‘Survivor’ Star Sonja Christopher Lifeless at 87

Sonja Christopher, the very first one who was ever voted off of the American Survivor franchise, has died. She was 87.

The official Survivor Instagram account confirmed Christopher’s loss of life in a submit on April 27, sharing a photograph of the collection legend alongside a press release penned by host Jeff Probst. 

“Sonya [sic] was one of many kindest individuals to ever play Survivor. Each interplay I had together with her over time was beautiful,” the host wrote. “She would at all times greet you with a smile on her face and pleasure in her coronary heart.”

Added Probst: “I’m honored that our paths bought to cross.”

Present castaway Liz Wilcox was the primary to interrupt the information of Christopher’s loss of life on April 26. She didn’t share a explanation for loss of life.

Alongside a picture of the Survivor icon exhibiting off a signed ukulele (her luxurious merchandise on the present) over FaceTime, Wilcox wrote on X (previously Twitter), “Right this moment, the legend herself Sonja Christopher of Season One handed away.”

“I had the pleasure of assembly her on Christmas,” she continued. “She had a lot spunk + love for Survivor and what the present delivered to her life. I hope you’re singing + taking part in your coronary heart out someplace stunning, Sonja.”

Christopher competed on the very first season of the CBS actuality collection, Survivor: Borneo, in 2000. Regardless of turning into well-liked amongst her tribe members, she stumbled a number of instances through the first immunity problem, and her friends opted to vote her out.

Reflecting on her transient stint on the collection in 2020, twenty years after her early exit, the historical past maker advised Leisure Weekly, “I had combined emotions, that is for positive.”

“I used to be fairly crushed up… To today, I nonetheless have bruises that do not go away,” Christopher advised the outlet. “Somebody as soon as requested me if I believed my being voted off early was as a result of ageism. And I stated, ‘Oh, no.’ And you recognize why is as a result of I had no idea of ageism.”

“I used to be at all times good at sports activities and really energetic bodily. I simply did not notice I used to be, to a few of these individuals, an previous woman,” she added.

Elsewhere within the interview, Christopher — who additionally made historical past as Survivor’s first lesbian contestant — opened up concerning the circumstances that led her to use to be within the collection, which she appeared on three years after present process therapy for breast most cancers.

“I used to be newly recovering from breast most cancers therapy. And I had been in a 11-year relationship and my accomplice bought comfort elsewhere throughout that point of the most cancers,” she advised EW. “So I had moved to a senior retirement neighborhood, and I used to be on my own, no ties, my son was grown and caring for himself. I used to be studying the morning paper, and it stated one thing in an article about CBS searching for 16 Individuals to forged away on a abandoned island and see who might survive for 39 days.”

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Christopher additionally mirrored on understanding her torch would quickly be snuffed as she headed residence from the primary immunity problem, throughout which she struggled with transitioning from water to land and maintaining together with her youthful tribemate’s tempo. 

“On the way in which residence [from the challenge], I stated to my tribe, ‘I am actually sorry, you guys. I really feel I value us that.’ And Kelly [Wiglesworth] put her arm round me, and he or she stated, ‘That is okay, Sonja. That would have occurred to anyone.’ And as I regarded round at the remainder of the tribe members, they had been me peacefully, if not lovingly,” she recalled, including that she “knew then I used to be going to be voted off.”

Even together with her early exit from the collection, Christopher remained an enormous fan, revealing in 2017 that regardless of having “the doubtful distinction of being the primary particular person ever voted off” of Survivor, she had not missed a single episode since.

As for her iconic ukulele, Christopher revealed to EW in 2020 that it’s nonetheless “hanging on my wall.”