This article contains spoilers for episode 7 of Survivor 45, which aired on Nov. 8.
Kaleb Gebrewold became the first member of Survivor 45’s Jury during episode 7. But, if Bruce Perrault had his choice, the 29-year-old Canadian would’ve made his way to Ponderosa sooner than that.
Kaleb and Bruce’s games intertwined during the first tribe swap of season 45. As one of only three Lulus left, Kaleb dropped his yellow buff and randomly selected the same color fabric on day 8. Bruce, the frontman of Belo, traded his blue buff in for yellow, creating a new five-person tribe alongside Kaleb, Katurah Topps, Jake O’Kane, and Kellie Nalbandian.
Although Kaleb was the only non-original Belo member on the beach, he quickly made inroads with his tribemates, including Bruce. Before beginning the “Mergatory” phase, Kaleb even covered for Bruce when the 47-year-old was on a campaign to capture a Hidden Immunity Idol.
Kaleb’s relationships with the four others were never truly tested before the 13 remaining contestants converged onto one beach, however. They earned Immunity in the two rounds of play as Lulu, which meant they never voted with each other to prove their loyalty.
So, once Kaleb and Bruce were surrounded by 11 other players, the latter’s attitude toward him changed. Kaleb was viewed as perhaps the biggest social threat remaining in the game, and Bruce clocked him having several conversations with different players.
Bruce, who felt on the outs, turned his gun on Kaleb, and he rallied his troops — as well as the Reba-driven alliance — to take a shot. When Kaleb was vulnerable during the mergatory Tribal Council on day 13, he received 11 votes. But, lucky for him, Kaleb’s Shot in the Dark was successful, which nullified every vote cast against him.
Instead of Kaleb leaving, Janani “J. Maya” Krishnan-Jha was ousted instead during the revote.
But, Kaleb’s record-setting play only delayed the inevitable. Considering he caught a vote from every eligible player, Kaleb focused on damage control. But, Bruce’s decision to flip on Kaleb ultimately led to the software salesman’s downfall.
On day 14, the 12 remaining castaways were split into two groups at the Immunity Challenge in anticipation of two Tribal Councils that night. Although Kaleb and Bruce weren’t on the same team, Kaleb’s threat level followed him to the Red squad. He was unable to win Immunity and at the final Tribal Council of the night, Kaleb was voted out by Katurah, Austin Li Coon, Dee Valladares, and Julie Alley.
Kaleb felt he was under Bruce’s thumb for days and believes Bruce made the wrong move turning on him
Kaleb spoke with Entertainment Weekly in an interview published on Nov. 9, the day after we watched Kaleb leave for Ponderosa. The outlet’s Dalton Ross asked Kaleb why he believed Bruce turned on him post-Lulu.
Kaleb said that because he was growing strong bonds with players that Bruce had been playing with from the get-go, the insurance agent grew “insecure.”
“You ever hear of attachment-style relationships?” Kaleb asked. “I feel like, for me, in the alliances, I have to have people who have a secure attachment style. I think Bruce — with the idea that I was getting close with his allies — became very insecure that they were maybe getting closer with me than they were with him. But at the end of the day, we were all strategic enough to know we needed each other. And I did everything to try and get Bruce in the fold.”
Kaleb said that for four days, he felt like “Bruce’s b*****” because he was following every order Bruce demanded — something we saw on the show. He also said that he took time to learn about Bruce’s life while also sharing his own stories, which may have backfired for Kaleb. “I really think we invested in each other,” he continued. “And I just think he was so upset that he was not being let in and he treated me as the reason for it at the merge.”
Kaleb said the most time he spent interacting with players was likely with Bruce and Kellie, and that he couldn’t fathom why Bruce elected to turn on his ally, especially when there were several players on the beach that Bruce hadn’t played with before, including six Reba contestants. “I think he hurt his own game and other people’s by doing that,” Kaleb said of Bruce’s betrayal.
Regardless, Kaleb is now out of the running for $1 million while Bruce continues in the game with a 1-in-10 chance at becoming the Sole Survivor. But, it’ll be a tough path for Bruce. His storyline has primarily been about him annoying other castaways — specifically Katurah.
Considering most of the players know Bruce has a Hidden Immunity Idol, he doesn’t hide his thirst for leadership, and he isn’t the easiest to be around while they’re starving and living in the elements, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bruce joins Kaleb in the Jury sooner rather than later.