Big Brother 21 (American season)
Big Brother 21 is the twenty-first season of the American version of the television reality program Big Brother. The season premiered on June 25, 2019 and concluded on September 25, 2019. The 40-episode season was broadcast on CBS in the United States and Global in Canada. The show chronicles a group of contestants, known as HouseGuests, as they compete to be the last competitor remaining to win a grand prize of.
Over the course of the season the HouseGuests participated in a series of competitions to win power and safety to avoid being eliminated, referred to as "evicted". In the finale episode, previous nine evicted HouseGuests, known as the Jury, voted on who they thought should win the game out of the last two HouseGuests remaining. The HouseGuest who received the most votes would be declared the winner. Prior to the [|live finale] a public vote is held to determine who would win the title America's Favorite HouseGuest and a prize of. Jackson Michie was declared the winner of the season in a 6–3 jury vote over Holly Allen while Nicole Anthony won the public vote for America's Favorite HouseGuest.
Despite receiving negative reviews from fans and critics, on September 5, 2019, CBS confirmed that the series was renewed for a twenty-second season.
Format
Big Brother depicts a group of contestants, known as HouseGuests, that live inside a custom-built house outfitted with cameras and microphones recording their every move 24 hours a day. The HouseGuests are sequestered in the Big Brother House with no contact with the outside world. During their stay the HouseGuests share their thoughts on events and other houseguests inside a private room referred to as the Diary Room. Each week, the HouseGuests compete in several competitions in order to win power and safety inside the house. At the start of each week, the HouseGuests compete in the Head of Household competition. The winner of the HoH competition is immune from eviction and will select two HouseGuests to be nominated for eviction. Then six HouseGuests are selected to compete in the Power of Veto competition: the reigning HoH and the nominees are guaranteed to play with the remaining slots being given to other HouseGuests selected by random draw. The winner of the PoV competition wins the right to either revoke the nomination of one of the nominated HouseGuests or leave them as is. If the veto winner uses this power, the HoH must immediately nominate another HouseGuest for eviction. The PoV winner is also immune from being named as the replacement nominee.On eviction night, all HouseGuests must vote to evict one of the nominees. The Head of Household and the nominees are not allowed to vote. This compulsory vote is conducted in the privacy of the Diary Room. In the event of a tie the Head of Household will cast the tie-breaking vote in front of all the HouseGuests in the living room. The nominee with the most votes is evicted from the house. The last nine evicted HouseGuests, referred to as the Jury, are sequestered in a separate house following their eviction and ultimately decide the winner of the season. The Jury are not allowed to watch the show except for competitions and ceremonies that include all of the remaining HouseGuests. They are not shown any Diary Room interviews or any footage that may include strategy or details regarding nominations. The viewing public is able to award an additional prize of to their favorite HouseGuest of the season. All evicted HouseGuests are eligible to win this award except for those who either voluntary leave or forcibly removed for rule-breaking.
HouseGuests
On June 10, 2019, CBS reported that the cast would be revealed on June 17, 2019 on Big Brother live feeds to viewers with a CBS All Access subscription. Former Big Brother HouseGuest Jeff Schroeder returned to host pre-season interviews with the cast after being replaced by Celebrity Big Brother alum Ross Mathews for the previous season.| Name | Age on entry | Occupation | Residence | Day entered | Day exited | Result |
| Jackson Michie | 24 | Server | Los Angeles, California | 1 | 99 | |
| Holly Allen | 31 | Wine safari guide | Los Angeles, California | 1 | 99 | |
| Nicole Anthony | 24 | Preschool aide | Long Island, New York | 1 | 99 | |
| Cliff Hogg III | 54 | Petroleum engineer | Houston, Texas | 1 | 1 | |
| Cliff Hogg III | 54 | Petroleum engineer | Houston, Texas | 1 | 30 | rowspan="2" |
| Cliff Hogg III | 54 | Petroleum engineer | Houston, Texas | 30 | 93 | - |
| Tommy Bracco | 28 | Broadway dancer | Staten Island, New York | 1 | 86 | |
| Christie Murphy | 28 | Boutique owner | Keyport, New Jersey | 1 | 79 | |
| Jessica Milagros | 37 | Plus-size model | Oak Park, Illinois | 1 | 1 | |
| Jessica Milagros | 37 | Plus-size model | Oak Park, Illinois | 1 | 79 | |
| Nick Maccarone | 27 | Therapist | Sewell, New Jersey | 1 | 72 | |
| Analyse Talavera | 22 | College soccer star | Simi Valley, California | 1 | 65 | |
| Kathryn Dunn | 29 | Digital marketing executive | Dallas, Texas | 1 | 58 | |
| Jack Matthews | 28 | Fitness trainer | Tampa, Florida | 1 | 51 | |
| Samuel "Sam" Smith | 31 | Truck driver | Mountain Top, Pennsylvania | 1 | 44 | |
| Isabella "Bella" Wang | 22 | Public health analyst | Los Angeles, California | 1 | 37 | |
| Kemi Fakunle | 25 | Marketing strategist | Brooklyn, New York | 1 | 1 | |
| Kemi Fakunle | 25 | Marketing strategist | Brooklyn, New York | 1 | 23 | |
| Ovi Kabir | 22 | College student | Knoxville, Tennessee | 1 | 15 | |
| David Alexander | 29 | Photographer | Atlanta, Georgia | 1 | 1 |
Future appearances
Jessica Milagros appeared on The Bold and the Beautiful on October 23, 2019.Episodes
Production
Development
CBS announced that Big Brother had been renewed for a twenty-first season on May 15, 2019. CBS later announced on May 20, 2019 that the twenty-first season was set to premiere on June 25, 2019. Unnamed insiders close to the production of the show previously cast doubt if Julie Chen Moonves would return to host following sexual misconduct allegations against her husband, former CBS CEO Les Moonves. Chen Moonves, however, returned for the second season of Celebrity Big Brother and it was later announced that she would return as host of the main series as well. Casting for the season was open until April 5, 2019. Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan returned as executive producers for the series which is produced by Fly on the Wall Entertainment, in association with Endemol Shine North America. The season featured an initial timeslot change from previous seasons; new episodes aired on a Sunday/Tuesday/Wednesday schedule through the first six episodes before returning to a traditional Sunday/Wednesday/Thursday schedule as in previous seasons. The 24/7 internet live feeds also returned with a CBS All Access subscription following the two-night season premiere on June 26. returned on Pop for its fourteenth season overall and fifth season on Pop following the two-night premiere on June 26 or June 27, depending on viewers local time zones. Off the Block with Ross and Marissa did not return for a second season as an aftershow interviewing HouseGuests after their eviction. Replacing Off the Block, Big Brother host Chen-Moonves hosted extended interviews with the evicted HouseGuests from outside the house.Casting
Kassting, Inc. returned to provide casting services for a twentieth consecutive season since Big Brother 2, with Robyn Kass serving as the casting director.Filming
As with previous seasons, the program is filmed at CBS Studios, soundstage 18 in Studio City, California in a custom-built two-story house. The House is equipped with 94 high-definition cameras and over 113 microphones to monitor and record the HouseGuests. The living room, three bedrooms, kitchen, dining room, bathroom and lounge room are located on the first floor. The Head of Household bedroom and bathroom and an additional lounge area known as the "Sky Bridge" are located on the second floor. The second floor is accessible by a ladder located in the entry way or a spiral staircase located in the kitchen next to the sliding glass doors that lead to the backyard. The backyard area features outdoor amenities for the HouseGuests. The house also features two diary rooms where the HouseGuests can privately share thoughts or send requests to producers of the series.Production design
The theme for this season is a summer camp called "Camp B.B." The house, competitions and twists were designed around the camp theme. Entertainment Tonight showed the first look at the house with Kevin Frazier during their episode on the night of June 20, 2019. Entertainment Tonight then released a sneak peek of the house through a brief tour on their website on June 21. Meanwhile, a full house tour with Chen Moonves and other photos were released through Big Brothers and CBS' social media outlets including Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Big Brother 21 house theme matched the season's overall theme and received a camp theme; Production Designer Scott Storey designed the house's features. The living room features a birch-wood coffee table and a large and a 23-foot triangular window illuminated by LED lights. The first bedroom features a "sleeping under the stars" theme and includes two double-beds and the exterior of a camper. The camper, is only a facade into the second bedroom which features three double-beds and is assumed to be that of a camp counselors bedroom. The third and final downstairs bedroom is a sports-themed bedroom primarily based on archery. In the kitchen, many of the appliances have been redone in an attempt to blend them in with the rest of the theme, with an electronic campfire added to the center of the formal dining table. The downstairs lounge area received a boat theme, while the bathroom received a boat house-like theme. The upstairs lounge area, for the first time in the series history, is also accessible by a ladder from the entryway and has been updated to resemble a tree house; the Head of Household bedroom and bathroom have been changed to resemble a Moroccan-style bedroom and is expected to resemble glamping. The backyard features a pool with kayaks and an attached hot tub, lawn chairs surround the backyard which also features a pool table and a washer and dryer, workout equipment, outdoor lounge areas, a hammock and a mini-fridge.Prizes
The last remaining HouseGuest, Jackson Michie, received. The runner-up of the season, Holly Allen, received while the HouseGuest deemed America's Favorite Player, Nicole Anthony, received. As part of a promotion for new CBS series Love Island, Sam Smith won a trip to Fiji in a [|Power of Veto competition]. During another Power of Veto competition, Kathryn Dunn received a trip to Hawaii and Nick Maccarone was awarded. During a surprise luxury competition in Week 12, Michie won.Voting history
Reception
Big Brother 21 was criticized negatively by critics and fans due to the HouseGuests' discriminatory tendencies. Professor of African American studies and the UCLA Dean of Social Sciences, Darnell Hunt, stated, "Race is the central axis of social relationships. Even when, in public, we try to deny its significance, it creeps through in unexpected ways. When people are in a house like that 24 hours a day under those conditions, it's difficult to hide an inconvenient truth about American culture and society. The camera is the great equalizer." However, the way CBS handled the situations was somewhat praised by viewers as they dedicated a time during the live finale to address them and let the HouseGuests explain themselves. Justin Carriero of The Young Folks wrote, "These HouseGuests got away with a lot and they avoided the blowback by being in jury, so they had no idea what storm was heading their way. They needed to know what they did and how the public viewed them." He ended up rating the finale an eight on a scale from one to ten. Overall, the season was criticized for its non-diverse casting, leniency with specific rules like Have-Not rules, and deceptive editing of the episodes compared to the events shown on the 24/7 Live Feeds.This season was the least-watched and lowest-rated season of the series with about a 20% decrease in viewers and 25% decrease in demographics from the previous season. The season ended with an average viewership per episode of 4.38 million, over one million fewer than the previous lowest. Despite the drastic decrease in ratings, CBS announced on September 5, 2019 that Big Brother was renewed for its twenty-second and will premiere in the summer of 2020.
Racial optics
Following the two-night season premiere, HouseGuest Jackson Michie received the "Camp Director" power and was required to choose four HouseGuests to banish. Michie chose David Alexander and Kemi Fakunle, the season's only two black HouseGuests, Jessica Milagros, a Latina plus-size model, and Cliff Hogg, the oldest person in the house. But, other viewers suggested that Michie only picked Fakunle due to lack of communication and that Alexander, Milagros, and Hogg were only picked because they competed against him for the position of Camp Director.Once the Live Feeds began, Jack Matthews started making vicious and violent remarks about fellow HouseGuests Kemi Fakunle, Ovi Kabir, and Jessica Milagros, behind their backs. Matthews was warned by production about comments made and to prevent further such comments. Many of his comments were addressed in [|episode 20] during his post-eviction interview with Julie Chen Moonves where he denied racism being behind any of the comments, though he did apologize for his actions that were deemed offensive.