Christian Hubicki Reveals Life-Changing Update Just Weeks Before 'Survivor 50': 'I Have a Secret' (Exclusive)
In the seven years since Christian Hubicki last set foot on a Survivor beach, he's mastered the variables of his own life. He secured tenure. He became a father. But as he prepares for the milestone 50th season, the robotics professor, 39, is staring at the only problem he can't solve right now: 23 other players who know exactly how dangerous he is.
When he first played in Season 37's David vs. Goliath, he was considered the "ultimate David"—a super intelligent, rather quirky standout who famously turned an immunity challenge into an hours-long TED Talk on plant root robots (or something). But eventually, his threat level eclipsed his disarming persona. "I didn't realize I had become so likable that they'd vote for me 18 times," Hubicki admits with a laugh.
This time, instead of being the lovable underdog, he's here to be the architect of this season's story. Sitting down with Men's Journal ahead of the game, the Baltimore native explained that he plans on stealing a page from his friend and former castmate Mike [White]’s playbook. He called it "narrative warfare"—essentially, planting a story in your competitors' minds that they begin to believe is their own idea.
"I’m going to steal his power this season," Hubicki said of the White Lotus creator. "The narrative can be whatever I want… I'm looking around and saying: 'What is every single person's story, and what can I tell them that can help guide their thinking?'"
Hubicki also comes armed with a secret. Just six weeks before flying to Fiji, he and his wife welcomed their first child. "I have an ace in the hole they don't see coming," he told MJ. "I need to be here for more reasons… what message do I want to send to my child when he eventually watches this years from now? You should not settle for what people are willing to give you. You should be able to go for what you think you can earn."
Below, Hubicki opens up more about the sting of being dropped from Season 40, his plan to offer Cirie Fields a Final Three, his "resting murder face" observations at Ponderosa, and why he’s finally ready to crack the Survivor puzzle.
Men’s Journal: How does it feel to be back in the Survivor world after 7 years?
Christian Hubicki: Well, I mean, there are the obvious answers. There is the nostalgia. I think the nostalgia first hit when I got that first whiff of bug spray. I'm back, baby. It's great. It was, I think, the right amount of time for me. I played back in 2018, Season 37. Very briefly after that, they started casting for Season 40, which before it was all winners, was a lot of non-winners. I was one of the people they were talking to about that. That was very fresh. Those talks with me started the day they were going to vote me out in my boot episode. I was like, "Okay, this seems very fresh right now." I had just started my job as a robotics professor as my own season was airing. It all felt very fresh, and I was like, "Well, do I really want to do it?"
But before I could make a decision, it was ripped away. They went all winners, which obviously does not include me. That hurt—honestly hurt a lot more than I thought it would, even though they took the choice away from me. But it might have been for the best. For those who don't know, when you're at a research university and you're a tenure-track professor, you have six years to prove yourself—get tenure or get fired. Thankfully, I just got tenure this past year. It gives me a little bit more freedom and flexibility. The timing is perfect, career-wise. It works out well and gave me a lot more time to process the experience.
Men’s Journal: Was it an easy "yes"? Did you ever think you'd play again one day?
Christian Hubicki: There was never a point where I'm like, "I will never play Survivor again." It was a question of: would there be an opportunity where they would call me back and I would fit for it? That has been hard for me to understand. I understand I was a big character on the season. I get that. And it was a major season—the first one on Netflix. I understand the narrative as, "Oh, but why me?" Being selected for 50 is a big deal. It's not smart of me to just shrug it off like, "Oh yeah, I'm lucky to be here." It’s a type of compliment that you have to take seriously and internalize. If you do not understand why you are here, then you will wield your powers improperly on the island, which is kind of what happened last time and is one of the reasons that I didn't win. One of the things I struggled with was that I was worried people wouldn't like me.
It makes sense. I work in a little robotics lab. At that point, my world was probably 10 people I see on a daily basis, all of whom are engineers. We are a very small subset of the population. I had no idea what I'd be like to all these people. I didn't know how I would mix with the Mayor of Slamtown [John Hennigan]—turns out I became his Comptroller. I didn't know if someone like Gabby [Pascuzzi] would be a natural mix. But it became known very quickly. I didn't realize I had become so likable that they'd vote for me 18 times.
Men’s Journal: You were playing from the bottom the whole time. Do you think that’s an advantage coming into this game?
Christian Hubicki: It is a useful skill to know how to be on the bottom and what that feels like. I learned a lot tactically from the experience, but also I think I gained a greater understanding of how this game works that I didn't quite get the first time.
Men’s Journal: How was it watching yourself on TV? Was that weird for you?
Christian Hubicki: It was weird. It was more nerve-wracking because we have no idea what's going to make air. We hope things work out well and they make us look nice. I got the good end of the stick on that one. I definitely have gotten used to hearing my own voice; I podcast all the time at this point. I even record all of my lectures for classes. I don't have that initial "That's my own voice?" reaction. Coming back on the show, there are many things to be worried about. But anytime I get in my own head about it, I realize all these people are scared. Everyone else is scared. I thought I would come in with more of a game plan, but a few weeks ago I realized, thankfully, being out here at Ponderosa has given me so much time to think that all these ideas I've been percolating for seven years are trying to congeal into something clear and concise as to what I need to do.
Men’s Journal: Can you give me a little bit of that?
Christian Hubicki: Sure. The last time I played, I thought the show was primarily about building relationships, social politics, and politicking for votes. And it is those things. There are advantages and math involved. That's all true, but incomplete. The thing I learned, particularly from Mike White, is that Survivor is narrative warfare. It is a battle for the story that controls everyone's thinking out here. I was on the receiving end of that last time. Mike White said to all the Goliaths: "Christian is the ultimate David. If he gets to the end, then he will win." It was a simple idea buried deep enough in everyone's minds—like that movie Inception—and it started to define what everyone believed. We all believed it. I didn't fight back against that narrative. I was just like, "I guess I have to deal with this now."
We had a master storyteller, so I'm going to steal his power this season. The narrative can be whatever I want, or whatever I think fits an individual person. Like Charlie [Davis]—what's a useful narrative for him that’s helpful for me? He famously was betrayed by that one vote. Every podcast I listen to, it dominates his thinking. It still dominates his thinking. So he could be out for revenge, but I think a more useful story is one of catharsis. Like, "Charlie, you can't walk around with a chip on your shoulder. You're going to have to accept that this happens and move forward." That's a potentially defanged Charlie, as opposed to a murderous Charlie. Whenever I'm on a boat from place to place, I look around and say: "What is every single person's story, and what can I tell them that can help guide their thinking?"
Men’s Journal: And then we're going to see it on TV and I'll remember that Christian planted that seed.
Christian Hubicki: That's the narrative. Anyone can be a threat out here; it’s almost a cliché. But there is a plausible case for all of them. Why shouldn't it be the story that I tell? So, that's the power I will steal from Mike White this time.
Men’s Journal: How is he going to feel about that? Is he going to pick up on that?
Christian Hubicki: We'll see. I never expected that I'd be playing with him again. On some level, I knew he yearned for this experience again. Anyone who knows him knows that he would give up several of his Emmys to have won David vs. Goliath. He regrets to this day not pounding the table at Final Tribal saying, "No, I should have won." He is a threat out here now. Is he a person I'm going to target as soon as I see him? No. Is he a person I want revenge after? Absolutely not. I don't believe in revenge, but I also don't believe in being stupid. This is a man who wants to win. I can work with him for a time, but he is perhaps the smartest person out here and would be the most attuned to my tricks.
Men’s Journal: Fair. What about Angelina [Keeley]?
Christian Hubicki: Angelina is in a similar boat. Narratively, she has less of a reason to target me from the outset. I think she has bigger fish to fry. I am curious how long she lasts because she has a habit of making "goo goo eyes" at anyone who passes her by, and I'm not sure everyone's buying it. I remember being on the plane; Angelina and [Benjamin] Coach [Wade] were across the aisle. Angelina needed help putting her bag in the overhead compartment and asked Coach to help. He kind of did. She tried to be like, "Oh, thank you," and Coach just looks down at her over his nose and says, "No talking."
Coach is a fascinating study of a character. If I am ever on a beach with him, I want to take a different approach than anyone before. [John] Cochran took the approach of being his little underling. I think there's a role for me to be his spiritual guide, but ultimately guide his thinking in a major way and get him to admit at some key moment that so many of his character things he's done over the years are based on fear. He did a monastic approach to Exile Island because he was afraid he would come across as weak. He flipped on Boston Rob [Mariano] out of fear. One thing that will be a useful story point in my narrative warfare is to finally, after four tries, get him to tell the truth about how he feels. I'll use that as a moment of vulnerability to get him to do what I need.
Men’s Journal: Love that. Now, speaking of these other Season 37 players—you're kind of in the middle between "old school" and the "new era." Do you think positions you well or?
Christian Hubicki: The fact that every human being is saying the word White Lotus around the island right now is not a helpful thing for me.
Men’s Journal: Because you were on it!
Christian Hubicki: Also because I was on it. I’m surprised people even know; it was so quick. It was perfect. Me and my wife were in the area while he was filming. I was not cast; I was in Japan for a robotics conference and we were celebrating my tenure. We stopped by Phuket, and Mike said, "What's your shirt size?" So we got to drop in on the last day we were there. But now we are cameos. Angelina's got the real cameo! Anyway, the fact that White Lotus is being mentioned—I'm going to tell people that after the first episode, no one wants to hear about White Lotus. Moms in middle America don't want to see the incest scenes. But the point is to get it out of their mouths. Being in the middle is helpful in the abstract, as long as you say "yes" to both sides. Do people want to make it a new school versus old school war, which I find boring? I do not like that. It’s so catchy, so you have to find something else that replaces it. You have to say, "These more recent players are so fresh, and there are so many of them." There are three from 46 and three from 48. There’s got to be some central hub of pre-gaming amongst them. The key is to find the central nexus and take them out.
Men’s Journal: So how do you look at the previous winners that are here?
Christian Hubicki: Not just because they're winners, but because they know how to win. We are baked into the cake; our personalities are well psychologically tested. There are times I wish I could be normal, but that is impossible for me. I’m at Ponderosa and I’m sitting near Colby [Donaldson]. I’m like, "I'm just going to sit here nice and chill, watch the sunset." I go to pull the cap off my juice, I rip the tab off, and my juice is now unopenable. I'm sitting right in front of Colby and I'm like, "Move that aside, I hope you didn't see that." I realized whatever this was would have been funny on camera, and I wasn't even trying. These people who are "ambient threats," who are just normal—I will stand out.
Men’s Journal: Self-awareness is important. Do you think everyone has that here?
Christian Hubicki: Absolutely not. I think Angelina will be a fascinating case. She will think she has changed, but she has not. The only thing that has changed is that she is now a loving mother who adores her two children. Is that going to make her less dangerous? I somehow doubt it. She doesn't understand why she was funny the first time.
Men’s Journal: What other Ponderosa observations do you have?
Christian Hubicki: Colby has resting murder face. Charlie is also very straight-faced. Angelina with goo goo eyes. Coach almost lost his mind in the tent the other day—he was just like, "I can't take it anymore! If I had anxiety, I would run off into the woods!" I had a very poignant thought last night. I was riding sitting across from Cirie [Fields] on a boat. Cirie was sort of down; she doesn't like being on these rocking boats. I have a stomach like a rock. We're getting back late at night and Cirie is sitting right behind me and I can see it—she looks like she has a little tear in her eye. I just kind of give her a look like, "I hope you're okay." In that same moment, Ozzy comes over and hands me a seat cushion to sit on. I got a little teary-eyed in that moment. It seems like a small moment, but amongst these players, it felt like an ounce of humanity.
I realized, looking at Cirie, I’m seeing the solution to a puzzle I have long been unable to solve: how do I get to the Final Three? Cirie and I have similar problems; she cannot penetrate the finals, and I cannot penetrate the finals. What if I promised her Final Three? She might not believe me, but over time I would show her. I’m offering you the one thing you’ve never been able to do in this show, as long as I get to be there too.
Men’s Journal: The fans would lose their minds.
Christian Hubicki: I might need to make a bold move. How do I get past the "David Wright zone" of 7, 6, 5, 4? Unless I have other people in that same situation that I want to go to the end with. I need them to underestimate my motivation to win. I need an ace in the hole they don't see coming. Thankfully, I have a secret they don't know about.
Men’s Journal: What's your secret?
Christian Hubicki: Six weeks ago, I had a baby.
Men’s Journal: You did? And you're here? Congrats! This has to be so hard for you to be away.
Christian Hubicki: It is hard. We had just gotten the call that my wife was pregnant, and then later that day, Survivor calls and says, "What are you doing in 10 months?" My wife told me, "You've gotta go." She’s wonderful. I've recorded myself reading baby books to him. I bought a robotic baby bed that rocks him to sleep. But it means I need to be here for more reasons. Why shouldn't I win? What message do I want to send to my child when he eventually watches this years from now? You should not settle for what people are willing to give you. You should be able to go for what you think you can earn. And that’s the message I can send him by finally cracking this puzzle.
The interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.