Big Brother has been no stranger to controversy throughtout its 27 seasons, and it’s inevitable that even the most beloved seasons may have some hiccups along the way. Fortunately, this latest season didn’t feature anything that warranted the expulsion of a Houseguest. However, it’s fair to say it made some people mad. Some felt Rachel Reilly was robbed of the prize money, thanks to the hamster wheel, which led to the producers receiving death threats. On that note, will the wheel return?
For those who weren’t watching this season on CBS or streaming Big Brother online with a Paramount+ subscription, Season 13 winner Rachel Reilly returned to play and was shockingly eliminated without a proper eviction after failing the surprise “Hamster Wheel” challenge. There was quite a public outcry from fans over the incident, but it would seem it was more extreme for the producers.
Big Brother’s Allison Grodner Received Death Threats After The Hamster Wheel
During an interview with EW, Big Brother producers Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan confirmed they were aware of the fan response to the Hamster Wheel twist being brought from Reindeer Games to the franchise’s flagship show. Grodner even mentioned she’d received death threats from fans upset about Rachel’s eviction.
She didn’t get specific about the threats, but both producers later noted that fans having such a reaction 27 seasons in bodes well for the show’s longevity. Still, it’s not cool to hear Big Brother fans are resorting to these types of threats as, after all, it is just a game at the end of the day. The stakes are even lower for those watching at home when there’s no prize money to win, and the consequences for such threats can be quite severe.
Will The Hamster Wheel Return In Future Big Brother Seasons?
Given the shocking reactions to the Hamster Wheel’s debut in Season 27 of Big Brother, I would’ve assumed the answer to whether we’ll ever see it again was obvious. Fortunately, the interviewer didn’t feel the same way, and after, asking, they received the following response from Rich Meehan:
It’s definitely something we’ll look at. Is it something that could come back? It probably could come back. Will it definitely come back every season? I don’t know about that.
It’s bad news for BB fans who disliked someone being evicted via random elimination over two months into the game, though it’s also possible that Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan are just being intentionally vague. After all, they didn’t fully confirm the BB Blockbuster would become a permanent fixture until the season started, despite the rave reviews it received when it was the AI Arena in Season 26.
As a Big Brother fan, I think that even if it wasn’t Rachel Reilly who was eliminated in the Hamster Wheel challenge, it still was a poorly thought-out twist for Season 27. I don’t mind an elimination challenge that comes without a single vote, but I certainly don’t want to see it happen two months into the game. I would’ve much preferred the Hamster Wheel to occur before the jury phase, if it absolutely had to happen, though I’d also be just as okay with never seeing it again.
Big Brother is done for the season, but there are rumors that a winter season is on the way. I’d be thrilled if that is the case, and I’m hoping we’ll get an announcement about that in the coming weeks.