‘The Challenge All Stars’: Sylvia reveals ‘mom shame’ led to her explosive fight with KellyAnne
Welcome to Reality Derby, our weekly deep dive into all things reality TV, hosted by Gold Derby senior editors Marcus James Dixon and Denton Davidson.
Joining us this week is Sylvia Elsrode, one of the eliminated Challengers from Wednesday night’s The Challenge All Stars: Rivals on MTV. (Our interview begins at the 37:22 mark in the video above.) Sylvia tells us about teaming up with her enemy, KellyAnne Judd, where their relationship stands today, and why “mom shame” led to their explosive argument.
More from GoldDerby
Sylvia says she knew “instantly” that she would be paired up with KellyAnne when host TJ Lavin revealed it was a Rivals season. The duo wasted no time getting into a heated fight that the Challenger admits was “good for TV,” but not for their team.
“Now KellyAnne and I are great,” she tells Reality Derby. “We talk regularly. Had we really had a conversation then maybe this could have been avoided, but in the same instance, two really strong-willed personalities were going against each other. We’re very different, but also very similar in a sense. That really just boiled over and led to the explosion that everybody saw. It sucks because after that we were getting in our groove. Unfortunately, it was cut short.”
Sylvia acknowledges that she has a tendency to say hurtful, mean things when she’s angry. “That’s probably something that needs to be addressed,” she asserts. “But we were in a tough situation. When [KellyAnne] said, ‘I have better things to do,’ I should have just said, ‘Yes. So do we all.’ We’re all here, we all could be doing better things. I think what triggered me is that I was having mom guilt. I was having ‘mom shame,’ if you will, knowing that I should have been home with my baby.”
Just three months after giving birth, Sylvia hopped on a plane to compete in All Stars, which she calls “a financial blessing.” She explains further, “It’s hard to say no because what we make on this show really does help. When you have things going on at home, that financial gift is really nice. I should have just let [KellyAnne] say what she needed to say and then just taken accountability for how I reacted, but I didn’t.”
At the end of the episode, Sylvia and KellyAnne were thrown into the arena by Devin Walker and Leroy Garrett, forced to compete against Adam Larson and Steve Meinke in the elimination challenge. “I was so pissed,” Sylvia says. “Devin comes in and talks a big game about how he’s ‘a champ.’ Then he throws in another girl team? What a big move there, big guy. You’re so tough. I was completely shocked. We’re a girl-girl [team], we’re clearly not getting along, we’re not a threat. Why not try and take out a team that is an actual threat?”
Sylvia also reveals who her top picks would be for a future Challenge partner, reminisces about making the final in the Final Reckoning season, and shares how appearing on MTV for over a decade has changed her life.
This week on Reality Derby, we also dive deep into the sixth episode of Deal or No Deal Island (“Power Grab”), the seventh episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race (“Let’s Get Sea Sickening Ball), and interview “Boston” Rob Mariano about The Traitors, and Next Level Chef judges Nyesha Arrington and Richard Blais. Watch this week’s show above, and then join the discussion in our forums.
SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions
Best of GoldDerby
Sign up for Gold Derby's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Solve the daily Crossword
