Survivor 45 Crowns a Million Dollar Winner

Wednesday night delivered a huge episode of Survivor, both in content and overall run time. Survivor 45 concluded with a three-hour finale that saw a brand new winner crowned, the 43rd different Sole Survivor in the show's nearly 24-year history. Heading into the finale, five players had a shot at winning the title and winning a million dollars; Jake O'Kane, Katurah Topps, Dee Valladares, Austin Li Coon, and Julie Alley. That said, there can be only one winner, and fans will certainly be happy with the result. 

WARNING: This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for the Survivor Season 45 finale! Continue reading at your own risk...

Many of the winners of Survivor's "New Era" that began with Season 41 have been feel-good stories that fans could get behind. Of the previous four seasons, however, it didn't exactly feel like the best player won the game. The trend was bucked in Survivor 45 with the crowning of none other than Dee Valladares as the new Sole Survivor.

Not to say that Dee didn't have a feel-good story or wasn't a lovable person to watch throughout the season — she was unquestionably both of those things. But Dee also played one of the best strategic, social, and physical games throughout Season 45. She ended up sitting next to Austin and Jake at Final Tribal, and ultimately took home the victory with five of the jury's eight votes. The other three votes went to Austin and it appeared, for a moment, like there might have been a tie.

Jeff Probst Promised a Big Final Tribal

Heading into the finale, host and showrunner Jeff Probst promised a major showdown at the Final Tribal Council. The show delivered, as Jake brought a great story of perseverance to the table while Dee and Austin went toe-to-toe explaining the inner workings of their Reba alliance.

"The final Tribal for Survivor 45 is a war," Probst told EW leading up the final episode of the season. "Several jury members were undecided about who they were going to vote for, and I was very impressed with how they conducted their interrogation of the players. They were very specific in what they wanted to know to help them make their decision and they gave the players ample opportunities to own their game and make their case."