Rob & Amber Out But Not Down on Reality TV SUNDAY MARCH 18, 2007 08:00 AM EST
By Cynthia Wang
Though they are closing in on their second year of marriage, Rob
Mariano and Amber Brkich are not, however, closing in on their second
reality-show victory.
Last Sunday, the pair, winners of Survivor: All-Stars, became the
fourth team out of The Amazing Race: All-Stars.
But fear not, Romber fans: The two may be back for a second season of
their FOX Reality show Against the Odds - as well as something else
that could be "be huge," promises Mariano.
During a rare break between TV appearances, Mariano, 31, and Brkich,
28, spoke to PEOPLE about their on-screen fortunes:
You had won three legs of the Race in a row but lost through a series
of mishaps. Yet teams still competed hard with you until the end.
Rob: I couldn't believe it, to tell you the truth. I thought for sure
they would have learned from the first season we did it that just
focusing on us, all it's going to do is distract the teams, but what
can I say? They took the bait again! We were thrilled.
Amber: It's actually a huge compliment.
Rob: No team had ever come in first for the first two legs in a row,
never mind the first three, so we were definitely doing well until we
ran into some bad luck.
Viewers, like your competition, love and hate you equally. Is that the
key to your TV success?
Rob: I think it's great. By no means do we not realize that it's the
fans that watch the shows that allow us to continue to be on TV and
doing these things. There are people who love to root against us, but
whether they love us or hate us, they're watching and we're pulling in
viewers and the networks see that and it makes for dramatic
television, which is what reality TV is all about.
You had your first executive-produced series on FOX Reality.
Rob: It's the first series in which Amber and I came up with the
premise. I got to pursue my dream of playing poker and being tutored
by one of the best in the world.
Amber: Rob would love to be back in Vegas any second. That show was
special because we were actually living our real lives. We weren't
starving on an island and being bitten alive by bugs.
So what's next for you?
Rob: Actually, we have a big project coming up, probably the biggest
project we've ever worked on. It's bigger than Survivor and bigger
than the Amazing Race. I mean, when you hear about this thing, it's
going to be huge and it will blow your mind. How about kids? Are there any in your future?
Amber: We definitely want a family and we've been talking about it.
... But I think it was also important for us to spend the first couple
of years just the two of us together.
http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20015334,00.html