From the moment she stumbled out of the boat and onto the beach, Survivor: Guatemala winner Danni Boatwright caught the attention of host Jeff Probst. So much so, that Probst picked her as his prediction for the winner of Survivor: Winners at War.
Donning her signature Kansas City Chiefs aesthetic, the season 11 sleeper winner joined 19 fellow champions in Fiji for a monumental 40th season, Survivor: Winners at War to compete for $2 million. The one-time competitor was not a first-round, or even second-round, pick to win her season. Yet, playing hard while staying under the radar and making the smart choice to bring then two-time competitor Stephenie LaGrossa into the final tribal council ultimately led to her victory.
Related: Survivor Winners At War: 5 Contestants Most Likely To Win Season 40 (& 5 Least Likely)
Now, fifteen years later, she is back in an extreme version all-star season of Survivor: Winners at War. According to EW, when asked who Probst predicts to be the winner of this season, Probst described Boatwright as entering the competition with her "quiet confidence" on full display. After a long debate with himself, he said that there is something about her that makes him choose her as the winner, saying, "It’s just a thing." At the marooning on day one, he revealed that he saw something in her that wasn’t necessarily there before. “[Her confidence] was different from everybody else. It didn’t have any energy. There was a lot of adrenaline from people. Danni was just very much right there." Probst imitated her readiness to play, saying, "' I’m ready to go right now. Or we can wait. Up to you. I don’t mind. I’ll strip down and get in the water right now. Absolutely. And I will kick somebody’s ass on my way out. My name’s Danni Boatwright. Nice to meet you.'"
The "new school" versus "old school" mentality emerged quickly on day one of season 40. Boatwright, confronted after a failed attempt to target tribe mate Boston Rob, bluntly explained her plan to the legendary player. Because of her honesty and experience in the game, the two formed an alliance with season 3 winner Ethan Zohn and season 16 winner Parvati Shallow, the latter three having competed for the title multiple times each. This powerhouse alliance has the potential to dominate the game - if they stick together - which has proved to be a difficult feat in the constantly-changing game. Regardless, Boatwright is not the immediate target in that alliance because her strategy has never been as upfront or threatening.
A well-rounded player, Boatwright’s lifelong love of sports contributes to her knowledge of the ins and outs of challenges while her athleticism and social skills help her gameplay as well. Appearing on an earlier season and not being viewed as a major player, she is able to remain lowkey enough to not place an immediate target on her back while also having the advantage of being an older player.
Having the experience of playing Survivor back when contestants would lose extreme amounts of weight and be so physically and mentally defeated by the poor conditions that they could do little more than just lie around at camp, comes as an advantage for Boatwright. She has been through it all and is more prepared for the challenges ahead of her. With the returning elements of Edge of Extinction, hidden immunity idols, and the introduction of fire tokens in this season of Survivor. fans aren't sure if the game has too many elements to predict the winner now. However, Probst has been involved long enough to know a two-time winner when he sees one.
Survivor: Winners at War airs Wednesdays at 8pm EST on CBS.
Source: EW