Interview with Survivor: Micronesia’s Chet Welch

Watch out, Todd Herzog! Chet Welch is coming for your title as the Survivor’s latest gay champ.

The last season may have just ended, but Thursday night marks the third episode of Survivor: Micronesia, a Fans vs. Favorites edition that pits longtime super fans against returning players from past seasons. Chet, a forty-eight year old pageant coach from Pennsylvania, made the cut, continuing the show's gay-friendly casting ways.

Chet spoke candidly with us about being an older gay man on television, why he wanted to be on the show, and what Miss America needs to do to survive.

AE: What made you want to go from a fan watching Survivor at home to a contestant sweating it out in the jungle?
CW: I've always liked the show. I've watched every season, every episode multiple times. I always would try to imagine how I would handle certain situations, how I would handle tribal councils, how I would handle what people said about me, how I'd come back at them.

I said, “I'm just going to try it” and it all started from there. It was about a two-year process. I went and did the auditions and made it to the show. It was something I've always wanted to do. It was a dream come true. When I got there, it was a very surreal experience. Even today at times, it's hard to imagine I was actually there and I did what so many people I've admired for years did. I was one of the very small group of very impressive people: the Survivors.

AE: What was the audition process like?
CW: There was a video I sent in along with paperwork, an application about myself and my ambitions and why I was interested and what my abilities are. It went from there to phone calls back and forth, and more applications. I spent a week in Los Angeles in August for interviews. I had, I believe, eleven interviews in seven days with various groups of people from casting to CBS executives. It went from there, and I got the final word less than a month before I had to leave.

AE: Why do you think they chose you?
CW: I'm a very honest person, and by that I mean what they see is what they get. I have a lot of energy and I pretty much say whatever is on my mind. Through 48 years of life, I've experienced almost everything. I'm very outgoing. I like to see things differently. I can play outside the box. I want to be the one that people are watching and the cast members are saying, "If he just did what I think he did, he's f**king brilliant."

AE: Who were some of the people you patterned yourself after?
CW: The people I'd always admired were Ozzy from Cook Island, Yau-Man from Fiji, Richard Hatch being the first gay on the show. I'd thought about how I would deal with that on there … if that was going to be an issue, and if it was, how I would handle it. Like I said, it was just a combination of different people.

AE: Was Richard your favorite gay survivor?
CW: Probably not. For many reasons. [laughs] But he was the first gay Survivor and he made a point about being open, which I admired him for. I was planning on going into it that way as well. I wouldn't say he was my favorite gay at all, but I didn't really have a favorite gay survivor. I hate to stereotype it that way, but I did admire him for going into it that way.

AE: Did you get to see much of Survivor: China? I know that was on while you were filming in Micronesia.
CW: I believe I was able to see up to the fourth or fifth episode and then we left for our trip, so didn't get to see much after that until we got back.

AE: What did you think of the winner, Todd Herzog, and his strategy?
CW: I think he had the right strategy, but I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that he was gay. I think he just had a good strategy going into the show. He was intelligent, he was crafty, and he went there to win. He did what he had to do, as anyone would in that position.