Phillip Sheppard

Phillip Sheppard (born 1958) is a United States Army veteran and the chief executive officer of a software company who is best known for his appearances on the reality television show Survivor. He is also the inspiration and persona in the 2013 novel The Specialist: The Costa Rica Job. The book became available on February 12 and features a James Bond-like former federal agent working a job in Costa Rica.

Redemption Island
Sheppard was initially a contestant on Survivor: Redemption Island in 2011. He was a member of the Ometepe Tribe and had a record seventeen votes cast against him throughout the season (he now shares the distinction with Ozzy Lusth who later had seventeen votes cast against him during Survivor: South Pacific). He also received one jury vote at the final tribal council, which allowed him to achieve second place overall. He told TV Guide that he played with hope and suspected that he would get the jury vote from Ralph Kiser, which he did.

Sheppard was arguably best known for his bizarre behavior and erratic communication skills throughout the game. He continuously insisted that he was a former federal agent, but fellow participants such as former NFL player Steve Wright doubted Phillip’s claims. At the finale, Jeff Probst spoke to a woman in the audience who claimed to have known Sheppard from her federal agent training to confirm beyond doubt that Sheppard was in fact a federal agent.

Caramoan
Sheppard was a cast member on Survivor: Caramoan in 2013. The theme for this season was 10 new contestants (labeled "Fans") and 10 returning contestants (labeled "Favorites") facing off for the million dollar prize, a format previously used during Survivor: Micronesia. Being a returning player, Sheppard was cast as a ‘Favorite’ and was placed on the Bikal tribe. At the first tribal council he claimed that he didn't per se mispronounce Francesca's name during Redemption Island, instead he chose to on purpose rather than using expletives. He was one of six players who voted towards Francesca Hogi becoming the first ever contestant on an American reality competition show to be voted out first on two seasons. After being voted out, Hogi told Zap2it that Sheppard "is still a crazy person" stating that she doesn't "know where he came from or how he functions in the world. It's fascinating, actually."