“Survivor” fans, mark your calendars for Wednesday, May 15, 2019 as that’s when host Jeff Probst will officially announce the winner of “Survivor: Edge of Extinction.” After a hard-fought Season 38 that featured the reality TV show’s first-ever Extinction Island twist, in which every voted-out castaway was given the chance to return, one person will soon join the “Survivor” winners list. The two-hour finale will begin at 8:00 p.m. on May 15, followed immediately by the live reunion show which concludes promptly at 11:00 p.m. So who will win this on-your-seat season of “Survivor”? As of this writing there are still seven players at the Vata camp: Victoria Baamonde, Ron Clark, Rick Devens, Aurora McCreary, Lauren O’Connell, Julie Rosenberg and Gavin Whitson. Make your predictions now to let us know who you think has the best shot at prevailing. However, keep in mind that at least one of the show’s voted-out castaways will return to the game from Extinction Island: Reem Daly, Chris Underwood, Aubry Bracco, Joe Anglim, Eric Hafemann, Julia Carter, David Wright, Kelley Wentworth and Dan “Wardog” DaSilva. The only players with no shot at victory are the two who voluntarily left rather than putting up with the elements at the Edge of Extinction. Keith Sowell and Wendy Diaz rose the white mast together after Rick won the chance to return at the merge, which signaled a boat to come pick them up and take them home. “Survivor” Season 38 began on a familiar note as four players from the past returned for another shot at the million dollar prize. Unfortunately, Aubry, Joe, David and Kelley were all soon voted out by the 14 brand new castaways who felt that they’d already had their shot. Might one of these returnees have the last laugh and win the upcoming Extinction Island challenge, which will put them back in the game? Or will a newbie end up prevailing? SEE exclusive predictions: Who will win ‘Survivor’? Be sure to make your predictions to influence our reality TV racetrack odds. You can keep changing your predictions until just before the next episode airs on CBS. You’ll compete to win a spot on our leaderboard and eternal bragging rights. See our contest rules and sound off with other fans in our reality TV forum. Read more Gold Derby entertainment news.<doc-sep>Only two episodes remain of “Survivor: Edge of Extinction,” and there are still 16 people who could win the game. That is thanks to the Extinction Island twist, with 10 players voted out hoping to win a spot back in. Setting that group aside, the six remaining active players in the game have all had fascinating journeys up to this point. While some are shown in the edit much more than others, there is still potential for each of them to win that $1 million check and the title of Sole Survivor. Below is a ranking of the six players left in the active game in order of who has the most viable winner’s edit, taking into account screen time, confessionals, whether they are the hero or the villain, and other X-factors. 1. Rick Devens No. 1 with a bullet has to be Rick Devens, who has gotten to this point in the game through twists and advantages. He was voted out on Day 12 but battled his way back into the game and is always talked about as the biggest threat, considering his penchant for finding idols and advantages. He has had a consistently strong presence throughout the season and all he needs to do is win a few more challenges to get to the Final 3. Based on the reactions from the jury last week, many jurors are on his side and would likely vote for him in the end so as long as he’s not taken out in these next few votes, he is the most likely winner. 2. Lauren O’Connell Looking beyond Rick, there are a few possible alternatives including Lauren, who has at least gotten to share her personal story, unlike some others below. Lauren’s story was defined by her relationship to Kelley Wentworth but now that she is on her own, she is proving to be a savvy strategist, helping to orchestrate Ron Clark‘s ouster. Like Rick, Lauren has a sympathetic story of being on a losing tribe for much of the pre-merge but sticking it out all the way to the end. Depending on who she is sitting next to and how she got there, Lauren could easily make a case for herself to the jury. 3. Victoria Baamonde Victoria all but disappeared through most of the post-merge after being shown pretty regularly in the pre-merge. She has had no issue blindsiding the Kama people she started the game with, including Ron just last week. Unlike Rick and Lauren, Victoria may run into trouble with the jury because her moves were more subtle, and this is an era that frequently rewards flashy players who make big moves. That subtlety has clearly made it difficult for the editors to truly showcase her. Still, she has shown great acumen for the game and could easily make her way to final Tribal Council. 4. Julie Rosenberg Julie has been someone to keep an eye on from the beginning, but her chances of winning fall with each passing episode. While we have gotten her perspective on the game in most episodes, the combination of being openly emotional and called a villain, as she was in the last episode by Rick, is typically a death knell, especially for older women. From the beginning, we have not seen Julie bonding much with her tribemates outside of Ron, who was just voted out. People don’t seem to regard her as a threat and she may be taken to the Final 3 for that reason. We simply haven’t seen evidence that she can win over a jury, but at least she has a good chance of making it there and pleading her case. 5. Gavin Whitson Despite being second to last here, there is still a scenario where Gavin can win this. It would be highly unusual considering how small his edit has been all season, particularly for a likable young superfan, but he’s not out of the running yet. Unfortunately, he seems fated to go out soon as too big of a jury threat, like other young guys in past seasons. Last week was a great episode for Gavin, with highly sympathetic content involving his wife. There is still a glimmer of hope, but his edit overall is so spotty and it doesn’t feel like this is a winner’s story. 6. Aurora McCreary At last, we come to Aurora, who has been in this bottom position since the merge. Credit to her for sticking around despite her castmates wanting her out at multiple times. Aurora can certainly tout her Immunity wins and general scrappiness if she makes it to final Tribal Council but from what we’ve seen in the edit, she isn’t exactly the most liked person out there. It doesn’t seem likely that she will win a jury vote and she was virtually invisible in the pre-merge, so an Aurora win just doesn’t seem in the cards. SEE exclusive predictions: Who will win ‘Survivor’? Be sure to make your predictions to influence our reality TV racetrack odds. You can keep changing your predictions until just before the next episode airs on CBS. You’ll compete to win a spot on our leaderboard and eternal bragging rights. See our contest rules and sound off with other fans in our reality TV forum. Read more Gold Derby entertainment news.<doc-sep>Don't forget that Lauren O'Connell still has an idol to play. Is she even on the radar as someone to vote out? The jury doesn't seem to like Aurora McCreary, but to me she has made strong arguments to win. Her name comes up as a threat every single episode, and yet she survives -- either by winning immunity, or by helping vote out someone else. She looked through Rick's bag and was brazen about it, which I love, and gave the extra vote that Ron gave her to Gavin Whitson, and Gavin used it to vote out Ron. Maybe Gavin would get the credit for that move, which could be seen as backstabbing and "vicious" since Ron had just taken Gavin and his wife on the loved ones picnic.<doc-sep>
“I took my eye off the prize,” confessed Ron Clark after being voted out of “Survivor: Edge of Extinction” during a memorable tribal council in which two advantages (a hidden idol and an extra vote) were played. Ron had concocted a diabolical plan in which he gifted his expired advantage menu to Rick Devens, hoping that it would convince him to trust him. Unfortunately for Ron, Rick later found a real immunity idol that ended up saving him from elimination. Scroll down to see Ron’s full “Survivor” exit interview from Season 38, Episode 12. “I got duped,” Ron declared about how Gavin Whitson and Lauren O’Connell cast votes for him and not for Aurora McCreary, as per Ron’s plan. “I should have known. I’m not 100% certain what happened. I feel bad about Devens. If I had known how much it hurts to be voted out, I may have handled myself a little bit differently.” Ron then took the torch to Extinction Island, where he joined up with fellow voted-out castaways Reem Daly, Chris Underwood, Aubry Bracco, Joe Anglim, Eric Hafemann, Julia Carter, David Wright, Kelley Wentworth and Dan “Wardog” DaSilva. One of these players will soon return to the game and have another shot at winning the $1 million prize. “Well I’ve heard a lot of lovely things about you. Everybody loves you,” Reem told Ron after he arrived at his new home on the deserted island. When Ron replied that he’s lied, Reem rolled her eyes and said, “It’s a game. Everybody’s a liar.” Ron had a whirlwind episode to be sure, as he began the hour winning the loved ones reward challenge which meant he got to spend the day with his husband. He chose to take Julie Rosenberg and Gavin Whitson, plus their spouses, with him to the picnic where Ron soon bragged that he was in charge of the entire game. Whoops! SEE exclusive predictions: Who will win ‘Survivor’? Be sure to make your predictions to influence our reality TV racetrack odds. You can keep changing your predictions until just before the next episode airs on CBS. You’ll compete to win a spot on our leaderboard and eternal bragging rights. See our contest rules and sound off with other fans in our reality TV forum. Read more Gold Derby entertainment news.