Lorenzo Nobilio entered Squid Game: The Challenge as a self-described “master manipulator,” who only looked out for himself. 

You’d think that unapologetic cutthroat nature would serve him well in Battle Camp, the series pitting Netflix Reality Universe stars against each other for the title of the ultimate reality competitor. But thanks in large part to his polarizing debut, which Nobilio now characterizes as “naive,” he made sure his return to our screens — and a second chance at reality TV glory — would be different. And he was highly rewarded for it, walking away with not only genuine friendships with other players, but also $250,000 and the title of Battle Camp champ.

In Battle Camp, everything can change on a dime — from surviving a popularity vote to the spin of a wheel that decides who goes home. Yet all along, Nobilio says, he just had a feeling that winning was his destiny. “I really believe in energies, so I was trying to channel them for the wheel to land on my name. I still to this day cannot believe it did. I manifested, and believed I was going to win, and it paid off, didn’t it?” he tells Tudum. “Maybe I was delusional. I don’t even care… As Justin Bieber once said, ‘Believe.’ ”

To arrive at the final elimination ceremony, Nobilio put himself through challenges and punishments that tested his physical strength and mental agility while roughing it in a setting that fell way outside his comfort zone. “I think that place is murderous — the altitude, the heat, the super cold, the wind, the dust. It was just not very nice,” he says. “I prefer, like, Miami Beach, Four Seasons. That’s my vibe.” But what he struggled against the most was his own tendency to run his mouth. “I did work on myself to be less confrontational,” Nobilio says. “I always have a comeback or something to say to someone if they’re not acting correctly — not that I’m anyone to judge, but I am at the same time. So I felt like I had to hold that back. I bit my tongue a million times.”

Entering Battle Camp, Nobilo’s No. 1 goal was to avoid getting on the other campers’ nerves. According to the other players, he was successful. “The perfect person won,” fellow player Polly Brindle shares, adding that Nobilio was one of her favorite people at camp. Competitor Gio Helou describes him as the “comedic relief” of the season, with host Taylor Lewan adding, “I always loved Lorenzo. He’s very funny, he’s very witty, — obviously, he’s from Italy — he’s very Italian,” he says. 

Instead of saying every little snarky comment that popped into his head, Nobilio found more endearing ways to express himself. Even with the temperature on location in Mexico dropping 20 degrees at night, he made sure to serve looks at all the elimination ceremonies — think crocheted headpieces with coordinating crop tops. “We do not wear the same outfits,” says Lewan. “But I loved and appreciated it every single time.” 

One of the highlights of Battle Camp is the bond that forms between Nobilio and his closest camp confidant, Georgia Hassarati, who says she knew the two were destined to be “best friends forever” from the start. “We just got along from the moment we met and were inseparable,” Hassarati says, adding that they became each other’s support systems. “Honestly, I would’ve left camp if it wasn’t for Lorenzo. I was crying, having multiple little breakdowns, and he was getting me to stay. And then the same happened for him.” When asked if the two are still in touch, Nobilio responds with characteristic cheek. “In touch?! I talk to Georgia every day,” he says. “I feel like she’s part of my family … I don't think I've ever had so much fun with someone.”

Of course, in a game as ruthless as Battle Camp, it’s natural to also make enemies. And who better than Nobilio’s former rival, Trey Plutnicki, who also appeared in Squid Game: The Challenge?

Plutnicki says his strategy in Battle Camp was to build connections with anyone he’d previously competed against, but given his rocky history with Nobilio, that was easier said than done. “With Lorenzo, I felt like I owed something to him. My mom is the reason he got eliminated [from Squid Game: The Challenge], so he had every right to feel a certain way towards me and want me to be eliminated,” says Plutnicki. But Nobilio was eager to let go of their petty past, especially if it meant getting a target off his back at Battle Camp. “The last person I wanted to see was Trey, because I thought he would have an agenda against me, and that made me realize I needed strong social connections,” Nobilio says. As the game progressed, he also realized that being friendly with Plutnicki himself could shield him. 

After Nobilio’s victory, the two not only agree that they’re now “even,” but they’ve also become friends. “I play chess with him from time to time,” Plutnicki says. 

Alejandro López Pineda/Netflix

Nobilio capped off his congenial journey in the game with one last noble act. In the final Drop challenge, he puts his own chances of winning at risk to help a very scared Brindle avoid falling 30 feet. The selflessness cost Nobilio an additional spot on the game-deciding wheel, but it turned out not to matter. Or, perhaps, if you believe in the power of positivity like he does, it led to a karmic payout in the form of $250,000. “For him to do that, knowing that he was going to have one less name on the wheel, says a lot about his character,” Lewan says. “It was the perfect ending to Battle Camp,” Brindle agrees.

Nobilio knows he’s come a long way since refusing those apples in Squid Game: The Challenge. And evolving his gameplay strategy from selfish to selfless clearly worked. Having successfully showcased his charms and honed his ability to adapt to all sorts of different scenarios in Battle Camp, the former asset manager turned fashion designer is now planning to pursue acting. Of course, it’s hard to “make it” in that particular career field, but as Nobilio learned in this competition, “Sometimes it’s more about how much you believe in something rather than what your chances are.”