic castaways battled against the ten most villianious castaways for the title of Sole Survivor and the million dollar prize, hence the title.
• Hidden Immunity Idol: 2 idols would be hidden for the contestants to find.
• Double Tribal Council: On Day 15, both tribes competed for individual immunity for an elimination later that night.
• Expanded Jury and Final Three: The Final Tribal Council would have a final 3 and a 9 person jury.

CastawaysEdit

Contestant		Original Tribe	Merged Tribe	Finish	Votes Against
	Sugar Kiper 30, Los Angeles, CA Gabon	Heroes		1st Voted Out Day 3	9
	Stephenie LaGrossa 29, Glenolden, PA Palau & Guatemala	Heroes		2nd Voted Out Day 6	6
	Randy Bailey 50, Austin, TX Gabon	Villains		3rd Voted Out Day 8	9
	Cirie Fields 39, Jersey City, NJ Panama & Micronesia	Heroes		4th Voted Out Day 11	3
	Tom Westman 45, Long Island, NY Palau	Heroes		5th Voted Out Day 14	8
	Tyson Apostol 30, Lindon, UT Tocantins	Villains		6th Voted Out Day 15	3
	James Clement 32, Lafayette, LA China & Micronesia	Heroes		7th Voted Out Day 15	7
	Rob Mariano 33, Pensacola, FL Marquesas & All-Stars	Villains		8th Voted Out Day 18	5
	Coach Wade 37, Susanville, CA Tocantins	Villains		9th Voted Out 1st Jury Member Day 21	4
	Courtney Yates 28, Boston, MA China	Villains		10th Voted Out 2nd Jury Member Day 24	9
	J.T. Thomas 25, Samson, AL Tocantins	Heroes	Yin Yang	11th Voted Out 3rd Jury Member Day 27	5
	Amanda Kimmel 25, Kalispell, MT China & Micronesia	Heroes		12th Voted Out 4th Jury Member Day 30	10
	Candice Woodcock 26, Fayetteville, NC Cook Islands	Heroes		13th Voted Out 5th Jury Member Day 31	5
	Danielle DiLorenzo 28, Boston, MA Panama	Villains		14th Voted Out 6th Jury Member Day 33	4
	Rupert Boneham 45, Indianapolis, IN Pearl Islands & All-Stars	Heroes		15th Voted Out 7th Jury Member Day 36	10
	Colby Donaldson 35, Christoval, TX The Australian Outback & All-Stars	Heroes		16th Voted Out 8th Jury Member Day 37	7
	Jerri Manthey 38, Los Angeles, CA The Australian Outback & All-Stars	Villains		17th Voted Out 9th Jury Member Day 38	9
	Russell Hantz 37, Dayton, TX Samoa	Villains		Second Runner-Up	5
	Parvati Shallow 26, Atlanta, GA Cook Islands & Micronesia	Villains		Runner-Up	8
	Sandra Diaz-Twine 35, Stamford, CT Pearl Islands	Villains		Sole Survivor	3

Season SummaryEdit

Ten of Survivor's greatest Heroes were pitted against ten of Survivor's most notorious Villains. On paper, it seemed that the Heroes had an advantage over the Villains because of sheer strength by winning the first Reward Challenge. But with Rob Mariano's leadership, together with his dominance in challenges (particularly in puzzles), the Villains went on to win 7 of 9 challenges during the first 14 days. The Heroes tribe started to fall apart early because the tribe was torn between shifting alliances. This reflected on challenges, where James Clement started to lose his temper for his tribe's lack of unity. After two weeks of competition, the Heroes were quickly reduced to half.

But the Villains also had their share of mishaps. Jealous of Rob's leadership, newcomer Russell Hantz decided to hide the machete during their sleep, much to the tribe's dismay. After accidentally discovering the clue to the whereabouts of a Hidden Immunity Idol buried somewhere at camp, the tribe had a group consensus that no one shall be caught digging for it, or it will cause their elimination once the Idol was used. Despite this warning, Russell went out to search, much to the anger of his tribe. Upon receiving the news of a double elimination on Day 15, Rob tried to oust Russell by creating an alliance with five other members and splitting their votes between Russell and Parvati Shallow, but only to be thwarted by Russell who made a bold move by secretly asking a gullible Tyson Apostol to vote for Parvati instead of him. In another risky move, Russell handed Parvati his Idol, and much to the surprise of the tribe, Tyson was eliminated in Russell's plan by voting Parvati, causing his elimination. The blindside became Russell's rise to power over the Villains. Despite his newfound power, and after the elimination of James, the Heroes rebounded by winning the next three Immunity Challenges, causing the Russell-led Villains tribe to eliminate Rob, Coach Wade, and Courtney Yates, leaving Sandra Diaz-Twine to fend for herself. After Courtney's ouster, the Heroes and Villains were even with five members apiece. They were then merged as the Yin Yang tribe.

When the Heroes discovered another clue to another Hidden Immunity Idol, they initially wanted to use it against the Villains. But upon realizing that the male Villains were quickly decimating, J.T. Thomas made a risky move by giving Russell the Idol, hoping that Russell might flip into the Heroes side. But after merging, it was not the case as J.T. got blindsided by the Villains. Parvati surprised the tribe by handing two Hidden Immunity Idols to Jerri Manthey and Sandra. This became the Heroes' subsequent downfall. The Heroes would continue to fall despite attempts by Sandra to convince them to vote otherwise. Russell attempted to play Parvati and Danielle DiLorenzo against each other, and while ultimately leading to Danielle's elimination, set Parvati against Russell. The remaining Heroes would be eliminated, leaving the final four as Russell, Parvati, Sandra, and Jerri. Russell, having won final Immunity, felt he would have a better chance with Sandra, whom he felt did little in the game, over Jerri, and eliminated Jerri at their final vote. At the Final Tribal Council, the jury showed little respect for Russell's gameplay; he would go on to receive no votes. While Parvati argued for her mastery of the physical and social nature of her game to win the jury's favor, Sandra was able to win over the Heroes' votes by pointing out that she tried to help them vote out the Villains and remained the last of her original alliance with Rob. Along with Courtney's vote, Sandra won the title of Sole Survivor over Parvati and Russell, 6–3–0 respectively, and became the first two-time Survivor winner.

Episode GuideEdit

Notes:

^1 Combined Reward and Immunity Challenge.
^2 Tom used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating 3 votes against him.
^3 Parvati used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating 4 votes against her.
^4 Jerri used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating 5 votes against her.
^5 Sandra used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating 2 votes against her.

Voting HistoryEdit

Survivor: Heroes vs Villains Voting History
		Original Tribes										Merged Tribe
Episode #:		1	2	3	4	5	6		7	8	9	10	11	12		13	14
Eliminated:		Sugar	Stephenie	Randy	Cirie	Tom	Tyson	James	Rob	Coach	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Candice	Danielle	Rupert	Colby	Jerri	Russell	Parvati	Sandra
Vote:		9-1	6-3	9-1	3-2-0	5-2	3-2-0	5-1	4-3-1	4-3	5-1	5-0	6-3	5-3	4-3	4-0	4-1	3-1	6-3-0
►	Sandra	—	—	Randy	—	—	Russell	—	Russell	Coach	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Candice	Rupert	Rupert	Colby	Jerri	Jury Vote
►	Parvati	—	—	Randy	—	—	Tyson	—	Rob	Coach	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Rupert	Rupert	Rupert	Colby	Jerri
►	Russell	—	—	Randy	—	—	Tyson	—	Rob	Courtney	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Candice	Danielle	Rupert	Colby	Jerri
►	Jerri	—	—	Randy	—	—	Parvati	—	Rob	Courtney	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Candice	Danielle	Rupert	Colby	Parvati		Parvati
►	Colby	Sugar	Amanda	—	Cirie	James	—	James	—	—	—	Jerri	Parvati	Candice	Danielle	Sandra	Sandra				Sandra
►	Rupert	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Colby	Tom	—	James	—	—	—	Jerri	Parvati	Candice	Danielle	Sandra					Sandra
►	Danielle	—	—	Randy	—	—	Tyson	—	Rob	Coach	Courtney	J.T.	Amanda	Rupert	Rupert					Parvati
►	Candice	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Tom	Tom	—	James	—	—	—	Jerri	Amanda	Rupert							Sandra
►	Amanda	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Tom	Tom	—	James	—	—	—	Jerri	Parvati								Sandra
►	J.T.	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Cirie	Tom	—	James	—	—	—	Jerri									Sandra
	Courtney	—	—	Randy	—	—	Parvati	—	Russell	Coach	Jerri										Sandra
	Coach	—	—	Randy	—	—	Parvati	—	Courtney	Courtney										Parvati
	Rob	—	—	Randy	—	—	Russell	—	Russell
	James	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Colby	Tom	—	Colby
	Tyson	—	—	Randy	—	—	Parvati
	Tom	Sugar	Amanda	—	Cirie	James
	Cirie	Sugar	Stephenie	—	Tom
	Randy	—	—	Rob
	Stephenie	Sugar	Amanda
	Sugar	Amanda

Notes:

TriviaEdit

• After filming, the Survivor medical team stayed in Samoa to aid the locals who were affected by the 2009 Samoan Tsunami. As told by Jeff Probst in the TV Guide preview of Survivor: South Pacific, some of the filming locations also took damage from the disaster.
• This is currently the last season where the merged tribe only consists of ten players.
• This season marks the first time a previous winner has won for the second time.
• If The Outcasts are not counted, this is the first and only season where the tribe names came from the English language, being deliberately named "Heroes" and "Villains."
• This season's logo featured silhouettes of the castaways from the Heroes and Villains tribes.
• This season holds the record for the most Hidden Immunity Idols played, with 6.
• This is the only one of his seasons where four-time player Rob Mariano did not make the merge.
• This is also the only season of theirs where three-time players James Clement, Stephenie LaGrossa, Cirie Fields and Coach Wade did not make the merge.
• This is the only season that she participated in that three-time player Amanda Kimmel did not make the Final Tribal Council.
• The "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast" slogan was replaced by "Return, Revenge, Redemption" for this season.
• Both returning players from Survivor: Gabon were voted first from both of their tribes and were voted out unanimously.
• Survivor: Borneo, Survivor: Africa, Survivor: Thailand, Survivor: The Amazon, Survivor: Vanuatu and Survivor: Fiji were not represented in this season.
• This is the last season to feature returning female contestants until Survivor: Caramoan.
• Survivor: All-Stars and Survivor: Micronesia are the two most represented seasons, with 4 representatives each.
• This is the first season with a full cast of returning players to feature a final 3.

ReferencesEdit

External linksEdit

Survivor Seasons
Borneo · The Australian Outback · Africa · Marquesas · Thailand · The Amazon · Pearl Islands · All-Stars · Vanuatu · Palau · Guatemala · Panama · Cook Islands · Fiji · China · Micronesia · Gabon · Tocantins · Samoa · Heroes vs Villains · Nicaragua · Redemption Island · South Pacific · One World · Philippines · Caramoan · Blood vs Water