Big Brotheris a reality competition series that requires houseguests to strategize, form alliances, and sometimes betray others to get further in the game. But one aspect that isn’t necessary, but has occurred time and time again, is meanness.
SomeBig Brothercontestants have been especially mean-spirited towards others, launching unnecessary personal attacks. These aren’t necessarily violent but suggest that perhaps the stress of being in the house has gotten to them. In some cases, however, the comments were completely uncalled-for and left a bad taste in fan’s mouths.
Big Brother
10Jen Johnson
Jen Johnsonhad one of the biggest rivalries ever in the game withDick Donato, who went on to win that season. While he himself was a bully at times, Jen didn’t back down either and did and said mean things, mostly directed at him. The most egregious is when she took his pack of cigarettes and threw them away, angering the man known as Evel Dick.
She later tried to swat one from his hand, which led to her getting burned. She was not only mean but disrespectful to the game when she refused to follow the rules and ate food when she was supposed to be on Slop. This resulted in a penalty vote that ultimately got her evicted.
9Will Kirby
Season 2, 7
Will Kirbywas part of the Chilltown alliance with his best friend in the house,Mike “Boogie” Malin. Together, the pair not only betrayed others, but spent much of their time in the Diary Room poking fun at others and laughing about the way they were manipulating people. Will’s meanest moment was when he delivered a Veto speech where he declared that he hated everyone in the house.
The speech may go down as one of the most iconic ever on the show. His arrogance shined through at that moment. “I can’t find an individual to hate,” he declared, “because I hate you all.” Some other mean moves included tricking others in the house into fasting for 24 hours, manipulating two women into showmances, aword that has become common terminology inBig Brothertoday (and that he is credited with coining), and constantly bullying and insulting Howie.
8Paul Abrahamian
Season 18, 19
The fact thatPaul Abrahamianmade it to the finals twice in a row is a testament to his game. But the fact that both times, they ended up runner-up is also a reflection of how mean they were to others in the house. While juries can sometimes be bitter, more often than not, they reward the best player even if they were blindsided by them. This was not the case for Paul because they rubbed too many people the wrong way and refused to own up to their actions.
They bullied and got into disagreements with numerous people, even getting aggressive at times with others, though never physical. Fans did not like their attitude and how they resorted to insults and bullying instead of focusing on the game. Paul even, at one point, manipulated houseguests to throw a competition in their favor, one ofthe most shocking moves onBig Brother.
7Rachel Reilly
Season 12, 13
Rachel Reillygrated on many contestants with her irritating laugh and her combative attitude. Coining the phrase “floaters, get a life vest” after winning a competition when everyone wanted to vote her out, she often hailed vitriol when she was in a position of power. Most notably was a backyard blow out she had withRagan Foxwhere both parties traded personal insults. She started the fight by taunting Ragan while he was a Have Not and not able to eat anything but Slop. She walked outside with a package of soft, gooey cookies and asked if he wanted any.
He accused her of using “homophobic innuendo” and she continued to insult his fashion sense, the fact that he doesn’t have a boyfriend, and hit below the belt when she asked why his family didn’t want to talk to him. “I can’t wait to watch every episode and see how vile and disgusting you are,” he told her. She seemed to get a kick out of not only instigating things but also hurling personal insults at people.
6Jack Mathews
It’s not often that a player is booed by the audience nor called out by hostJulie Chenwhen they are evicted, but it has happened a few times. One such time was withJack Mathews, who fans became annoyed with due to how mean he was being to others. Most notably, fans didn’t like the way he attackedKemi Fakunle, calling her names like “b****” and “dogs***.” He also made racially charged jokes at the expense of other players, including Asian playerIsabella Wang.
Chen confronted Jack about his remarks once, he looked confused about the cold reception he was getting. He defended himself, saying he meant the comments playfully and didn’t have a personal vendetta against Kemi. In a statement, as perDeadline, Kemi referenced Jack’s “degrading and threatening comments” and called it a “negative display of human character.”
5Angela Murray
The latest entry on the list,Angela Murraycame into the game inthe latest season 26as a sweet, overly excited grandmother who couldn’t believe her dream of appearing on a season had come true. But she quickly fell into a dark hole of paranoia and took her attacks personally. After unnecessarily targetingMatt Hardeman, she began to fixate on him. In a blow-out in the first week of the game, she launched an attack against Matt, believing he was rallying others against her. But instead of focusing on the game, she began to insult his looks. She repeatedly called him “Crazy Eyes” and would imitate his facial expressions. She called out his mother, saying she would be disappointed in her son acting like a brat. This was an unnecessary below-the-belt remark to bring into the game.
Later in the season, despite sticking his neck out for her, Angela turned her back againstTucker Des Lauriers, unable to believe that he had her back, despite his many actions to prove it. While her actions towards Tucker weren’t overtly mean, the hurt and disappointment he clearly felt after learning the truth proved that she was able to do damage to the one person who tried to save her.
4Shannon Dragoo
From way back in the second season, one ofthe best seasons ofBig Brother,Shannon Dragoostill ranks as one of the meanest contestants on the show. She purposely did things to anger people, like putting a bag of potato chips onAutumn Daly’s bed, meant to reference her weight. Her most heinous act was scrubbing a toilet with her biggest rival,Hardy Ames-Hill’s toothbrush, and placing it back in position. It’s likely producers stepped in before he squeezed toothpaste onto the brush and actually used it. Her action was not only mean but totally unhygienic and could have made him ill.
It’s possible that the stress of the game, being away from loved ones, and constantly scheming got the better of Shannon. But she came across as a mean-spirited person who didn’t know when to draw the line and just focus on the game and not personal attacks.
3Dick Donato
Season 8, 13 (Removed From Game For Medical Reasons)
Dick Donato was a polarizing figure, a fan favorite for his no-fear, blunt gameplay on a season with one ofthe most shocking twistsin the America’s Player scenario. But there’s no denying that he bullied, insulted, and intimidated others to get to the finals, which he ended up winning against his estranged daughter,Danielle Donato. His rivalry with Jennifer Johnson was so bitter that it almost got physical. After trying to stop her from swatting away his lit cigarette, it ended up burning her hand. It likely wasn’t intentional, but fans suspect Dick didn’t feel bad about it either. He also intentionally dumped a glass of iced tea on her head.
Given the nickname Evel Dick, he was criticized for making hurtful remarks directed at many others, too. Much of his dialogue had to be censored as he constantly used expletives, made clearer in the live feeds. While Jennifer also makes this list, some defend her, believing that she finally snapped after weeks of him verbally abusing and insulting her. Following her eviction, Jennifer expressed that she believed Dick should have been kicked out for the lit cigarette incident, but thought he was allowed to stay because he was entertaining.
2GinaMarie Zimmerman
On a controversial season that was rife with racially charged insults and fights,GinaMarie Zimmermanwas at the center of much of it. She bullied and insulted others, her words often directed at people of color. She even got in people’s faces, almost engaging in a physical fight withAmanda Zuckermanin one of the tenser moments of the season.
She made several comments that fans felt were racist and insensitive, and that others in the house even called out. This included use of the “N” word and comments that referred to the ethnicities of other players. Her words were so mean and hurtful that even CBS had to release a statement to address the situation. According toThe Hollywood Reporter, GinaMarie’s behavior also led to her getting let go from her job at East Coast USA Pageant.
1Aaryn Gries
Without a doubt, the most despised and deplorable contestant in the show’s history isAaryn Gries, who was mean to her core, at least based on how she presented herself on the show. What’s worse than the things she said is that when she was met with boos and confrontation from Julie upon her eviction, she seemed completely oblivious to the fact that there was anything wrong with the things she said.
Julie even went so far as to read back quotes she said in the house, words that were deemed racist and homophobic. She made racial slurs and derogatory comments, like telling Asian houseguestHelen Kimto “go make rice” and commenting at one point that she looked like a “squinty Asian right now.” She also imitated Asian nail salon workers and referred to gay houseguest Andy Herren, who went on to win the season, as a “queer.” Even whenHoward Overbytried to open Aaryn’s eyes to her hurtful words, telling her that even if they are made in fun, they are hurtful and disrespectful, she shrugged it off. Following outcry from fans who saw these comments on the live feeds, CBS made the decision to air them as part of the broadcast episodes. Not surprisingly, Aaryn was dropped from her talent agency because of her behavior. Dubbed one of the show’s biggest villains, her insults cut far deeper than the show and had real-world implications for the player.
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