Meet Survivor 47’s LGBTQ+ cast members vying for a $1 million prize
Teeny Chirichillo, Andy Rueda and Jon Lovett are Survivor 47’s LGBTQ+ cast members. (Robert Voets/CBS)
A cast member opened up about being part of the LGBTQ+ community during the first episode of Survivor 47.
So, it turns out Barack Obama’s gay former speechwriter, Jon Lovett, isn’t the only LGBTQ+ cast member of the new season.
Reality show Survivor involves contestants vying for a $1,000,000 (£753,000) prize while trapped in an isolated location where they must provide food, fire and shelter for themselves, as well as compete in physical challenges.
Lovett, who co-hosts podcast Pod Save America, became a key character in the first episode after fellow castaway Andy Rueda admitted to him that he is bisexual.
Another contestant, Teeny Chirichillo, is non-binary.
Lovett has since become the first person voted out of the contest.
Here’s what you need to know about Survivors’ LGBTQ+ cast
Andy Rueda
Rueda is a 31-year-old AI research assistant from Buffalo, New York, who lives in Brooklyn.
He has posted on social media about his participation. In a video uploaded to Instagram on 4 September, Rueda talked about his desire to “play like a snake”, adding that he believes he has the ability to “charm and disarm”.
Teeny Chirichillo
Non-binary freelance writer Teeny Chirichillo is from Manahawkin, New Jersey. The 24-year-old contestant said they been developing their social games throughout their life and claim to know how to make everybody like them.
“My secret weapon is having masculine and feminine attributes, which help me to blend and get along with everyone,” they told Rutgers Today, the student publication of Rutgers University, where they studied.
Jon Lovett
Jon Lovett is 42 and lives in Los Angeles. He was born in Woodbury, New York.
The gay podcast host became the first person to be voted out, on Wednesday (18 September), after the Gata tribe lost a challenge. Lovett was formerly Barack Obama’s speech writer and also worked for Hillary Clinton. I
In 2015, he admitted that he had secretly officiated a same-sex wedding in the White House before then president Obama officially supported gay marriage. He was in a relationship with Ronan Farrow, the son of Hollywood stars Mia Farrow and Woody Allen, for more than 10 years.
Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.
How did this story make you feel?
