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Alyssa Was Also Worried About Aron After Shocking Deal or No Deal Island Exit
Find out what Rob and Aron's closest ally's thoughts are on getting whacked by the "Night Owls" alliance.
Spoilers for Episode 7 of Deal or No Deal Island!
Shrewd strategist or Machiavellian puppeteer of Aron Barbell's heart? Whatever you think of Alyssa Klinzing's game on Deal or No Deal Island, she was a dominant player from the get-go. Her quick alliance with accountant Aron was impenetrable, even for Aron's other ride-or-die, "Boston Rob" Mariano.
However, Alyssa's machinations and her lock on Aron's loyalty also rubbed the self-dubbed "Night Owls" posse — featuring Dr. Stephanie Mitchell, Nick Grasso, Dawson Addis, and Amy McCoy — the wrong way. So they were gunning for her to go home by Episode 7 when Stephanie's win against The Banker allowed her to send Alyssa packing.
RELATED: Watch the "Night Owls" Form a Deal or No Deal Island Alliance to Take Down Boston Rob
In our latest NBC Insider exit interview for Deal or No Deal Island, Alyssa Klinzing shed some light on what audiences didn't see in the episode edits that dramatically affected her choices early on, the truth about her bond with Aron (and a few others), and when she finally realized that Stephanie was her nemesis.
Alyssa's Big Brother intentions were keelhauled by the Deal or No Deal Island realities
No doubt about it, Alyssa was one of the most dominant players in this inaugural season of Deal or No Deal Island. But she told NBC Insider that despite her final edit in the show, the truth is that her intended game strategy, born out of her love for another reality show, was blown out of the water once she arrived and found out the parameters of this game.
"We were not told anything before going to film Deal or No Deal Island," Alyssa said. "We had no idea what the game was going to look like. We were completely in the dark, so I had no strategy going in. I've never seen Survivor or The Traitors. I've never seen a lot of mainstream reality shows. Except Big Brother, which was the one that I wanted to be on for a really long time. And I ended up going to Deal or No Deal Island. So in my head, I'm kind of thinking like a Big Brother player."
RELATED: Joe & Screaming Contestants Battle Bats, Flying Fish & More in Deal or No Deal Island Bloopers
Alyssa said her personal game was severely limited by the overall game rule that no players were allowed to speak to one another while traveling from camp to excursions, or during off-camera down time. "So you have a really limited time to strategize to get information around camp," she explained.
"You spend a lot of time unable to talk to each other. The first three days we were there filming the first episode, we were not allowed to talk. So we're just sitting in a room with everyone in complete silence all of the time, unless somebody's talking to someone from staff. There was really such a learning curve with this game because I feel like there really was no strategy. There was no way you can hack the game, and I really tried," she said, laughing.
The truth about besties Alyssa and Aron
Alyssa admits during that imposed quiet time she did a lot of observing of her fellow players. In particular, Aron caught her attention.
"His energy spoke to me before he ever did," she shared. "And I knew that I wanted to be aligned with him when we were in our hotel holding area before we went into film. It was his energy that really drew me in. I'm someone who's dealt with a lot of trauma and a lot of adversity in my life, so I feel like I really gravitate towards gentle people. We spoke and had an alliance the very first day we were there. I stayed up all night chatting with him and Jordan."
RELATED: Aron's "Diabolical" Deal or No Deal Island Return Leaves Contestants Shocked: Watch
She also copped to really liking Rob too, and knew nothing about his "Rob-father" cred as a legendary reality show player. "I felt really drawn to his energy as well. He's so charismatic," she confirmed. "I am so honored that I got to play game with him and learn from him and see him work.
"When you see me in the last episode, I tried to pull a Rob on Rob," she continued. "You can't fault me for trying. Aron knew that I was going to try, so it was really like water under the bridge."
Stephanie's revenge and Aron's dramatic reaction to Alyssa's end
Despite orchestrating some major power moves, like the ousting of Kim in Episode 3 and happily being Aron's protected player in the case game he presided over, Alyssa admitted she didn't really understand Stephanie's ire toward her until it was too late.
"I did not play on that at all," she said of her status as supervillain to some. "That was a huge shock to me. The day I was eliminated, we were taken to training for future excursions. You don't know what's coming next or what's coming down the line, but you do need safety training to go up a tree, or to drive the boats ... Amy was talking to someone from production in a tent off camp, and she was talking about Stephanie's hatred for me and how that was making her feel.
"It wasn't until that moment where I overheard something I probably wasn't meant to overhear, that something clicked in my brain where I was like, 'OK, this might be a little deeper than I think I might even realized,'" she continued. "But I kind of pushed it aside. We went to Temple and then I was like, 'Ah, got it. OK,'" she said of her epiphany.
Asked if she had any regrets about some of her hard moves, she said: "Did I try to play dirty? Like a little bit, yes. But for me, it really was just a game and I did my best with the tools that I had. And that's really it. That's all you can do in that moment."
Alyssa's takeaways from Deal or No Deal Island
When Stephanie beat The Banker and banished Alyssa from the game, Aron took it as a blindside. And Alyssa was truly worried for her friend. "The first thing I thought when I was walking out of Temple was, 'I really hope Aron is OK.' I was thinking about him in that moment.
"I had no idea if he was considering even leaving the game," she said of what happened after she left the set. "I was being held in a van over on the side in the dark, just waiting to go somewhere. It broke my heart to see his reaction to my leaving. I looked at him and I told him, 'It's okay, I'm okay. Be strong.' I told him over and over again that it's just a game and that's just reflective of life. I came here to play a game and that's what I signed up for. I knew what I was getting myself into when I went there. But I also know the experience I had there was an incredible time and I made incredible friends. I've literally asked Aron to be at my wedding!"
But even with that healthy attitude, she did not watch the final edit that aired this week. "I turned it off," she stated. "I was there, I experienced it. I don't welcome that negative energy into my life, into my my home and sacred space."
While she confirmed she does not have any more contact with Stephanie today, she wishes her the best. "I was unaware that she continued on [about me] after I left," she said. "I applaud Rob for saying something. But I'm heartbroken that Aron felt the way that he did and had to leave in that way."
RELATED: Claudia Defends Her Honesty & Sacrifice Move That Ousted Her From Deal or No Deal Island
But cry not for Alyssa. She said that she continues to speak to Aron "every single day" and talks frequently with Rob, Jordan, and Claudia as well. "I really did make genuine, lifelong connections and friendships there," she said.
And she made amends with some too. "I took accountability for what I did in the game," she said. "I actually apologized to Kim in front of everybody. I took accountability for the entire plan to backstab her and get her out. And I did everything within my power while I was there to make amends and move on and just be able to play the game. I realized that I tried to hack a game Big Brother style and it wasn't going to work. Lesson learned. Now Season 2 [players] get to know that you shouldn't do that!"
New episodes of Deal or No Deal Island air on Mondays at 10 p.m. on NBC, and will be available to stream the next day on Peacock.
