When Pia Miranda controversially voted fan favourite Luke Toki out on Australian Survivor, she opened herself up to a wave of criticism.
Since then, the actress – who won Australia’s heart almost twenty years ago as Josie in Looking For Alibrandi – has become the target of relentless trolls on social media, with one viewer branding her ‘the most hated woman in Australia.’
However, coming out of the wilderness, it appears that Pia is handling the hate well, telling the Herald Sun that at the end of the day ‘played hard and played proud.’
WATCH: Survivor’s Luke Toki defends Pia Miranda after she voted him off
“I’ve done a couple of podcasts where I’ve talked about what it means to be a woman playing really hard on Survivor and how sometimes that can end with repercussions,” Pia told the publication.
“But at the end of the day I played hard and played proudly and I can make my kids proud.”
The 46-year-old couldn’t deny, however, that the negative comments from viewers was a ‘real eye opener.’
Since the elimination of 33-year-old Luke earlier this month, Pia has been met with a vicious onslaught of comments on her Instagram page.
One viewer dubbed her ‘the most hated woman in Australia,’ while another wrote, ‘You’ll live with this decision forever,’ and ‘Worst TV moment ever.’
Another viewer left a comment saying ‘He saved you, then you spat in his face… hope you sleep at night.’
Luke himself has urged fans of the show to ease off, taking to Instagram to share a video defending Pia.
“It’s just a game,” the father-of-three said in a video.
“Pia’s probably copping a lot of flack online, and just remember that she made that move for herself and her goals.”
He continued: “That’s exactly what I would’ve done… Just be a little nicer to her and remember that all those other guys have played this game just as hard as I have.”
WATCH: Pia Miranda wins Survivor challenge using two hands to hold on
In the tense semi-final of Australian Survivor, Pia broke down as she was torn between voting out Baden Gilbert or ally Luke.
After debating the decision, she tearfully wrote Luke’s name on a piece of paper as a strategic move to eliminate the bigger threat.
“I didn’t think writing down a name would be so hard,” she said at the time.
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