Survivor 49’s Nicole Explains Exactly Why She Didn’t Play Her Shot in the Dark (Exclusive)

Nicole Mazullo was the first castaway voted out of Survivor 49, but her short journey still made a quite the impression. From the infamous "spit scene" to a shoe-throwing incident to projectile vomiting on camera, the season premiere was filled with memorable — if not exactly glamorous — moments, even if her torch was snuffed sooner than expected.

In her exit interview with Men’s Journal, Nicole reflects on what went wrong, why she ultimately didn’t play her Shot in the Dark at Tribal Council, and how trust in Alex factored into her downfall. She also opens up about leaving without goodbyes, why the tribe chose Annie [Davis] over her, and why she’d “totally” play again despite her early exit.

Scroll down to read the full exit interview with Nicole.

Men's Journal: How are you feeling after watching the episode?

Nicole Mazullo: I knew it was coming. I feel good. I feel good. It was fun. I got to watch it with family and friends. It was just hysterical. It was funny. I was good with the episode. I thought it was a great episode, honestly.

MJ: Looking back, was there anything you could have done at Tribal to change your fate?

Nicole: It was sealed. It was signed, sealed, delivered. I could have played my Shot in the Dark. I think that would’ve been the only thing, at that point in time at Tribal, that could’ve changed the outcome. But it was done. And again, that’s a Shot in the Dark. Who knows if it would’ve hit?

MJ: What (or who) made you decide not to use it?

Nicole: I was 50/50 on using it in Tribal Council. I went in feeling like it was either me or Annie, and I said, "I’m going to just rely on my gut instinct in that moment." Then when Jeremiah [Ing] mentioned it was between two people, I turned to Alex [Moore] and you see it in the episode. I asked him, "Hey, am I good?" Up until that point, I had a good relationship with Alex that I had built out there. You didn’t see it in the episode, but we were working together — or I thought we were — and he told me I was good. So I leaned into that trust more than my gut and went from 50/50 to more like 70/30 on not using it.

MJ: Was Alex your closest connection? Did you feel most betrayed by him?

Nicole: No, I definitely didn’t feel hurt by him. He had a good group of four he was working with, and I hold no ill will toward him at all. At the end of the day, he was voting with that four. It would’ve been bad for his game at that point to try and work with me. I didn’t have as good of an in with that four as he did. So no, not at all. I think it was a good gameplay move that had to be done. It’s the first vote out.

MJ: Your exit was very quiet. There were no hugs or goodbyes. How did it feel in the moment?

Nicole: I’m a good sport now, but I’m very competitive. I was pissed. But I knew my coworkers and my family were watching. I wanted to hold myself with composure, so I just had to get up and leave. I was not turning around, I was not waving, I was not hugging anyone. I was leaving because, what the hell? Seriously, the first one voted out. So then I had a few days to process that, and that was healthy and good.

MJ: Why do you think they ultimately kept Annie over you?

Nicole: I don’t know. At the time, with the information I had, it seemed logical to vote her out based on how people were talking about her. Maybe Sophi [Balerdi] viewed me as more of a strategic threat. I don’t know if it’s my glasses, but I think they thought I was really smart. I don’t even know. Maybe that was just a perception. And I wasn’t in that group of four and I wasn’t jiving as well as some of the others. So I’m not a hundred percent sure.

MJ:Do you think it was more strategic or personal?

Nicole: I think it was different for different people. I usually get along really well with people. I’ve spent my entire life being in the in-crowd. I’m not saying that to be pretentious or an asshole, but I’ve been afforded that luxury. And this was a situation where I wasn’t. It was humbling. Survivor is a microcosm of the world — there are people you get along with and people you don’t. I just didn’t get along with some people in an organic way.

MJ:Let’s talk about Jake [Latimer]. You mentioned not vibing with him, and then there was the shoe moment...

Nicole: Jake’s a good guy. I tried to put effort into building that relationship, like I had with Alex, but it wasn’t reciprocated. I don’t think we vibed. I hold no ill will — that’s just the nature of the game. But the shoe thing, I didn’t understand at all.

MJ: And the spitting moment — viewers had a lot to say about that.

Nicole: He asked me to spit in his eye. He didn’t say, "Pour the water." I just spit because it was a direct point. And if you look, his eye got clean, so it worked.

MJ: Last question – would you ever play Survivor again?

Nicole: Totally. If they wanted to do an early boot season and asked me back, I would totally do it.

Survivor airs on CBS Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.

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