Schlager, scandals, cosmetic surgeries: that's what the former kings of the jungle do today
Created: 07/01/2023 18:39
By: Stella Rüggeberg
Since 2004, celebrities have been struggling through disgusting jungle tests on "I'm a Celebrity – Get Me Out of Here".
Whoever wins will be crowned as the jungle king or queen and can look forward to a prize of 100,000 euros.
But how are the previous jungle camp winners doing today?
1 / 15Costa Cordalis won the first season of "I'm a Celebrity - Get Me Out of Here!", becoming the first-ever Jungle King.
In 2004 he grabbed the crown.
The Greek-German pop singer died in 2019. Now his son Lucas Cordalis wants to follow in his footsteps.
From January 13, he hopes for the crown and wants to honor his deceased father.
© IMAGO / Müller-Stauffenberg
2 / 15Désirée Nick is the very first jungle queen that RTL was allowed to crown.
After her participation, her career really took off.
She launched three bestsellers and took part in many reality TV formats.
Today she is known as the "pointiest tongue in Germany" and in her podcast "Lose Luder" she always adds her two cents to any scandals in the German TV scene.
© RTL
3 / 15Ross Antony won the 2008 jungle camp.
After having had several successes with his band Bro'Sis, he tried his hand at folk music for years and recorded numerous hits.
To this day, he is an indispensable part of the hit shows with Florian Silbereisen, Helene Fischer and Co.
© RTL
4 / 15Ingrid van Bergen won the crown the following year.
After that she was seen in other TV formats.
She took part in "Celebrity Shopping Queen", acted in "Tatort" and was able to shine in numerous guest roles.
Ingrid has now retired and is only rarely seen on TV.
© RTL
5 / 15Peer Kusmagk also took part in various TV formats after his jungle crowning.
Among other things, he stripped in "Adam sucht Eva" and met his current wife Janni Hönscheid there.
The couple married in 2017 and now have three children together.
© RTL
6 / 15Brigitte Nielsen secured the jungle crown in 2012 and her sayings like "What's going on in there?" are still remembered today.
The Hollywood actress has hardly changed thanks to several interventions by the beauty doc.
Her surgical marathon was even accompanied by a production team.
In the jungle show "I'm a star - let me back in" she won another participation in the jungle camp in 2016, in which Menderes Bağcı won.
In 2022, Brigitte Nielsen was a star guest on the famous ProSieben show "Germany's Next Top Model".
© RTL
7 / 15Joey Heindle wasn't able to shine in "Deutschland sucht den Superstar", but he did a great job in "I'm a star - get me out of here".
After his victory he got his own column at "Point 12".
Vocally, Joey Heindle is still on the ball today and released two singles in 2021.
As of 2019, Joey is also married and even joined the volunteer fire department.
© RTL
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8 / 15Melanie Müller landed on many other TV shows after her jungle camp victory.
In 2021 she emerged as the winner of the Sat.1 show "Promi Big Brother".
But regardless of TV formats, Melanie Müller has repeatedly made headlines, whether because of her failed marriage to Mike Blümer or alleged relationships with right-wing extremist groups.
© RTL/Stefan Gregorowius
9 / 15Maren Gilzer really wanted to take off after her jungle camp victory on YouTube.
But she stopped her channel "Maren Gilzer TV" just a year later.
In 2022 she was up for election as mayor of the FDP in Oberkrämer in Brandenburg, but received only six percent of the vote.
© RTL
10 / 15Menderes Bağcı was a cult candidate in "Deutschland sucht den Superstar".
In 2002, Menderes attended the casting of the first DSDS season and has been an integral part of the RTL show ever since.
With 15 attempts, he is considered the most persistent candidate.
Of course, the jungle camp is the next step.
Today, Menderes remains musically active and in 2021 he delighted audiences with his hit "Nano" on the ZDF television garden.
In 2022, Menderes appeared on Celebrity Big Brother.
© RTL
11 / 15Marc Terenzi took his place on the jungle throne the next year.
Shortly thereafter, his single "Don't Recognize You" was released and guest appearances on "Berlin Tag und Nacht" followed.
Today he is not only the new man at Verena Kerth's side, but also a much sought-after expert when it comes to shows like "Celebrity Big Brother" or "I'm a Star – Get Me Out of Here".
© RTL
12 / 15Jenny Frankhauser moved to the jungle in 2018 and secured the throne.
After her win, she was finally able to step out of the shadow of her sister, Daniela Katzenberger, and make a name for herself in show business.
In the same year, Jenny was also seen on "The Perfect Celebrity Dinner" and took 17th place on "Celebrity Big Brother" in 2020.
Today she focuses on her Instagram account and is a successful influencer there.
In 2022, Jenny Frankhauser became the mother of a little son and has been in the happiness of a mother ever since.
© RTL
13/152019 Evelyn Burdecki won the 13th season "I'm a star – get me out of here!".
The pretty blonde has become an integral part of the TV program.
Her appearance on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" probably goes down in history because of her funny sayings.
Evelyn also made herself comfortable next to Thomas Gottschalk and Günther Jauch.
She stood in for Barbara Schöneberger on "Because they don't know what's going to happen".
She is also very successful as an influencer.
Her Instagram account boasts an impressive 737,000 followers.
© RTL/Stefan Gregorowius
14 / 15Prince Damien crept into the hearts of the audience with his upbeat and honest manner and won the jungle camp victory.
His singing career really took off after that.
Today he can be seen in shows like the “ZDF-Fernsehgarten”.
Since 2019 he has also been part of the ensemble of the musical "The Band".
At DSDS he was able to help other candidates as a vocal coach.
© RTL
15 / 15Now the task is to unseat Filip Pavlović.
In 2021 he took part in the replacement show "I'm a Star - The Big Jungle Show" in Cologne and was able to secure a ticket to the real jungle camp in 2022, where he was chosen as the winner.
A large part of his prize money went to his parents.
He also bought his sister a new car.
Filip himself still takes part in numerous TV formats.
You will definitely see a lot more from him.
© RTL / Stefan Menne
Australia – Eight jungle kings and seven jungle queens have already produced the popular RTL format “I'm a star – get me out of here”.
The lucky winners include Costa Cordalis, Désirée Nick, Ross Antony, Ingrid van Bergen, Peer Kusmagk, Brigitte Nielsen, Joey Heindle, Melanie Müller, Maren Gilzer, Menderes Bağcı, Marc Terenzi, Jenny Frankhauser, Evelyn Burdecki, Prince Damien and Filip Pavlovic .
Anyone who fishes for the coveted crown in 2023 can watch viewers daily from January 13th.
