Sia Surprise Appearance At ‘Survivor’ 32 Nets Third Place, Fan-Favorite Tai Trang $100,000 Gift


Sia’s surprise appearance at the filming of Survivor in its 32nd season netted third place finisher Tai Trang a $100,000 bonanza during the live finale on May 18. The Australian singer and animal lover ran up to the stage and gave the San Francisco gardener a couple of checks for saving a chicken’s life during his time on the reality series.

According to Huffington Post, fan-favorite Tai Trang, 51, a self-confessed lover of all living things, outwitted hungry fellow contestants to save a chicken from slaughter while the show filmed in Cambodia. Tai made it to the final three, but 24-year-old Michele Fitzgerald was crowned the Sole Survivor, and 29-year-old Aubry Bracco took second place. The conditions were right for Sia to surprise everybody.

While host Jeff Probst interviewed Tai onstage, someone in the audience yelled, “Hi, I’m Sia!” It turned out to be the 40-year-old pop star with a wig covering most of her face. Invited by Probst to join in the conversation, the singer delivered her surprise speech to Tai, as reported by Hollywood Life.

“I could not let Tai go home without saying that, you’re authenticity, and your care for animals really inspired me. And so I want to donate $50,000 to you. I want to donate $50,000 to your choice of animal charity. And I just wanted to say thank you for showing America how to be kind to animals.”

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Saying that Sia had rendered him speechless, Tai hugged her. Then, he came up with his own surprise in the form of a few apt words.

“We cannot be so human-centric. Without the whole ecosystem, we will be doomed sooner than we think.”

For those who’ve been following Survivor: Kaôh R?ng, Sia’s surprise is much-deserved by Tai. He convinced his companions not to eat Mark, their adopted chicken, and hunted for edibles in their surroundings to appease their hunger.

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As the audience applauded Sia’s surprise appearance and unexpected generosity, Probst asked her if she was, in fact, giving a “Fan Favorite” reward, which used to happen every season before the practice was discontinued. The “Chandelier” singer displayed her Survivor knowledge through her response.

“I remember that Sprint used to give money to a fan favorite, and when it didn’t happen last year, I remember thinking I kind of wanted to do it for Keith, but I was a chicken — pardon the pun. And this year, I just was watching you, Tai, and I know that it was a weird little journey for you, but I think that through it all, you showed your humanity. When you said ‘I was scared,’ and that’s why you voted off Scot… that’s powerful to admit the truth in that way. You’re a teacher.”

According to Mashable, Tai explained to Sia and others the lengths he went through in order to save Mark, the chicken. He did not want his pet to become an unexpected surprise at the dining table.

“At the beginning we tied him up. Very soon, maybe a week later, we untied him and he became attached to us. So he was walking around like one of us. Whenever we eat, he eats. So I think he became a pet. I worked really hard. Every day, I [would] go look for food. I found a mango tree for the tribe. I found a bunch of clams, I shucked clams. I go fishing every day. I spent a couple hours a day going to get the food so people don’t get hungry. So people don’t see Mark as food.”

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A follow-up by Entertainment Weekly delved into what happened to the chicken in the aftermath of Sia’s surprise appearance. Here is what Tai told the interviewer.

“I could not bring Mark home. My neighbor would’ve killed me or called the cops on me. I asked Jeff to find a good home for him, so Mark stayed with production, and he was the production’s mascot. Everyone let him walk around on location, and I think one day he was just tired of that thing and he lived out his years, so I think he went back to chicken heaven now. He’s no longer with us. But he lived a great life, and he was part of the tribe; he left his legacy behind.”

Thus ended Survivor‘s Season 32 with fans anticipating the season to come and what’s in store to match a Sia surprise.

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