It’s summer, which can mean only one thing: Big Brother is back! The annual CBS reality competition returns with a two-night premiere Wednesday, June 24 and Thursday, June 25 at 8pm, and now we know who the new houseguests will be.
CBS gave a sneak peek at the new Big Brother 17 HGs to live feed subscribers via the new All Access platform. Jeff Schroeder interviewed all of them in the feeds to introduce them. The live feeds are different this season, and while they are no longer available for people outside the U.S., those in America get a much better deal. For only $5.99 a month, fans can watch the 24/7 live feeds once they begin (after Thursday’s episode) as well as catch up on every episode from the show’s first 16 seasons.
First Look Inside the New House>>
But for now, it’s all about the new crop of contestants who will try to spend nearly 100 days locked inside the house, battling it out for a chance to be the winner. After watching the sneak preview, here are some first impressions on the new Big Brother 17 HGs.
Here’s a list of the 14 new HGs with my first impressions based on the sneak peek..Fans should be very suspicious that there are only 14, suggesting that there will probably be two more, possibly returning players.
Jason Roy: A 25-year-old supermarket cashier from Massachusetts..He’s a superfan who watches the live feeds with a strong accent and a vivacious personality. He’s gay and hopes to be the “gay glue” with the girls and then let them turn on each other. He has no problem cutting anyone and has no loyalty. I really like him, especially since he’s watched every English-speaking version of Big Brother and has no respect for recruits. He’s a legit fan who knows the game.
Meg Maley: A 25-year-old server. She has a bubbly personality and says she’s a fan who has studied up. She’s a little goofy, but really wants to play the game and win. She says she’s willing to backstab, but also wants to play a loyal game. She straddles the line between fun and annoying. She loves twists where the fans are involved, which makes me hate her. Real fans don’t like that Team America crap.
Becky Burgess: A 26-year-old Colorado retail manager. She comes across as a bit of a bland, generic pretty girl. She says she’s well-rounded, smart and athletic, but doesn’t make much of an interesting impression. She’s like season 16’s Amber or season 14’s Kara.
Audrey Middleton: A 25-year-old Georgia digital media consultant. She’s a superfan who has seen every episode. Her interview with Jeff Schroeder is very guarded with low energy. She seems like a bit of a bitch and wants to play like Dexter Morgan, the serial killer played by Michael C. Hall on Showtime.
Austin Matelson: A 30-year-old professional wrestler. He’s a big, scary, tattooed guy who actually seems sweet and gentle. He’s watched since season 1 and disses Jessie Godderz as a faux wrestler. He’s a nice, well-spoken guy whose biggest obstacle will be overcoming the fact that everyone will see him as a massive threat. He’s really into fitness and gymnastics, doing flips. He has a small top hat he wears as his wrestling alter ego, Judas, who will betray and lie. He’s an odd, hard-to-figure-out kind of guy. He likes helping people, as a rehab specialist and anti-bullying crusader.
Shelli Poole: A 33-year-old interior designer from Atlanta. She’s an extremely upbeat attractive older lady (well, older on this show). She seems totally clueless about the game and is just a typical attractive woman who likes shopping and chocolate and being nice and loved.
James Huling: A 31-year-old retail associate. He’s Asian and a southern boy with a thick Texas drawl. He hunts, wears camo because he was in the military and he has a daughter and an adopted son. He comes across as a nice, chill guy, but he doesn’t seem to know much about the game. His interview is extremely awkward and he seems to misuse words a lot.
Clay Honeycutt: A 23-year-old Texas grad student. He’s the token hottie, an incredibly attractive, soft-spoken Texas mama’s boy and football player. He claims to be a “superfan,” but he had never heard about the show before this year and just binge-watched the last eight seasons over the past four months. He’s nothing but eye candy. The women will be fighting to the death to cuddle with him.
Steve Moses: A 22-year-old Ian Terry-looking college student. Like Jason, he’s a true superfan, watching every season, the feeds and visiting blogs. He’s totally Ian Terry 2.0, hoping to come across as a cute, innocent little kid who will get brought into an alliance and then betray them (like how Ian got into the Quack Pack by getting the “dress like a dog” punishment). He thinks he’s different from Ian because Ian tried to act like an adult by smoking and drinking, but he won’t. But really, he’s exactly like Ian and that could hurt him since people have already seen Ian win.
Liz Nolan: A 23-year-old Miami marketing coordinator. She’s breast-tacular, showing a ton of side boob in her interview. She plans to use her looks to go far by flirting with the guys. She mentions being from Miami about a dozen times and seems very desperate to be famous.
Da’Vonne Rogers: A 26-year-old African-American poker dealer. She says she’s going to lie about her job, which is a red flag. She thinks people would be intimidated that she knows about poker, which is hilarious since the cast includes an ACTUAL poker pro. She claims to be a superfan from season 1. She’s very loud and outspoken, which she thinks is her greatest weakness. And she has a 7-month-old daughter.
Jace Agolli: A 23-year-old long-haired personal trainer. He’s a typical surfer/skater dude with a positive attitude. He seems like a slightly more serious Hayden Voss from last year. He’s an adrenaline junkie.
Vanessa Rousso: A 32-year-old pro poker player who has been a spokesperson for GoDaddy and appeared in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue..She’s hoping to use her poker strategies to play the game. She’s also a DJ and will be focusing on that, trying to hide the fact that she’s also a poker player. But she has a back-up plan if she’s outed. She’s disappointed she’s missing the World Series of Poker this summer. She also has a girlfriend.
John McGuire: A 27-year-old dentist. He’s a “rock star dentist” who calls himself “Johnny Mac.” Sweet Jesus, he is loud, annoying and crazy. He’s a superfan who doesn’t plan on bragging about being a fan. Holy crap, this dude is going to be very, very obnoxious. He’s relying on the fact that people will think he’s weak and stupid. Warning: He’s going to be shouting in every single one of his diary room sessions. He giggles a lot, like he just took a few hits of laughing gas before the interview.
Overall First Impressions: John is extremely annoying. Liz isn’t much better. Becky, Shelli, Clay and James seem completely clueless. Jason and Steve are legit, feed-watching superfans. Vanessa and Da’Vonne are awesome. Jace is forgettable and Austin is a surprisingly sweet guy. Meg will either be one of the first to get eliminated or go far. Audrey could be the queen bitch of the summer. I’m most excited to watch Jason, Audrey, Vanessa and Da’Vonne.
As you may have noticed, we don’t even get one token “old” person this season as 33-year-old Shelli is the oldest HG.
Big Brother 17 begins Wednesday, June 24 at 8pm with additional episodes Thursdays and Sundays at 8pm (though Thursday’s eviction episodes move to 9pm starting July 2). The live feeds will start Thursday, June 25 at 9pm PT / midnight ET.
(Image courtesy of CBS)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
