Denise Stapley
Matsing's last woman standing, who sat through every Tribal Council and talked her way past all of them.
Sole Survivor
- Won Survivor 25: Philippines (2012) after 39 days.
Known for
Denise drew the worst hand in Philippines: Matsing lost every immunity before the merge, and she was at every single Tribal Council. She and Malcolm Freberg paired up and outlasted the rest of their tribe, then she was absorbed alone into Kalabaw and blended in there too. After the merge she helped flush Jonathan Penner's idol, courted Michael Skupin and Lisa Whelchel away from Tandang, and outlasted a rivalry with Abi-Maria Gomes. When Malcolm hesitated on a tie-vote pact, she cut a side deal with Skupin and Lisa, and the moment Malcolm lost the final immunity, the plan fired. Her pitch that she had adapted across three tribes won the jury, 6-1-1.
In Winners at War she and Adam Klein started at the bottom of Sele as a perceived pair. After the switch she blindsided Sandra Diaz-Twine using Sandra's own idol, then kept her head down beside Sarah Lacina and Tony Vlachos. She fell on a vote restart after idols wiped out the first round.
Background: Survivor Wiki
Season by season
Photos and logos: CBS
Seasons played, finishing positions, day counts, jury status, ages and hometowns come from the contestant table in each season's Wikipedia article, cross-checked against the series overview before publication.
Sources (4)
- “Survivor: Philippines,” Wikipedia, accessed September 28, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor:_Philippines.
- “Survivor: Winners at War,” Wikipedia, accessed September 28, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivor:_Winners_at_War.
- “List of Survivor (American TV series) episodes,” Wikipedia, accessed September 25, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Survivor_(American_TV_series)_episodes.
- “Denise Stapley,” Survivor Wiki, accessed September 28, 2026, https://survivor.fandom.com/wiki/Denise_Stapley.