Phillip Sheppard

Phillip Sheppard (born March 12, 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 U.S. reality show Survivor. He is the brother of Rochester, New York police chief and mayoral candidate James Sheppard.

Sheppard lives in Santa Monica, California. From 1986 to 1989, Sheppard worked for the Defense Investigative Service.

Sheppard was initially a contestant on Survivor: Redemption Island in 2011. He was a member of the Ometepe Tribe and had a then-record 17 votes cast against him throughout the season. He was unable to pull away with the victory however, receiving only a single vote at the final tribal council He told TV Guide that he played with hope and suspected that he would get the jury vote from almost everybody. Many jurors have admitted in their post-game interviews that they would have likely voted for Phillip to win had he admitted his behavior and actions were all a part of a strategy to get taken to the end by Rob.

Sheppard was also a cast member on Survivor: Caramoan, in 2013. The theme for this season was ten new contestants (labeled "Fans") and ten 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. He was voted out on Day 28, and became the second member of the jury.

Sheppard is the inspiration for, and persona in, the 2013 novel The Specialist: The Costa Rica Job, written in collaboration with his brother, Charles P. Sheppard, Author. The book became available on February 12, 2013, and features a James Bond-like former federal agent working a job in Costa Rica. Phillip Sheppard himself has also written a sci-fi novel, entitled The Legend of Things Past, which became available in 2015.