Russell Hantz
Russell Hantz | |
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Born | Russell Dennis Hantz[1] October 10, 1972 Vinton, Louisiana, USA |
Occupations |
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Television |
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Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[2] |
Spouse | Melanie Hantz (divorced) |
Children | 4 |
Russell Dennis Hantz (born October 10, 1972)
Hantz's performance on Survivor was very polarising.[3][8][9] This controversy has resulted in ongoing media attention and appearances, along with acknowledgement that his particular brand of ruthless gameplay can result in wins for those who employ it.[10][11][12] Most have strongly criticized his strategy, naming him one of the biggest villains in Survivor history.[13][14] Nevertheless, on both Survivor: Samoa and Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, Hantz was voted by viewers the "Sprint Player of the Season", which came with a $100,000 cash prize.[5] He is one of only eight contestants to ever make it to the finals in more than one season (the others are Rob Mariano, Amanda Kimmel, Parvati Shallow, Sandra Diaz-Twine, Tony Vlachos, Natalie Anderson, and Michele Fitzgerald).
Hantz was nominated in the 2010 Teen Choice Awards for his performance on Heroes vs. Villains.[15] In the CBS Watch "Greatest Castaways" viewers poll, Hantz came in second for "being willing to do anything to win. His villainous nature always made for great TV."[16]
After Survivor, Hantz starred alongside his older brother, Shawn, on the
Survivor
Samoa
After applying to compete on Pirate Master,[18] Hantz was called by casting two years later to appear on Survivor: Samoa. Assigned to the Foa Foa tribe,[19] he began playing the game through lies and deceit, which included telling a false story about being a firefighter who survived Hurricane Katrina, and later burning his tribemates' socks and emptying their canteen water.[20] In an interview with Andy Dehnart, Hantz explained that the idea behind this strategy was to psychologically weaken the other players in order to manipulate them.[21]
Early on, Hantz executed a successful plan to locate the
Due to the large number of Galu members on the jury, it was almost certain that Brett Clouser, Galu's last remaining member, would win the game if he won the final immunity challenge. Hantz narrowly won immunity and Clouser was eliminated by a 3-1 vote at the next Tribal Council.[28] Ultimately, Hantz beat out fellow finalist Mick Trimming, but lost the title of Sole Survivor to his close ally, Natalie White, by a jury vote of 7–2–0, despite being "heavily favored" to win.[29][30] Host Jeff Probst believed his loss resulted from bitter feelings towards him by the jurors, rather than a positive attitude towards White.[31] Hantz complained that Natalie did not deserve the win, and insisted he did.[4] During the results show, Hantz offered White $10,000 for the Sole Survivor title, and then increased the offer to $100,000, but she declined both times.[28] Despite the loss, Hantz won the "Sprint Player of the Season" award, which included a cash prize of $100,000.[5]
Nine days prior to the Samoa live finale, Hantz registered russellgotscrewed.com where he thanked his supporters and asked them to purchase T-shirts and/or donate money to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.[32]
Heroes vs. Villains
Hantz was invited back for Survivor's 20th season, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, as a last-minute substitute for Survivor: Panama's Shane Powers, and was assigned to the Villains tribe.[33][34] Since Survivor: Samoa and this season were filmed back-to-back, no other player had had an opportunity to watch Hantz’ game,[35] although they were told by the production crew that he was considered "one of the five most notorious male villains of all time".[13]
During this season, an infamous rivalry developed between Hantz and
The Heroes tribe began to blindly believe that there was an all-female alliance, headed up by Shallow, controlling the Villains tribe.
At the final immunity challenge, Hantz edged out Shallow and Manthey by a few inches. He then chose to vote out Manthey, assuming he would get her vote for the Survivor title. His game, however, was panned by the jurors, all of whom refused to vote for Hantz in the end. Diaz-Twine ultimately triumphed over him and Shallow in a 6–3–0 vote, thus winning her second Sole Survivor title.[44] Despite his shutout loss, Hantz's Reunion experience was similar to his last one in that he won the “Sprint Player of the Season” award and $100,000 for the second time.[5]
Redemption Island
Hantz returned for
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hantz threatened legal action against his tribemates for forfeiting the immunity challenge, claiming that they had breached their Survivor contracts by doing so. He also criticized Mariano, referring to him as a "Survivor whore".[50]
Australian Survivor: Champions vs Contenders
Competing at an international level, Hantz joined the cast of
Information leaks
In 2011, Hantz was accused of violating his Survivor contract by leaking information regarding the show's results. Late in the previous year, a man named Jim Early was sued by executive producer and Survivor creator Mark Burnett's DJB Inc., for successfully spoiling Survivor: Samoa and Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains on a Survivor fansite known as Survivor Sucks. The lawsuit accused Early of "misappropriation of trade secrets” and "tortious interference with contract." The charges were dropped on January 13, 2011, after Early provided to an attorney an email, which allegedly confirmed Hantz as source of the spoilers. Early claims that he had originally made contact with Hantz via telephone to warn him that someone had posted his private information online, but that Hantz had recontacted him later and begun revealing accurate information about the show's outcome, which Early posted to the fansite. Thus far, no legal action has been taken against Hantz, although contestants who reveal information regarding a season's results may face liquidated damages of $5 million.[8] In an interview with USA Today, Hantz denied the accusations, commenting, "See, that's another thing. I am the villain, and it's unfair that people perceive me that way, and they throw out things that's not fair to me or my family, and I guess I got to deal with it. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to comment on this or not, but it is 100% false."[51]
Other television appearances
On February 10, 2010, Hantz and ten other contestants from Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains made a special appearance on
In 2012, Hantz was featured on
Hantz also expressed interest in competing on
Personal life
In Dayton, Texas, Hantz is a part-owner of an oil outfit known as Hantz Tankering Service with his father and brother.[61][62] He also owns a bar in Lafayette, Louisiana, known as Bootleggers, and he is a native of Vinton, Louisiana.[63][64]
Hantz currently resides in Dayton, Texas.[2] He and his ex-wife, Melanie,[65][17] have four children,[2] including twin girls.[12] Hantz's brother, Shawn, has a son named Brandon, who was a contestant on Survivor: South Pacific[66] and later Survivor: Caramoan.[67] Hantz also has a younger brother, Willie, who competed on Big Brother 14 before being expelled from the show due to violence.[68]
Arrest
On April 23, 2010, at 2:15 am, Hantz was arrested for battery while partying near the bar he owns in Lafayette, Louisiana. A woman was involved in a verbal argument with Hantz, during which he allegedly shoved her to the ground, causing her minor injuries. Hantz was released later that day without bail but was given a misdemeanor summons and a court date scheduled for June 24.[63][69][70]
Filmography
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2009 | Survivor: Samoa | Contestant | Runner-up |
2010 | Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains | Contestant | 2nd Runner-up |
2011 | Survivor: Redemption Island | Contestant | Eliminated; 17th place |
2018 | Australian Survivor: Champions vs. Contenders
|
Contestant | Eliminated; 23rd place |
See also
References
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- ^ a b Russell Hantz a villain to tribemates but a hero to Survivor viewers, May 13, 2010, Toronto Star article.
- ^ New York Daily Newsarticle.
- ^ a b c d e 'Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains' finale: Russell Hantz defeats Rupert Boneham for Sprint prize, May 16, 2010, blog.zap2it.com.
- ^ 'Survivor' villain Russell Hantz: 'Sandra's not even in the Top 20 of all time', May 17, 2010, blog.zap2it.com.
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- ^ a b Probst, Jeff (April 16, 2010). "Jeff Probst blogs 'Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains' episode 9". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 16, 2010.
- The Huffington Post. November 18, 2009. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
- ^ Soll, Lindsay (June 14, 2010). "Teen Choice Awards 2010: First Round Of Nominees Announced". MTV. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2013.
- ^ "Get Insider Answers in the Survivor 30th Season Extravaganza: What you'll learn in the CBS Watch! Magazine Special Edition - CBS.com". CBS.
- ^ a b c "Texas two-step: Russell Hantz takes his Survivor villainy to a new venue". Uncle Barky. April 26, 2012. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
- ^ Andy Dehnart (September 16, 2009). "Russell Hantz: "I control every aspect of my life: … my family, … my job, even my friends"". Reality Blurred. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
- E! Online. Retrieved October 13, 2013.
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- ^ Warr, Philippa (September 25, 2009). "'Survivor Samoa': Episode 2 recap". Digital Spy. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
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- ^ Rocchio, Christopher (December 21, 2009). "Exclusive: Russell Hantz talks about his 'Survivor: Samoa' "upset"". Reality TV World. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- New York Times. p. C2.
- ^ Rocchio, Christopher (December 22, 2009). "'Survivor' host Jeff Probst: Russell Hantz was the victim of a bitter jury". Reality TV World. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ Dehnart, Andy (December 22, 2009). "RussellGotScrewed.com was registered nine days before Survivor Samoa's finale". Reality Blurred. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
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- ^ Kondology, Amanda (April 18, 2012). "A&E Series 'Flipped Off' Will Now Premiere Saturday, April 28 At 10 PM". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 21, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
- ^ Cesternino, Rob (April 23, 2012). "Russell Hantz Returns: The 'Flipped Off' Mega Hantz-Cast". Rob Has a Podcast. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
- NOLA.com. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
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- ^ Rob Cesternino (January 28, 2012). "The Greatest Russell Hantz Interview of All-Time". Rob Has a Podcast (Podcast). Retrieved October 14, 2013.
- ^ Carbone, Gina (May 10, 2012). "Survivor "Villain" Russell Hantz Wants to do Celebrity Apprentice, Vows to Not "Sit There Like a Little Brat"". Wetpaint. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
- ^ Leblanc, Rosie (May 13, 2012). "Reality Whore Russell Hantz Heading to Celebrity Apprentice?". Celeb Dirty Laundry. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
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- ^ a b Hunter, Ann (April 29, 2010). "Survivor Super Villain Russell Hantz Arrested". Concrave.com. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
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- ^ "Who is Russell Hantz". Retrieved July 1, 2018.
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- ^ Hughes, Jason (March 14, 2013). "'Survivor: Caramoan': Brandon Hantz Has An Epic Meltdown, Dumps Out His Tribe's Food (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ Gomez, Patrick (July 6, 2012). "Russell Hantz's Brother Willie to Compete on Big Brother". People. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ Dehnart, Andy (April 23, 2010). "Russell Hantz arrested for battery". Reality Blurred. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
- ^ Labrecque, Jeff (April 23, 2010). "'Survivor' star Russell Hantz arrested in Louisiana". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
External links
- Russell Hantz on Facebook
- Russell Hantz on Twitter
- Russell Hantz at IMDb
- Russell Hantz biography for Survivor: Samoa at CBS.com
- Russell Hantz biography for Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains biography at CBS.com
- Russell Hantz biography for Survivor: Redemption Island biography at CBS.com
- Russell Hantz biography for Australian Survivor: Champions vs. Contenders biography at 10 Play.