Chris Underwood Unfazed by Backlash to Controversial "Survivor" Win

Chris Underwood, winner of "Survivor" Season 38, remains unbothered by the controversy surrounding his victory seven years later. Underwood, who was initially voted out third but returned through the Edge of Extinction twist to win the season, told Page Six that he stands by his game-changing move of relinquishing an immunity necklace at the final four.

"I feel good about it. I’m still one of the only people to take off an immunity necklace at final four," Underwood stated in an interview. "That was a risk I took that paid off. Huge win there."

Despite the backlash that followed the finale in May 2019, leading to him being considered one of the most controversial winners in "Survivor" history, Underwood believes the perception of his win has evolved. He pointed to the successes of his Season 38 castmates, Aubry Bracco, who won Season 50, and Rick Devens, who reached the final four in "Big Brother" Season 28, as contributing to a "whole new perspective" on their season.

"We’ve been able to see Rick Devens blossom and Aubry blossom," he shared. "I will say, 2026 has been a great year for Season 38."

Underwood, 33, expressed openness to playing "Survivor" again, citing the shorter 26-day format as more manageable with his family responsibilities. "Biggest thing for me is just time constraint. Like I would love to go play and compete. I’m a competitor," he said. "Just, I can’t be gone for 10 weeks. I got family and kids and other priorities."

He also commented on his recent elimination from "The Challenge: Cutthroat," which he described as "frustrating." Underwood attributed his exit partly to a triple disqualification resulting from an alleged racial incident that left him as the sole male player on his team eligible for elimination. "I felt like I was playing such a flawless game and I did have a lot of things going for me, and to end it the way that it ended just really sucked," he recalled.

Reflecting on the unpredictable nature of competition, Underwood likened the situation to life itself. "Sometimes you can do everything right and just have everything going your way. And then, the outcome you desire like doesn’t happen because of 75 things outside of your control," he said. "That’s life. Everyone has a story like that."

Underwood concluded by noting that his experience on "The Challenge" felt like a full-circle moment from his "Survivor" journey, acknowledging the role of serendipity in both success and failure. "If there wasn’t a twist where I got to stay in the game, I would have been third," he remarked. "So there is a lot of serendipity in success and failure. It’s frustrating and it is what it is. You gotta just keep moving."