Survivor 48 star Charity Nelms admits cast was "scared to look bad" voting out Eva Erickson after emotional reveal

Survivor 48 aired its latest episode on April 2, 2025 in which Charity Nelms got eliminated. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly on April 3, 2025, castaway Charity Nelms reflected on her time in the game and what led to her early elimination. She spoke about the merge vote, her efforts to target Eva Erickson, and why the move did not gain support.

Referring to Eva’s story, which influenced how others viewed her in the game, Charity said:

“I think a lot of people were just scared to look bad when that was a very real moment that transcended the game."

Charity believed that everyone should be considered equally in a strategy-based competition but acknowledged that Eva’s moment made that difficult. Moreover, she discussed her gameplay, the consequences of her conversations with Kamilla Karthigesu, and her alliance with Mitch Guerra. Her experience at Ponderosa and moments that did not appear on screen were also part of the conversation.

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Survivor 48 star Charity says she tried to push out Eva from the competition

At the merge, Charity Nelms made a move to target Eva Erickson, but the plan didn’t gain support from the others. She believed her fellow castaways hesitated to act because of Eva’s emotional backstory.

“I think that we're all on the same playing field. She is incredible, brave, smart, and that's why I want her out of the game,” Charity said.

However, she noted that even though others agreed with her, they were not willing to vote Eva out in Survivor.

“The reception to that was like, ‘We think you're right. And yeah, we kind of want to do that too,’ but we're scared,” she explained.

She added that Sai Hughley also voiced similar concerns but couldn’t rally enough support either. After being voted out, Charity had to wait while the remaining cast celebrated receiving their merge buffs. “It hurt a little bit,” she said, referring to hearing the celebration just before her exit. Still, she maintained that she walked out of the game with “nothing but gratitude.”

Charity also shared that Star Toomey had secretly handed her advantage on the new beach after the swap, trusting her with it. She had considered using the knowledge of the advantage strategically if the group had gone to Tribal, pointing out how Star wouldn’t have had a vote. That interaction, however, never made it to the final cut of the Survivor episode.

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Charity talks about her early mistakes in the game

Charity acknowledged her early mistake on the Civa tribe, mentioning Kyle Fraser’s name to Kamilla Karthigesu, his closest ally. She said she initially felt Kamilla and she were both on the bottom and tried to form an alliance, but it backfired.

“Why did I tell Kamilla that? I didn’t know her well enough to really trust her,” she shared.

Throughout her time on the Survivor island, Charity said she tried to stay genuine. Responding to Eva’s accusation of being fake, she clarified:

“If I was that good at acting, I would be in Hollywood, babe. There’s not a single clip to back it up. I was very genuine out there to every single person."

She also shed light on how she bonded with Mitch Guerra, saying that she and Mitch laughed out there together for "six days straight." After her exit, Charity arrived at Ponderosa with what she described as peace. “They were all just kind of shocked, ‘You're not upset?’” she recalled. “And I was like, ‘Of course I'm upset, but it's not the end of the world.’”

Charity concluded the interview by sharing that some people have recognized her during flights at work. She said that she chooses to keep things low-key but appreciates the support.

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