Final Immunity Challenge

The Final Immunity Challenge is a key individual Immunity Challenge in Survivor.

Held on Day 38 (Day 41 in, Day 37 in ), it is the last Immunity Challenge of the season, and guarantees the winner a seat at the Final Tribal Council. It also gives the winner an advantage in selecting their rivals for the Final Tribal Council. This is particularly true of seasons featuring a Final Two, as the challenge winner is the only person to cast a vote at Tribal Council.

The challenge type has varied throughout the series' run, but is typically an endurance challenge, requiring the contestants to literally outlast the competition.

History
In , the Final Immunity Challenge was Hand on a Hard Idol. It required contestants to hold on to the tribal Immunity Idol while standing on a small log. Richard dropped out of the challenge first, assuming both competitors would not vote him out. Kelly ultimately outlasted Rudy to become the first winner of this challenge. She voted out Rudy at the following Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Fallen Comrades. It required contestants to answer questions about already eliminated contestants. After Keith started to fall out of the challenge, it came down to Tina and Colby. After Tina answered incorrectly, Colby was declared the winner of this challenge and had his fifth Immunity Challenge win in a row. He voted Keith out at the following Tribal Council, which ended up being a million dollar mistake.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Hard Idol. Ethan dropped out of the challenge first after 2 hours and 26 minutes when he lost his balance. After 3 hours and 20 minutes, Lex dropped out due to stomach pains, granting Kim immunity. She voted out Lex at the following Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Hard Idol. When Neleh told Kathy her shirt was falling down, Kathy tried to fix her shirt, causing her to lose her balance and drop out of the challenge. Almost instantly, Vecepia struck a deal with Neleh; Vecepia would lose the challenge intentionally if Neleh promised to take her to the Final Tribal Council. Neleh accepted the deal, winning immunity, and voting out Kathy at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Slip Through Your Fingers. The challenge required castaways to hold a Thai pose while holding coins between their fingers. When they ran out of coins, they were out of the challenge. After 12 minutes, Jan lost the challenge, quickly followed by Clay, meaning Brian won the challenge. He eliminated Jan at the next Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Will Power. The challenge was held at Tribal Council and it required contestants to stand on a tiny plank holding the headdress that they had created earlier (now attached by beads to a collar around their necks) above their head for as long as possible. Feeling that both Jenna and Rob would take him to the Final Tribal Council, Matthew intentionally lost the challenge. Jenna outlasted Rob and won immunity. She cast the sole vote to eliminate Rob at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Set Adrift. The contestants had to balance on a pontoon for as long as possible, using only their hands and legs for balance. Sandra lost her balance first. Jon then tried to make a deal with Lillian; if she dropped out of the challenge, Jon would take her to the Final Two. Lillian rejected the offer and eventually managed to outlast Jon. She voted out Jon at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Hand on a Hard Idol. Jenna unknowingly lifted her foot off the platform first, resulting in her losing the challenge. Rob later tricked Amber into touching the Immunity Idol which meant she lost the challenge. Rob eliminated Jenna at Tribal Council.

In , the Final Immunity Challenge was Ready, Aim, Don't Fire. The castaways were required to stand on a platform holding a bow and arrow in a warrior pose. Any castaway who fell off the platform or released their arrow was eliminated from the challenge. Scout dropped out of the challenge first. Chris outlasted Twila to win immunity. He voted out Scout at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Bob-Bob Buoy. The castaways were required to each grab onto a navigational buoy and hang on while the buoy sways from side to side. The last player left hanging on would win. After over 5 hours, Katie dropped out of the challenge. The challenge went on for 11 hours and 55 minutes, making it the longest challenge in Survivor history. Eventually, Ian made a deal with Tom. Ian would step down if Tom promised to take Katie to the Final Tribal Council. Tom agreed and won the challenge marking his fifth Immunity Challenge win. At an impromptu Tribal Council, he honored his ally's request and verbally voted out Ian.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Wobbly Boots. It required the castaways to use two thin ropes to help them get onto a board sitting on a very tiny fulcrum joint, making it hard to balance, then last as long as they can without touching the platform beneath the board. Then after one hour, they had to drop a rope, then let go of the second after 30 minutes, at which point neither hand can touch any part of the challenge setup. After standing there for one hour, the castaways let go of the first rope, causing Stephenie and the other castaways to lose their balance and lean on the vertical log near the setup. After Rafe touched the setup by accident, Danni outlasted Stephenie to win the challenge. At Tribal Council, she voted out Rafe.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Balance of Power. Castaways were required to start on the largest of a series of floating platforms. Every fifteen minutes, the castaways would move to the next smaller platform. As the platforms got smaller, it would get tougher for the castaways to maintain their balance. Only their feet could touch the platform. If their hands touched the platform or they fell off, they were eliminated. After proceeding to the third plataform, Terry started having trouble keeping his balance, and fell. After Aras made a deal with Danielle, she won the challenge and betrayed Terry by voting him out at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Self Destruction. It required castaways to stand on a platform that would decrease in size every fifteen minutes until, after one hour, their footholds were less than half the size of a postcard. Becky was the first to drop out of the challenge. After coming near the one hour mark, Yul decided to stop squating, which made him lose balance and fall. After a hard fought challenge, Sundra dropped out, letting Ozzy win his fifth challenge in a row. At Tribal Council, Sundra and Becky competed in a fire making tiebreaker to decide who would go to the Final Tribal Council. When Sundra ran out of matches, Becky was able to start a fire and beat her, eliminating Sundra.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Hanging by a Thread. It required castaways to lie on a platform over a pool holding a handle, while water spills out of a barrel overhead. Starting at a 35° angle, it would increase by 5° every five minutes. The last one hanging would win. Cassandra was the first to drop out of this challenge at the 45º mark, quickly followed by Earl. After some time, Yau-Man dropped out, allowing Dreamz to win. At Tribal Council, Dreamz infamously betrayed Yau-Man with the truck deal, not giving his individual Immunity Necklace, and Yau-Man was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Broken China. The contestants were required to stack porcelain dishes on a long, wobbly balancing arm. The more dishes they stacked and the longer they must held them, the more difficult it got to keep them stable. Once a dish fell off the balancing plate, they were out of the challenge. Todd and Courtney dropped out nearly at the same time quickly in the challenge, leaving it up to Denise and Amanda. After Denise tried to make a deal with Amanda, she refused and said she wanted to win it fairly. After being told to add a small bowl, both women took different approaches, and it paid off to Amanda, since Denise's stack fell, allowing Amanda to win immunity. Denise was then voted out unanimously at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was The Ball Drop. In this challenge, the castaways were required to hold a long wooden cylinder which was cut into different sized segments. On the center segment, a notch has been cut for a metal ball to rest on. The castaways would have to hold up the segments by squeezing them between two handles. Every five minutes, a new round would start where the castaway would have to add two additional segments between the handles. After the cylinder was nine segments long, the final round would last as long as the castaways held out. The castaway who held up their segments the longest without allowing the ball to drop from the center segment would win. Parvati dropped her ball first, coming in third place. The challenge reached the final round, with Cirie and Amanda still in the running. Despite being a nurse and needing steady hands for her profession, Cirie dropped her ball, meaning Amanda won immunity. She voted out Cirie at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was House of Cards. In this challenge, the castaways were required to build a house of cards by using 200 wooden tiles. The first castaway to build a house of cards 10 feet (3.0 m) tall would win. If after 30 minutes, no castaway had built the house of cards to over 10 feet, the castaway with the tallest house of cards would win. Bob, who had been dominating in Immunity Challenges, struggled, unable to build a stable house of cards. Sugar, Matty, and Susie were all able to make tall structures, however Sugar's tower fell in the last minute. After 30 minutes, Susie's structure was the tallest, at 8 feet, which meant she won the challenge. Matty was eliminated after a fire-making tiebreaker at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Simmotion. The challenge required the castaways to drop a ball into a metal chute. The ball traveled down a spiraling metal track and exit out of one of two points. A turnstile gate in the middle of the track rotated, causing the balls to alternate exiting out of the two exits. The castaways had to catch the ball and drop the ball back into the chute at the top. Every few minutes, an additional ball was added to the track. If a ball exits the track and is not caught, the castaway would be eliminated from the challenge. To make the challenge more difficult, each castaway had one hand tied behind their backs. Erinn was eliminated from the challenge first. After four balls were simultaneously going through the track, Stephen dropped his ball, giving J.T. immunity. At Tribal Council, he eliminated Erinn.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Over-Extended. In this challenge, the final four were required to place a small wooden statue on top of a pole. At regular intervals, they added another piece of pole to make the pole longer, making it harder to keep the statue on the pole. When their statue fell off, that person was eliminated. Mick dropped out first, followed almost immediately by Natalie. The challenge came down to Russell and Brett. Eventually, Brett dropped his pole, meaning Russell won the challenge. At Tribal Council, Brett was eliminated.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Blind Maze. This challenge required the castaways to navigate through a maze while blindfolded. The first castaway to retrieve four necklaces at stations within the maze and then find the Immunity Necklace at the exit would win. Sandra fell out of the challenge early. This challenge came down to a very close finish between Russell, Parvati, and Jerri. Russell edged out the others by meters to win the challenge. At Tribal Council, Jerri was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Balancing Point. This challenge required the contestants to balance a sword on a shield with one hand. With their other hand, they stacked unevenly sided coins on the handle of the sword. As the stack of coins got higher, it would get more difficult to balance. When the stack fell, the contestant was out of the challenge. Holly and Chase dropped out of the challenge first, leaving Fabio and Sash to compete. Fabio ultimately won the challenge. Holly was voted out at Tribal Council.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Meso Maze. The challenge required the castaways to race through a maze to collect four bags of puzzle pieces at four different stations. Once all four bags were collected, the castaways raced to the top of a pyramid and assembled a word puzzle. Phillip and Natalie quickly fell behind. Rob and Ashley started working on the puzzle segment of the challenge at the same time. The two helped each other in the puzzle, but eventually Rob finished the challenge first and won immunity. At Tribal Council, Ashley was eliminated.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Lei of the Land. The contestants were required to race through a giant flower-shaped obstacle course to collect five bags of puzzle pieces. They then used those pieces to solve a puzzle. Sophie managed to finish her puzzle first, beating Ozzy, Albert, and Coach. At Tribal Council, Ozzy was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Operation Balance Build. The castaways had to attach a small wooden bowl to a prong at the end of a long pole to maneuver it through a metal structure mounted on a spring to increase the difficulty. Once they have the piece through the structure, they have to sit it at the top. The first castaway to stack all ten bowls on top each other would win. Kim beat Christina, Chelsea, and Sabrina to win immunity. At Tribal Council, Christina was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was The Ball Drop. In this challenge, the castaways were required to hold a long wooden cylinder cut into segments. On the center segment, a notch has been cut for a metal ball to rest on. The castaways would have to hold up the segments by squeezing them between two handles. Every five minutes the castaway would have to add two additional segments between the handles. Malcolm won an advantage for this challenge on Day 37 but was still the first person out of the challenge. Denise was the next person out of the challenge. Michael outlasted Lisa and won the challenge. At Tribal Council, Malcolm was eliminated.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Vertically Challenged. The challenge required the castaways to race up a three-story tower to retrieve a bag of puzzle pieces tied to a post and then slide down a slide. Three puzzle piece bags needed to be retrieved before the castaways could start on their puzzle. The first castaway to assemble their puzzle would win. Cochran, who won an advantage the previous day, already had his puzzle bags untied, although the impact was not too significant as Cochran found himself trailing Dawn and Sherri at certain points. However, Cochran used his advantage to beat Eddie, Sherri, and Dawn to win the challenge. At Tribal Council, Eddie was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Rise To It. The castaways would race through an obstacle course and a water slide to retrieve six bags of puzzle pieces, two at a time. They would then use the pieces to solve a puzzle which would give them clues to solve a combination lock. The first castaway to unlock the combination lock and raise their flag would win. Tyson won the challenge, beating Tina, Gervase, and Monica. At Tribal Council, Tina was voted out.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Roundabout. The castaways had to race out into a maze with turnstiles (most of which move freely, while some cannot move, blocking the path) where they had to collect four medallions. Once they had all four medallions, they then had to use them to open a chest, inside of which were puzzle pieces in the form of wooden cogs. Once the puzzle was put together, they had to turn the cog raising a flag. The first player to raise the flag would win. Woo beat Kass and Tony. At Tribal Council, Woo stayed true to his ally and voted out Kass.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Temple of the Dog. Each person raced down a down tower via a fireman's pole and slide. They then maneuvered through a series of obstacles collecting bags of puzzle pieces along the way. Once they had their first three bags of puzzle pieces, they raced up the tower via a stairway and dropped off their bags at the top. Then they raced back down to get the remaining two bags. They then headed back to the top of the tower and used all their puzzle pieces to solve a puzzle. When their puzzle was complete, three pieces were missing. The shapes of those missing pieces revealed the three numbers needed to solve a combination lock. The first person to get it right and raise their flag won. Jaclyn beat out Natalie and Keith in a tight race to win immunity. Due to her injured leg, Missy did not compete in this challenge. At Tribal Council, the three women voted out Keith.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Final Four-Titude. The castaways had to untie knots to open a gate and then raced up a huge tower. When they got to the top, they would retrieve a key and then fly down a giant waterslide. They would then make their way through a multi-level obstacle course where they would use the key to release a bag of puzzle pieces. They would drop the bag on a table and head back up the massive tower to retrieve the next key. Once they had collected all three keys and bags, they would use the pieces inside to solve a lighthouse puzzle. The first person to finish their puzzle won the challenge. Mike won the challenge, beating Carolyn, Will, and Rodney in a close challenge. At Tribal Council, Rodney lost to Carolyn in a fire-making tiebreaker.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Simmotion. Kelley became the first to lose the challenge, essentially costing her the game. Tasha was next to drop out. In the end, it was a tight competition between Spencer and Jeremy. After Spencer's fumble, Jeremy won the challenge. At Tribal Council, Kelley was voted out unanimously.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Gimme Three Steps. The final four raced out into the ocean to retrieve a key. They then used that key to unlock a set of stairs back on the beach at the bottom of a tower. At the top of the stairs, they would find a second key, which they used to unlock a ball attached to a rope back in the ocean. Next, they used the ball to drop a ladder back on the beach, which would get them to the second level of the tower. At the top of the ladder, they would find a third key, which would release a pole in the water. They used the pole to knock off a bag of puzzle pieces on a perch above their head. Finally, they would go back to shore, climb the three levels of the tower and use the puzzle pieces to solve a three-level puzzle. The first person to finish would win immunity. Michele came from behind to beat Tai, Cydney, and Aubry. At Tribal Council, Aubry beat Cydney in a fire-making challenge.

In, the Final Immunity Challenge was Operation Balance Build. After the time limit of 30 minutes, Hannah and Ken had the same number of bowls stacked, with ten. A tiebreaker round of 5 minutes was then held, which Ken won with seven bowls stacked to Hannah's six. At Tribal Council, David was unanimously voted out.

Trivia

 * Hand on a Hard Idol is the most often used Final Immunity Challenge, having been used four times.
 * Survivor Obstacle Course with three appearances, and Sea Legs, The Ball Drop, The Maze, Vertically Challenged, Simmotion, and Operation Balance Build, with two appearances each, are the other recurring Final Immunity Challenges.
 * Amanda Kimmel, Rob Mariano, and Russell Hantz are the only castaways to have won the Final Immunity Challenge twice. Of those three, Rob is the only one not to have done it in back-to-back seasons, and the only one to be crowned Sole Survivor.
 * Amanda and Russell are the only two Final Immunity Challenge winners to finish in third place.
 * Brian Heidik was the first winner of the Final Immunity Challenge to also become the Sole Survivor.
 * Fifteen winners of the Final Immunity Challenge (46.9%) have gone on to become the Sole Survivor (random chance would dictate only a 39.5% win rate for FIC winners).
 * They are: Brian Heidik, Jenna Morasca, Chris Daugherty, Tom Westman, Danni Boatwright, J.T. Thomas, Fabio Birza, Rob Mariano, Sophie Clarke, Kim Spradlin, John Cochran, Tyson Apostol, Mike Holloway, Jeremy Collins, and Michele Fitzgerald.
 * In the Final Two format, the Final Immunity Challenge winner has become the Sole Survivor six times and the runner-up nine times.
 * In the Final Three format, the Final Immunity Challenge winner has become the Sole Survivor nine times, finished in second place seven times, and finished in third place twice. Three of the second place finishers (Dreamz Herd, Michael Skupin, and Ken McNickle) finished joint second with another finalist.
 * Men have won the Final Immunity Challenge more often than women, at 19 to 14.
 * Kim Johnson is the oldest contestant to win the Final Immunity Challenge.
 * is the only season to not hold the Final Immunity Challenge on the penultimate day of the season, and is the only season to hold a non-tiebreaker challenge after the Final Immunity Challenge.