Yahoo News The Circle season 5 winner breaks down that shocking end: 'I had no idea what I was doing'
Warning: This article contains spoilers about The Circle season 5 finale.
Sam Carmona literally started from the bottom on The Circle season 5. In the premiere, the 34-year-old came in last during the very first rankings. But by remaining loyal to her new friends and staying out of drama all season long, the underdog ultimately unseated consistent Influencers Chaz Lawery and Raven Sutton to win the whole thing.
Carmona is the first to admit she had no idea what she was doing throughout the season aside from making genuine connections, whereas her fellow competitors took a more strategic angle in their attempts to win the game. And in the end, her strategy of no strategy reigned supreme. Below, Carmona breaks down season 5's shocking ending, how she took home the win, and more.
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ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How long has it been since you filmed the finale?
SAM CARMONA: Maybe a year-and-a-half. I was 34 when we filmed and I'm pushing 36 now.
What was it like for you having to keep your win secret for so long?
It is the hardest secret I've ever had to keep in my life. There are family members who have no idea that I was even on a show. Some of them think that I'm actually still filming now and they'll call me like, "Listen, don't trust this person. Don't trust that person." [Laughs] I'm like, "Okay. Noted."
Going into The Circle, did you think winning was even a possibility? How much did you expect this outcome?
In all honesty, and it's kind of ironic that you asked me this question, I was just speaking to my mother and she's like, "At what point did you feel like you were going to win?" I said, "Never. Not once." When my name was called [during the finale], that's when I realized, "Oh, s---. It happened." I went into it just knowing that I was going to do the best that I could and that I wasn't going to play a dirty game and hopefully it would take me far.
And it really did. A lot of other players got deep into thinking about strategy, but you played really straightforward. Did strategy ever come into play for you?
Transparency moment: I had no idea what I was doing. It was just like my eyeliner — I winged it. Everybody else was like, "I'm going to write down this and calculate that," and I'm just here like, "Umm ... I like butterflies." I didn't want to go into the game and create this reputation for myself that I'm a person who thrives off of malice or shadiness. I wanted to just be my true, authentic self and hopefully it worked — well, it did work [laughs] but I went into it hoping that it would work.
What was going through your mind when Michelle announced you won?
I literally remember holding onto my gusband's hand — yes, he has a real husband but he's my gusband — head down, and I'm just chanting to him, I don't know if anyone could hear it but I was like, "I'm so proud of you, I'm so proud of you," saying it over and over. Because I genuinely did not know. And when she said that, I literally felt like there were cinder blocks on my shoulders. I couldn't even carry the weight. I was like, "Wait, what?" And just crying aggressively.
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Have you watched the finale yet?
I am up to the second batch. I know what happened because I experienced it, but I haven't seen the finale, everyone together, so I'm anxious.
By watching some of the episodes and talking with all your fellow castmates, have you been able to figure out what your winning move or strategy was that ultimately got you the win?
Because I stayed far away from the chaos and the drama, that's what kept me in the game longer. If you don't ruffle any feathers, just stay in the cut and mind your business. When all of the mess unfolded with the love triangles and the shenanigans, I just was like, "It has nothing to do with me. This is perfect. Love that."
All season long, Chaz and Raven were both consistently Influencers, and then you and Tom each had one time of making it into an Influencer spot. Why do you think you were able to beat Chaz and Raven for the win in the end?
Honestly, I just feel like the way that some of the players felt against each other worked in my favor. It's like, "I don't like you, so I'm just going to rank Sam high." And then there's other instances where you have Chaz like, "I love Sam. I'm going to rate her high." It was a combination of people who genuinely loved me and people who just hated other people where it worked in my favor.
It's nice to be able to say you didn't make any enemies.
I didn't. I love everybody! When I tell you I love everyone, I have no beef in these streets.
Were you ever worried that you were in danger of getting blocked?
[Laughs] Didn't you see episode one? I was losing my mind. I literally had no clue what was happening. Everything was just pixelated, the world was not in focus. I was like, "I didn't even do anything. I just said I like chicken and you guys are going to send me home?" That was the only episode where the wind was taken out of me.
How did that first ratings scare affect how you played the rest of the season?
It definitely lit a fire. In my real life, I've never been one to brown nose or kiss ass. If I meet someone and they don't like me, that's it. I don't ever have to speak to you again. I can completely detach. But when you're in the game and being liked is a part of the game, it's like, "Damn, now I've got to be nice. I've got to be fake. I've got to tell somebody I like their shoes when their shoes are crap." It was a mental battle within myself.
But in all honesty, because I know that I had a good relationship with Chaz and Raven and they were killing the game the entire time ... not saying they were my security blanket, but as long as I knew one of them was up top, I'm like, "I'm good. My gusband got me. My sister got me." And then everything else that was unfolding throughout the season, I was just like, "It has nothing to do with me. You guys go at it, I'm going to sit back. I don't want no part of it."
The one moment you couldn't avoid the drama was with the hacker. Tell me about the moment where you realized that the hacker had infiltrated your game and you were being targeted.
Something that I could attribute to my Nuyorican heritage is that we pay attention to details. Don't tell me you're going to the store at 7:00 and you're back at 7:15 and you didn't buy milk ... [Laughs] I pay attention to everything. It took me seconds to establish who the hacker was once I narrowed down that I didn't have that genuine conversation with my gusband. I was livid. And I'm dying to see that episode because I want to know how many bleeps they're going to put in. Talk about betrayal. Ooh, I'm mad all over again.
It was impressive how quickly you were able to figure out that it was Jennifer.
That person went to Hacker University, because that was done seamlessly. Initially, I just wanted her gone. All I saw was red. I wanted Jennifer out. I didn't care if Marvin dated every single person, including Tom, Marvin could stay. Betrayal is not taken lightly in my world. And going into the Influencer chat with Raven and hearing her reasoning, because I'm so big-hearted, I love my sis, "You want to get rid of him? No problem, whatever you want to do." I'm willing to put my feelings aside to make sure that my friend is good, so I had to eat that one. And going into the finale dinner, I was like, "When Jennifer walks through this door, I hope she's ready." Then to see Xanthi and Brett, I'm just like, "What in the Jesus juice is happening?" It was just too much happening for me ... and then, seeing Xanthi, you can't be mad at Xanthi. I love her so much, I couldn't dare.
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Which catfish surprised you the most?
Of course, Shooby. Nobody was ever expecting to see Shooby. I yelled so much during Shooby's reveal video that I don't even think I remember what he said, I was just screaming. When we were at the finale and I did finally get to meet everyone, I am not a good liar and I've said this plenty of times before but I went up to everyone and I said, "I said this about you. I don't know if it's going to make the edit, but I said this and I'm sorry." I just didn't want anybody to see it on TV, so I told everyone everything. I cleared my conscious immediately, just in case.
Before you went on The Circle, had you watched every previous season?
[Laughs] No. I heard about the audition and I reached out to a cousin of mine and I said, "Have you ever heard of this show called The Circle?" She's like, "Yeah." I'm like, "Is it good?" And she explained it. She didn't explain it well because I still had no idea. But she's like, "Hell yeah, do it." And the rest is history. Once I filled out the application, I was like, "Let me check it out," and I breezed through the first two seasons. I didn't think that it was going to be that intense, but it was intense.
That actually makes a lot of sense that you only watched the first two seasons because you played a very season 1 style game — not strategic, just making genuine connections.
I get that a lot: "You weren't playing a savage game." People definitely say I gave season 1/season 2 love.
Do you have any regrets of how you played this season?
Honestly, no. Prior to me leaving, I had a long conversation with my grandmother and she said, "You're going to be on TV, everything you say is going to stick. So if you say something, stand on it." So far from what I've seen, I don't regret anything that I've said. I don't regret anything that I've done and I'm happy with the way that I played. And I seem to be received pretty well by the public, so I'm guessing I did okay. I will tell you, at some point you get numb to the cameras. You honestly forget that they're there and that you're being filmed. And because I'm so unfiltered, the person that was in that apartment, saying the most outlandish things, that's really me, all the time. I talked about poop angels, there's no going back now.
Who from the cast are you close with now?
I speak to Chaz and Raven daily since we've been back from the U.K. The rest of the cast, we speak from time to time. We'll chime in holidays, birthdays, but Chaz and Raven, literally, the Holy Trinity, my babies, we send each other Christmas gifts. I cannot wait to see them and hug the hell out of them.
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
All episodes of The Circle season 5 are now streaming on Netflix.
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