Of Course, Boston Rob Treated DWTS Like Survivor And Gave Dylan Efron Brutal Strategy Ideas

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As a huge fan, I’m already missing Dancing With the Stars now that Season 34 is over and we’ve seen who won the Mirrorball Trophy! This season felt particularly competitive – the show really had to fight for its place on the TV schedule for next year. The celebrities were seriously talented, and it was fascinating watching them all. Dylan Efron was a finalist, and he’s clearly good at reality TV, having already won The Traitors. Apparently, he even had some sneaky strategies from his friend Boston Rob (also from Traitors and, famously, Survivor), but thankfully he decided not to use them in the ballroom! It was fun to see that side of things, even if he kept it classy.

Rob Mariano, known as “Boston Rob,” is a veteran of eight seasons of Survivor. He came in second place twice and won Survivor: Redemption Island, though he declined to participate in Survivor 50. Despite his Survivor success, he understands that winning Survivor and Dancing with the Stars require different strategies. Nevertheless, after becoming close friends with Zac Efron on The Traitors, Mariano offered him some advice.

On the E! show Hot Goss, Mariano and Efron revealed the surprising amount of planning and strategy involved in Dancing with the Stars.

  • Boston Rob: You don’t realize that there’s strategy on Dancing with the Stars.
  • Dylan Efron: I was calling him every show day, but we had a lot of strategies. Some we didn’t use, some we did.

Mariano is a strong strategist, and that’s essential for success on Survivor.

While Dancing With the Stars doesn’t involve the intense mental games or hidden idols of Survivor, contestants still have to compete to stay in the competition. Boston Rob quickly became a supporter of Zac Efron during the first episode of DWTS, and that support continued throughout the season. In fact, Mariano eventually felt compelled to offer Efron advice that was very similar to how alliances are built on Survivor.

Here’s what happened: near the end of the competition, both my friend and I realized the same thing. He called me with an idea, and I told him he needed to start making friends with the weaker players – the ones likely to be voted out. My plan was to get those eliminated players to convince their remaining allies to vote for me. I specifically told him to get close to Andy, because Andy had a lot of support and wouldn’t make it to the final round.

Both Efron and Andy Richter were fan favorites during their time on the show, so it’s not surprising they became friends. While the Survivor star playfully suggested he could have helped Richter stay in the competition a little longer, Efron clarified that he didn’t actually try to influence the voting. This makes their friendship even more genuine and heartwarming.

  • Dylan Efron: Just to be clear, I did not use this strategy.
  • Boston Rob: He didn’t! And that’s why he ended up in fourth place.

It’s clear that Daniella Karagach’s amazing choreography played a big role in Zac Efron reaching the finals, and Mariano seems genuinely happy for him. It’s also great to hear that Efron ignored some tough advice from a friend, and still managed to both become friends with Richter and finish in fourth place.

I’m really wondering how well Dylan Efron would perform on Survivor. He’s proven he’s a skilled strategist – he won The Traitors Season 3 – and he’s both physically fit and good at building relationships, as we saw on Dancing with the Stars. If he teamed up with Mariano, he could be a serious contender on Survivor!

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2025-12-13 04:08