The “Survivor 45” jury speaks!

Kaleb, Kellie, Kendra, Bruce, Emily, and Drew answer our burning questions heading into the finale.

They made it all the way to Survivor 45 finale night! Perhaps not in the way they had hoped, but Kaleb Gebrewold, Kellie Nalbandian, Kendra McQuarrie, Bruce Perreault, Emily Flippen, and Drew Basile will still play a pivotal role during Wednesday’s three-hour finale on CBS. That’s because they — along with two more folks who have yet to join them — will ultimately determine who wins the million dollars and is crowned the Sole Survivor of season 45.

Until that happens, the group has been biding its time — while stuffing their faces, downing drinks, watching sitcoms, and engaging in dance parties — at Ponderosa, where all the players go after being voted out of the game. Before the jury hits the final three with their questions, we decided to hit the jury with some of our own.

In this exclusive jury interview, we asked the first six members of the panel about life at Ponderosa, including which pre-jury person they wish were there with them and who among the jury played the best game. Read on for answers from this six-pack of personalities.

What was the best thing about being at Ponderosa?

KALEB GEBREWOLD: It's funny, when you arrive you are happy about the food, bed, open bar, and amenities; but as the Mayor of Ponderosa, most of it sucks by the end. The best thing about it was watching Tribals, the staff, and the free massage the day after your boot. My only advice for future players is don't go to the jury, win the game.

KELLIE NALBANDIAN: The food was truly hitting different at Ponderosa, the staff was INCREDIBLE and made our time there so fun. But I think getting to spend time with everyone outside the game will always be such a special memory. One night I always will remember: We put on a '90s/early 2000s playlist, and Kaleb, Kendra, Bruce, and I had a PARTY. "Uncle Bruce" can hang with the kids!!! And I loved all the little moments — chilling with Kendra by the pool, early morning coffee chats with Bruce, and watching The Office DVDs for hours with Kaleb, Kendra, and Emily.

KENDRA McQUARRIE: The best thing about being at Ponderosa was the debriefing part —feeling all the feels with the only people who will ever understand what you were going through. I couldn't have asked for a better landing pad than Kaleb and Kellie. We spent our days laughing, dancing, playing, talking about what could have been, and processing the hard feelings too. A close second favorite part was Kaleb's Power Rankings and game analysis every morning following Tribal Council. He had a little notebook that he kept notes in with each person that came back to Pondy. It was like a Survivor news report with my morning coffee!

BRUCE PERREAULT: Nothing — if you’re in Pondy, you’re out of the game! LOL! But honestly, the best part is being able to do what everyone will say… taking a shower. My goodness, it was amazing to clean off and have a good little cry. Also, great to have a Corona and chill.

EMILY FLIPPEN: As tempted as I am to say "the free food,” I think the best thing about being at Ponderosa was the shenanigans I got up to with the other jury members. We spent our days playing games and voraciously debating the merits of the players still in the game. It was an absolute blast and helped me decompress from the reality of my own vote out.

DREW BASILE: Honestly, the reading. There’s nothing to do in Ponderosa except read and listen to music. I cruised through The Magic Mountain in like three days. Good book.

Which person voted out pre-jury do you wish had been with you at Ponderosa?

KALEB GEBREWOLD: It's kind of a miracle Brandon made it five days given his start (and tribe), but can you imagine if he makes it to the jury? We sadly fell on opposite sides of the numbers, but as further proof of his social game, I would've loved talking (and watching) Survivor history together. Honorable mention to my girl Sabiyah (who I'm sure will get a ton of love here).

KELLIE NALBANDIAN: I gotta go with my puzzle buddy Brando! I missed him every day on the island. You saw some of this with his bandeau buff top, but he's so funny, always cracking puns. I know we would have had a great time! I also think he would have been a fantastic juror. We had talked about playing video games together and there was a PS5 at Ponderosa ... I think that would have gotten a lot of use!

KENDRA McQUARRIE: SABIYAH! 'Cause that would have meant she made merge with me and our alliance that never was (made from me visiting Lulu) would have come to fruition! Just a few hours with her and I just felt like I had a friend for life. We get each other — the laughter is never ending.

BRUCE PERREAULT: I would say Hannah and Brando. Hannah, because I have heard that she was so so funny and I needed a laugh in Pondy. Brando, because I would have loved to have made a pizza with him.

EMILY FLIPPEN: I'm going to give you two. Firstly, Sabiyah. Not just because hanging with her seemed like it would be hilarious, but also because we never had the chance to talk about her blindside. It was the first extremely tough Tribal Council and I would've loved to have the chance to discuss it with her at Ponderosa.

Additionally, J Maya. J and I never had much of a chance to get to know each other on the island, but as I've gotten to know her outside of the game, I'm discovering we have so much in common. I wish we had more time to connect on the show!

DREW BASILE: The pre-jury group is all wonderful, but I’d say Brando. Just the kindest guy and we have a lot in common. I’m a big fan of his and I’m sure we would’ve made some great pizzas.

If you had to live at Ponderosa permanently with one of your fellow jurors, who would it be and why?

KALEB GEBREWOLD: Kendra! I believe I am 66-1 with her in darts and 22-0 in shooting 21. The only thing that will make permanently living in Ponderosa "worth it" would be watching her retire from both sports in pure frustration.

KELLIE NALBANDIAN: This is tough, we had such a great jury from start to finish. I think Kaleb and Kendra! I can't choose! Truly some of the most bittersweet days for me were the first couple at Pondy, but I look back so fondly on that time. I can't appreciate Kaleb enough, he was the best person to come out of the game to after an intense blindside. He stayed up til almost 4 am with me that night talking through everything. He's the kind of guy I could talk strategy with for hours, and also just hang out and shoot the s--- with! We went to so many Tribal Councils together on the jury that we had our food order DOWN, always sharing a few apps; and were in charge of getting the first drink for whoever was coming off the boat to join us!

Then, when Kendra got there, whew, it was truly a PARTY. Even with all of our shenanigans we got up to, what I appreciated the most was that the three of us could have tough or more emotional conversations about the game, share more about our lives... but then go play darts, or dance to ’90s music until the sun came up. Kendra and I would trade books back and forth, tanning by the pool, drinking Coronas — we made it into a vacay as best we could.

KENDRA McQUARRIE: This is hard! I would probably say my girl Kellie. One minute we could be dancing to our favorite ’90s music, and the next we are quietly reading and sunbathing by a pool, or staying up watching The Office or being competitive playing games! She's a friend who can do it all! Plus, she's a Virgo so things would stay tidy and I know she would always keep it real with me.

BRUCE PERREAULT: It would want to be with someone, but that person is not on the jury. Sorry… no spoilers.

EMILY FLIPPEN: Kaleb, without a doubt. He's not only fun to be around, but he's also very responsible, which I think would be important. Someone's got to make sure the bills still get paid, right?

DREW BASILE: Impossible to pick. Probably Emily because we are doubles in so many ways. Plus, she brought her Nintendo DS. Kaleb was also my Scrabble and chess rival, so he’d be in there. I’m a competitor, so it’s fitting I guess that the choice comes down to who’d play games with me.

Who among the jury played the best game and why?

KALEB GEBREWOLD: Kellie was masterful at building plus maintaining many people viewing her as their number one ally, one of the hardest pieces of Survivor. Unfortunately, Belo was a dumpster fire burnt into Survivor history, who lost the numbers (targeted themselves?) almost immediately, leading her as the largest strategic threat. If not Kellie, I would credit Emily, who went from first boot to the final 7 and was one to two moves away from winning a million dollars (I love you, girl)!

KELLIE NALBANDIAN: I think there are so many players on this jury who are so good, which is why this season has been so dynamic. After the game especially, I realized what a great player Kaleb is. He has such a brain for strategy that I don't think you can even fully see on the show. He enjoyed breaking down the game after each Tribal, doing these "power rankings" and positioning what was the best move for each player moving forward.

It was so interesting to see him work through that and bounce ideas. I think we both have a bit of a threat management issue (ha ha), but Kaleb is one of those total-package players who are fun to watch and good at so many aspects of the game. And other than Emily, another fantastic player, he had to navigate more Tribals pre-merge and play so much in those first few days than the rest of us on the jury!

I also have to shout out Drew. He is a phenomenal strategic player. I think we view the game very similarly and could have been great allies if we were on the same side!

KENDRA McQUARRIE: I’m going to have to go with my girl Kellie again on this one. She's a triple threat!

BRUCE PERREAULT: I did!! There was a ton of game that was not showed. Irritating people is subjective. Game play shows… so much more to say.

EMILY FLIPPEN: This is an extremely difficult question, because while we all made mistakes, I genuinely believe everyone on the jury did their best to try to play a winning game. However, I am consistently impressed by both Kaleb's social game and Drew's strategic game in particular. I had written off Kaleb before the game even began, which made his ability to turn me into a "ride or die" ally incredibly impressive. Drew was also an incredible strategic player who was able to look at the game with a level of rationality that I remain jealous of to this day. Even amidst all of his alliances, he always made me feel heard and included, which is an aspect of his gameplay that I feel went underappreciated during the season.

DREW BASILE: Stirring the pot! I’ll say Kellie, since she was such a dominant presence over the pre-merge and early merge. Amazing coalition-builder. And, of course, Emily deserves plenty of love — she’s up in the conversation too. Emily is so sharp strategically and has a great sense of positionality, which is the hardest thing to learn.

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