Tori Meehan is a contestant from Survivor 42.
Tori's early efforts to connect with her tribemates only earned her their skepticism and a reputation for untrustworthiness, but through adopting an active self-preservationist strategy, she managed to survive until the merge. Thereafter, Tori continued to be left on the outs, but a pair of individual Immunity Challenge wins kept her safe until an emotionally-charged Tribal Council where two idols were played led to her elimination when her Shot in the Dark failed.
Profile[]
Retrieved from CBS.com
Age: 25
Hometown: Tulsa, OK
Current Residence: Rogers, Arkansas
Occupation: Therapist
Favorite Hobbies: Crossfit, playing board games or card games, spending time with family (I'm the middle child of five kids.)
3 Words to Describe You: Quirky, warm, self-aware
Pet Peeves: When people lack self-awareness, are emotionally reactive, immature, or petty
What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? I graduated 100% debt-free from my undergraduate degree and paid for 50% of my master's degree by competing in pageants and by earning academic scholarships.
What is something we would never know from looking at you? I get this all the time: "When I first met you, I thought you were going to be a mean girl, but now that I know you, that's not the case". People tend to stereotype me, so they're surprised when they realize I have depth, am intelligent and that I do a lot of super nerdy things.
Who is your hero and why? It would be so cheesy to say "Jesus", but I did want to use this question to explain the importance of my faith. I am a fully devoted follower of Christ, and my life motto is to "love God and love people". I recognize that there is a higher calling on my life than simply living for myself.
Which past Survivor will you play the game most like? 100% Kim Spradlin. Not only was she a beast in challenges, but her social game was so strong. She developed genuine relationships with the other players, and almost everyone considered her a trustworthy ally, even if she didn't feel the same way about them. Her tribemates viewed her as a leader, and her alliance members followed her lead. She didn't go into the game trying to be super manipulative and deceptive. I felt like she tried to be as authentic as she could in a game like Survivor.
Why do you believe you can be the Sole Survivor? I am the total package. I am a strong social player because of my background in counseling and psychology, so I understand human behavior. I genuinely care about people and know how to connect on a deeper, personal level. I am an animal when it comes to anything physical because of my strength, grit, and unrelenting determination. I have studied the game of SURVIVOR, so I know what strategy will work in the game. I come off as a very sweet, trustworthy person, but people have no idea what I'm capable of. I know how to balance being a huge threat, while also drawing people in and making them want to work with me. My faith gives me an advantage because I can rely on God when I am weak and ask Him for guidance.[2]
Survivor[]
Beginning the game on Ika, Tori bonded with her younger tribemates Swati Goel and Zach Wurtenberger, creating a three-way alliance. However, after Tori went out claiming to look for taro leaves on Day 2, the tribe grew suspicious that she was looking for the Hidden Immunity Idol and considered targeting her. Following Ika's Day 3 Immunity Challenge loss, Tori and Zach were the options due to the former's growing reputation as an untrustworthy player and the latter's failure at the puzzle, which cost Ika the challenge. Despite Romeo Escobar pushing for Tori to go due to his alliance with Zach, the group unanimously sent Zach home.
Soon after Ika's first Tribal Council, Drea Wheeler approached Tori and Swati about potentially forming a women's alliance, while also revealing her extra vote to them. Believing Drea to be too big of a threat, Swati proposed voting her out instead, to which Tori agreed. In an effort to rally votes against Drea, Swati had Tori approach Rocksroy Bailey with the plan and told him of Drea's extra vote. Finding her proposal disingenuous, Rocksroy immediately informed Drea that Tori was plotting against her, further isolating her from the rest of the group.
After Ika lost immunity again on Day 9, it appeared that Tori would be the one voted out. However, she confided in Drea and Romeo that Swati was the one who first brought up voting out Drea. They also compared notes, learning that Swati had sworn allegiance to each of them but was secretly pitting them against each other. At Tribal Council, both Tori and Swati argued that the other was responsible for scheming against Drea. In the end, Drea and Romeo sided with Tori, voting out Swati. However, Tori received Rocksroy's vote, which caused their fraught relationship to further deteriorate. As a result, Tori planned to defect from Ika after the merge.
However, after the three tribes came together on Day 12 to form Kula Kula, Tori was shut out of strategic relationships and excluded from the newly formed majority alliance on account of her poor reputation. While she remained a constant target, Tori kept herself safe by winning the first two individual Immunity Challenges. On Day 17, Kula Kula was split into two groups for a Double Elimination, with Tori being placed onto a team with Drea, Jonathan Young, Lindsay Dolashewich, and Maryanne Oketch. After failing to win immunity, Tori was approached by the three former Taku members with a plan to blindside Drea and flush her idol, which she agreed to.
At Tribal Council, it was revealed that the other group had voted out Rocksroy. This greatly unsettled Drea, who was concerned with a pattern emerging with Rocksroy's elimination and the prior elimination of Chanelle Howell. Drea then declared she would play her idol, despite Tori's objections. Not wanting to see another Black player sent to the jury, Maryanne also agreed to play her idol in solidarity with Drea. With Jonathan, Drea, and Maryanne immune, only Tori and Lindsay were left vulnerable. After some discussion, the group decided to verbally vote out Tori over Lindsay. In a last ditch effort to save herself, Tori used her Shot in the Dark, but her scroll read "not safe", confirming her elimination.
At the Final Tribal Council, Tori opened the "Social" segment of the discussion by sharing her perceptions of each of the finalists. She referred to Mike Turner as a trustworthy loyalist, Maryanne as a player who did not always take the game seriously, and Romeo as passive and paranoid, before then giving each of the finalists a chance to correct these perceptions. In the end, Tori joined most of the jury in voting for Maryanne to win the title of Sole Survivor.
| Episode | Tribe Affiliation |
Challenge | Challenge Type | Sit-Out? | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ika | Marooning | Reward | No | Won |
| Forty Two | Immunity | No | Lost | ||
| 2 | Can't Find My Way Home | Reward/Immunity | No | 2nd | |
| 3 | Spiral Architect | Reward/Immunity | No | 2nd | |
| 4 | Tangled Up Sled Slide | Reward | No | Lost | |
| Beyond the Tuna | Immunity | No | Lost | ||
| 5 | Ramplified | Reward/Immunity | No | 1st | |
| Tribes Disbanded, Day 12 | |||||
| 6 | None | Rolling Stones | Reward/Immunity | No | Won1 |
| 7 | A Bit Tipsy | Immunity | No | Won | |
| Tribes Merged, Night 14 | |||||
| 8 | Kula Kula | Basket Case | Reward | No | Won |
| Can't Buoy Me Love | Immunity | No | Won | ||
| 9 | Bermuda Triangles Case | Reward/Immunity | Shared2 | ||
| Voted Out, Day 17 | |||||
| Notes: ^1 The unchosen sit-out from the challenge (Rocksroy) was exiled. There, he was given an hourglass which he may choose to break to strip the winning team of their immunity, transferring it to the losing team and himself. Rocksroy broke the hourglass and Tori lost her immunity.
^2 The challenge was played for team reward and individual immunity, with the last person standing winning reward for their team. Tori did not win immunity, but was on the team that won the reward. | |||||
| Episode | Tori's Votes |
Voted Against Tori |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zach | - |
| 2 | Ika Tribe Immune | |
| 3 | Ika Tribe Immune | |
| 4 | Swati | Rocksroy |
| 5 | Ika Tribe Immune | |
| 7 | Jonathan | Individual Immunity |
| 8 | Chanelle | Individual Immunity |
| 9 | Ineligible1 | Drea, Jonathan, Lindsay, Maryanne |
| Voted Out, Day 17 | ||
| Voted for Sole Survivor |
Maryanne | |
^1 In "Game of Chicken", Tori used her Shot in the Dark die, making her ineligible to vote at Tribal Council.
Post-Survivor[]
- Tori married after the game and now goes by Tori Stanley.
- Tori is currently a certified life coach and a licensed mental health therapist. She uses her social media platforms to raise awareness on disordered eating.[3]
- Tori is planning to pursue a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology.
- On April 8, 2024 Tori attended Maryanne Oketch’s wedding along with a few other contestants.
Trivia[]
- Before appearing on Survivor, Tori competed on the third season of Sequester. She was the 16th person eliminated, placing 6th.
- Tori was initially cast for Survivor 41 before filming was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]
- Tori is the second woman to win the first two individual Immunity Challenges after the merge, following Laura Morett in Samoa.
- Tori is the only woman to achieve this feat when only one Immunity Necklace was available at each challenge.
- Tori is the first woman and fourth contestant overall to be voted out verbally, following Ian Rosenberger in Palau, Brandon Hantz in Caramoan, and Jeff Varner in Game Changers. They'd be followed by Bhanu Gopal in Survivor 46.
References[]
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