And she has a plan to finally get the upper hand on Cirie.

Survivor 50 star Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick wants to prove to her kids that ‘mom really is a badass’

And she has a plan to finally get the upper hand on Cirie.

By Dalton Ross

Dalton Ross is a writer and editor with over 25 years experience covering TV and the entertainment industry. *Survivor* is kind of his thing.

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February 8, 2026 9:15 a.m. ET

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It could be argued that Stephenie LaGrossa endured more on her first season of *Survivor* than any other of the more than 750 contestants to get up off the couch. Her Ulong tribe on *Survivor: Palau* lost *every single immunity challenge* they competed in. And that doesn’t just mean two or three contests before a tribe swap. They lost all *eight* immunity competitions.

Yet Stephenie survived all eight of those Tribal Councils, making her a tribe of one, before she was finally, mercifully shipped over to the dominating Koror tribe at the de facto merge. The constant losing was brutal, but Stephenie’s perseverance and never-say-die attitude made her one of the most popular players in franchise history, even with her seventh-place finish.

Stephenie was so popular, in fact, that she was brought back the very next season for *Survivor: Guatemala,* where she made it all the way to the final two and was beaten by Danni Boatwright in a 6-1 jury vote.

Stephenie’s third outing, in *Heroes vs. Villains*, was as forgettable as her first two runs were memorable. Stephenie separated her shoulder just minutes into the game in a brutal marooning challenge (watch the unedited footage below) and was then voted out second after feuding with fellow Hero James Clement.

Stephenie was so disappointed with her *Heroes vs. Villains* result that she never even bothered watching the season. And it seemed like her *Survivor* journey was over. Putting reality TV aside, Stephenie married professional baseball pitcher Kyle Kendrick (who went on to win a World Series with the Philadelphia Phillies) and became a mom to three children.

But TV came calling once again. Now going by Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, the *Survivor* vet joined *Heroes vs. Villains* tribemate Cirie Fields on USA network’s *Snake in the Grass* in 2022 (where Cirie got the upper hand), and was one of the first reality veterans to enter the castle when she and Cirie competed on season 1 of *The Traitors* back in 2023, which was won by Cirie. Now, with Stephenie’s return to *Survivor 50 *(premiering Feb. 25 on CBS), the reality TV circle is complete.

But the 46-year-old mother of three is a very different Stephenie than the one who started her *Survivor* journey 40 seasons ago. She chatted with ** all about that journey in Fiji just days before the game, explaining her unique reason for returning to play, why she finally brought herself to watch *Heroes vs. Villains*, and how she plans to finally get the upper hand on Cirie.

*(This is one of 24 deep-dive, on-location interviews with the *Survivor 50 *cast. Links to the other interviews will be posted at the bottom of this article as they become available.)*

Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick of 'Survivor 50'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**: Tell me why you're going to win* Survivor 50*, Stephenie.**

**STEPHENIE LaGROSSA KENDRICK:** It's my turn. It's my time. I've patiently awaited my win and honestly, I know it's so cliche, but I'm 45 [now 46]. I played three times in my twenties, and I am a lot wiser.

**Give everybody the big life update since you last played on *Heroes vs Villains.***

So the biggest update is I'm married now, and I have three children. I have a 13-year-old, I have an 11-year-old, and I have a 6-year-old. I played all three times in my twenties. And now I’m 45.

**You're a different person now.**

And that's the thing. That's why it's not about winning for me anymore. It's not about me, it's about the kids. I'm winning for my kids.

**What do you mean by that? Do you mean financially? Do you mean so they can see you do that?**

Obviously, the money is nice, but just they don't understand. They've seen my old seasons, and to them, that's not mom. They're like, “Why do you sound so funny?” They think I sound younger, and I do. My voice was different. It was a little higher pitched and I was like, “Guys, because I was like 20! I was right out of college!” So for them to see me come out here and see how brutal it actually is and for them to actually watch me on national TV doing *Survivor* is just an absolute insane experience.

Even up until I left, they didn't understand. They were like, “Wait, when are you coming back?” I was like, “July.” My 13-year-old, Sophia, was like, “What? Mom, it's May! I was like, “I know. And that's a shortened game, Sophia. This is no joke!”

They dropped me off at the airport. They were really good. None of them cried. They're like, “Mom, you got it." And then Kyle texted me as soon as I got out and walked through the doors. He's like, “We're all bawling.”

**You said they've seen your other seasons. What was your kid's reaction to it?**

Yeah, I don’t want to get emotional… [Starts to cry.] I'm sorry…

**No, it's okay.**

Yeah,** **you get it.

**Take your time.**

[Collects herself] So, they saw them but it's not real to them because they didn't know that person. Sophia's like, “Mom, don't cry, don't curse, and don't get hurt.” And look, I am already crying. Because I know you. But this time is going to mean so much more. They don't think I'm cool.

**No kid does.**

I'm just their mom and I work at school and I'm always around. I'm very hands-on for everything — sports, homeroom mom, everything. I do everything. So for me to leave for this amount of time and do something this hard, winning will mean a lot more than it did in my twenties.

On the beach for 'Survivor 50': An exclusive, all-access first look at the biggest season ever

Watch cast members of 'Survivor 50' vote their first players out of the game (exclusive)

**You and I have known each other a long time, and I watched you when you were in the big public spotlight with *Palau* and *Guatemala*. Then your husband had his career and was in the public spotlight. Now the past few years with *The Traitors, Snake in the Grass *and now this — mommy's back in the spotlight. What has that been like for the family?**

*The* *Traitors* was cool. That was a little intro back into TV for me. And that was really new to them and they loved it. They loved watching. In fact, every day leading up to *Survivor*, the 6-year-old was like, “Are you leaving for *The Traitors* today? I was like, “No, Sloane, this one's *Survivor*.” We tried to watch my old seasons, but it scared her. We watched *Guatemala*. *Guatemala* was hell. And she's like, “You're going to do that?” I'm like, “No, no, no. It's going to be beautiful. It's at a pretty place. It's kind of like Palau.”

But there was only so much time so she couldn't watch all of them. They wanted to watch *Guatemala* and I needed to watch me lose again. I needed to see how I addressed the jury so that I can fix that. I never really went back and watched.

Stephenie LaGrossa on 'Survivor: Guatemala'.

Cliff Lipson/CBS

**And what did you see when you watched yourself? What did you do wrong?**

Well, I slit a lot of throats along the way, which I realize nowadays might be rewarded, but at the same time, I don't think I owned my gameplay as good as I could have when I sat there in front of the jury. So this time around, from day 1, I'm going to have to make moves, and I'm going to be jury managing the entire time. And when I get to that final three, just properly addressing them and not feeling bad, not apologizing for the moves I had to make to get there. Own it.

**The game has changed so much, even since season 20. Do you think there's a going to be a learning curve for you?**

It’s a huge learning curve for all of us 39 days people. We're not as caught up to speed as all these 26 days folks. And there's a lot of 'em. And aside from that, they're all really close. They're friendly, they hang out. I know Cirie, I know Colby, I've seen Ozzy here or there. I've met Jonathan once. We don't hang out. None of us. We all have our own lives. Colby's not even on freaking social media for crying out loud. And then Coach, I've met once at the *Heroes vs. Villains* finale. I don't even know him. We don't know each other. They know each other. So that's going to be tough. We're going to have to manage that.

7:23 The Cast of ‘Survivor 50’ Reveals Who They Want to Vote Out First

**You talked about how the new schoolers all know each other. *Winners at War* turned into a very old school versus new school situation. Are you worried that's going to happen again?**

I mean, yeah, that's a *huge* concern. But I think honestly, Jeff's learned a lot from that season. And I think the fans were pissed. I was pissed watching as a viewer. I was like, “What the hell?” The good players went one by one by one. There goes Rob and Parvati and Sandra and Ethan. It was brutal to watch. I think that's why they had to do Edge of Extinction or Extinction Island or whatever they called it. And to be honest with you, I think they might do that this time. I bet they're a little afraid that that might happen again.

I bet they'll do it. There was a clause in the contract that said something like, “if you choose to leave and forego your entire stay with the hand you're dealt, basically you're not getting paid.” So there's going to be something. And hopefully I don't have to worry about that because my goal is that I want my kids to get the full experience. My family and friends loved it when I was on *Palau* and *Guatemala*. *Heroes vs. Villains,* that sucked. But they loved it because the viewers were involved or emotionally invested in the players.

I think it's going to be life changing for my kids to see that and be like “Damn, that's freaking hard.” My son calls me a badass, but hopefully I can prove mom really is a badass. Even though they think she's older and daddy was the professional athlete.

**You were the original *Survivor* badass on *Palau*.**

I know. But they don't get it. They don't get it.

Stephenie LaGrossa on 'Survivor: Palau'.

Monty Brinton/CBS

**You just mentioned *Heroes vs. Villains*. Have you purged that entire season from your memory?**

I did. I never even watched it. I watched the beginning and I stopped watching, so then I went back and I watched that entire season.

**And what was that like?**

I didn't remember Colby standing up for me against James and Tom. I didn't remember it. I didn't remember me saying to Cirie in the water, “you get rid of me, you're going next.” She did. I didn't remember how far Colby we went with everything against him. I mean, s---!

**How much do you think your shoulder injury on day 1 played a part?**

You know what? it really didn't. I had dislocated my shoulder so many times that I knew what to do if it popped out. And again, I wasn't around long enough to know if it would be strong enough or keep coming out or not. But I am nervous this time because my shoulder's still not 100 percent. I actually had an X-ray before I came out here. I was like, *I think I heard it.*

I did some crazy s--- before coming here. I was trying to blow something out because I was like*, If I'm going to do it, I want to do it now before I get out there.* So my knee aches, I have a wrist situation, but it's fine. My shoulder kills me. It's arthritis from the surgery. When it locks up, it locks up. So it won't come out because it's been anchored back together. The anchors are all still in place. I got a cortisone shot, which is supposed to take the pain away. Nope. I've been in pain this whole time.

**Oh really? The cortisone shot didn't help?**

Nope. Can't even touch it. So I haven't taken Advil or Tylenol or anything. I'm like, *Listen, I'm going into this game. I just have to be smart.* When I reached back for that mat [on *Heroes vs. Villains*], it was the way I landed it. I am going to have to be a little more guarded. So I want to be a badass but I can't just go balls to the wall or I might get hurt.

Stephenie LaGrossa on 'Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains'.

Monty Brinton/CBS

**Anything you regret from your three seasons? Not on a game level, but on a personal level.**

I really don't have any regrets in my *Survivor* career. But on *The Traitors,* I knew Cirie was a Traitor and I regret protecting her as long as I did. We had a deal. And you're never allowed to tell somebody if you're a Traitor, but we had a deal: If I'm one or you're one, just protect each other. Before Sandra even coined the whole Traitor angel phrase, that was already in my head. *If Cirie’s a Traitor, she's protecting me.* So I'm not saying boo, but I think I just waited a little too long to pull the trigger and she played a great game. Good for her.

But this time, I'm going to use her, I want to work with her, I hope that she wants to work with me. I can tell she's acting like she kind of does, but you never know. Cirie’s f---ing deadly. My goal is to use her as long as I can, but I've got to get rid of her before she has a chance to get rid of me.

And I'm not gunning for Cirie. You'd have to be a f---ing idiot to a gun for Cirie. But I'm not going go down dying to try to save her. If everybody wants her out, I'm going to have to obviously go with it. But I'm hopeful there will be enough of us to kind of stick together. I kind of need her in the game to be a shield for me. I've done a lot of TV, and she's done a lot of TV. She's done more than me and she did *Big Brother* and kept that whole secret with her son being on. She's going to be a bigger target than me, I think.

**How do you think the other contestants here see you as a player? Not how do you want or hope, but how do you *think* they see you?**

I think they think I'm threatening, but I think they're probably smart enough to realize it's been years. And I'm a little older now, and although I still look physically fit, I'm probably not going to take on Dee head-to-head, who's like a CrossFit brick s--- house.

I hope I'm a medium. I think I'm like a five-threat level. And I would hope they wouldn't be like, “Oh, she did *Traitors* and she did *Snake in the Grass* and she did *Survivor* three times. She's had her turn.” Because that's f---ing ridiculous. And you've watched me lose all five shows and be loyal all five shows. So what does that tell you?

Charlie Davis, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Jenna Lewis-Dougherty, Dee Valladares, Savannah Louie, Rizo Velovic, and Tiffany Ervin on 'Survivor 50'.

Gail Schulman/CBS

**You mentioned *Snake in the Grass*, and it should be noted that you're a really bad liar.**

**You have told America you're a bad liar, and you've told me that. So how does that impact you in a game like this where Kyle just won the game on massive deception?**

That's going to be part of my plan though. People can trust me. I'm going to use it. I'm actually a loyal person. I play a Joe game. I really do. And whoever I align with, that's who I stick with. And Cirie knows I can't lie. I've gotten better at it, but she'll think she knows if I'm lying to her right away. So I'm going to be like her buddy-buddy. And hopefully I'm going to align with Colby. I love Jonathan, and am hoping Joe will want to work with me. People like that.

They can take the fall for me. I'm not leading the charge. I'm going to hopefully find a couple people like that and a couple of girls’ girls. I like Savannah. She kind of looked at me and smiled. Let's talk!

Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick of 'Survivor 50'.

Scott Duncan/CBS

**Tell me the people you want to work with.**

I'm liking Savannah. I heard a rumor she won. She just kind of looked at me and she smiled and she's kind of kept to herself. I feel like she's going to be scared to death. I know what it's like to come back and play a game back-to-back. It's scary. You're mentally not all there. It's tough. You're a huge target. I'm a big target. Let's work together.

Chrissy is an older mom. I think she'll be good for me. She's smart. She'll be good at puzzles. I'm not good at puzzles. Maybe we can work together. I'd like to get to know Christian. I worry about Christian with Angelina. Angelina worries me. I know she talks to everybody, so I feel like it's Angelina, Mike White, Christian, and then I feel like they might have Genevieve and Emily. That's like a fivesome right there. I might try to pull in a Charlie maybe if I can't pull in a Christian because he's so in with Angelina. Angelina has been weird to me, and now all of a sudden today she's smiling at me. I'm like, “Really?”

**Tell me about what else you picked up on out here and the pregame?**

I feel like Q wants to work with me, but I feel like he was trying to work with everybody. I feel like Ozzy would work with me. He's kind of an old-school old soul, but I don't know. He might be in with the new schoolers a little bit. I get worried.

I feel I'll be fine with Coach and Colby. I'll be fine with Cirie. I'll be fine with Joe, he's smiling at me. Him, Kyle, and Kamilla — I cannot even believe all three of them are here for that one season. That's bizarre to me, especially those two. But Kyle — another huge target. He won. Kamilla’s scary. She's like a Cirie. If you don't get her out, s---, she might win the whole freaking thing. She's good. She's got to go. And she won't even look at me!

Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick on 'Survivor 50'.

Robert Voets/CBS

**Self-evaluate for me. What's your biggest weakness in this game?**

Puzzles. A hundred percent. And I practiced. I ordered a bunch and I practiced. My son is so good at puzzles, so he taught me one or two quick and what to look for. I brought a couple. I have them in my room because I have no freaking music, so I'm reading and doing f---ing puzzles.

**How much pre-gaming did you do, Steph? I know the way these things work.**

I did my fair share. I did. And then there were a couple people that reached out to me that I was afraid to talk to and I figured I don't want to over-promise. So when I get there, I'll give a wink. Or when we hit the beach, I'll say, “Hey, I got your message,” or “I got your friend request and I'd like to work with you.”

I've got some new schoolers that want to work with me. And then I've got a bunch of old schoolers that will work with me. So even once we're separated, as long as I have one or two with me, we could just pull in one and then get through the first couple [of votes].

**What do you make of Mike White being here?**

I think he's so funny and I would love to work with him, but I think him and Angelina are so far off each other's asses that I don't think it's going to happen. He keeps smiling at me, but at the same time, everyone's going to assume they're together. Maybe they'll be willing to work with other people. I know with Cirie and I, she's going to go do her thing and I'm going to go do my thing. We're going to let each other know when we hear anything.

**You don't even know how the tribes are going to be divided or anything.**

From the clothing though, it does look like there's going to be three tribes of eight, and it does look like what the fans voted on that there's going to be a blue or red and a purple and that's literally what people are wearing. And I've already drawn it out. Four girls and four guys on each one.

I might have one or two messed up, but the blue and the green has me, Cirie, and Colby all on the same tribe. So I don't know. I could be wrong, but they may have done that purposely so only one of us gets the boot. Rizo and Savannah, they're both in red and they're on the same tribe. Those are the clothes we've been wearing for all the pictures and stuff. But here's the thing. We sent multiple looks and they picked which one they liked for us. So the show could have said that [Savannah and Rizo] were picked last, so “I want you to wear what you wore [on 49].” They knew they're going to put her and him in red and they probably do that [putting them on the same tribe] so they have each other, because they don't know anyone.

***Want to be kept up with all things Survivor? Dig deep and sign up for 's free Survivor Weekly newsletter to have all the latest news, interviews, and commentary sent right to your inbox. ***

**Other *Survivor 50 *deep dive player interviews:*****• Survivor 50* star Ozzy Lusth opens up about hitting 'rock bottom of my life'**• *Survivor 50* star Aubry Bracco opens up about the 'freedom when you fall from grace' **• Colby Donaldson reacts to playing *Survivor* for the first time without Jerri**• Angelina Keeley refused to do *Survivor 50* unless they gave her a jacket**• *Survivor 50*'s Coach goes deep on evolving from an 'arrogant ass' into the… Tide Walker?** • *Survivor 50* star Jenna Leiws-Dougherty is 'here to f--- you over in every way, shape, or form'** • Cirie Fields says winning *The Traitors *does not take sting out of *Survivor* loses** • Mike White on how he is handling *Survivor 50 *castmastes angling for *White Lotus* cameos** • Chrissy Hofbeck opens up about controversial season 35 finish and being bashed by previous cast** • Rick Devens explains why he is a lunatic that wants to play with other lunatics**

- Survivor Fandom

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