10 Of The Best Big Brother Players
Big Brother is a CBS reality show that follows a group of houseguests with the same goal in mind, to be the last one standing. These houseguests are completely isolated from the outside world to compete for the grand prize, while around 100 cameras, and 200 microphones capture their every move.
Big Brother first premiered in 2000 and is still running today. Over 400 people have competed, but there can only be one winner each season. Here are 10 of the best players to ever play Big Brother, in no specific order.
1. Dr. Will Kirby
Dr. Will is one of the most memorable houseguests from Big Brother. He competed on season two of the show, and is known for his villainous personality, clever strategies, and Chilltown alliance. He was nominated for eviction four times, but still made it to the finals, where he ended up winning the grand prize.
Dr. Will came back years later to compete on Big Brother 7 All Stars. He was the only winner to return, so he had a target on his back. However, Will’s great strategies and manipulation allowed for him to remain in the house, and get other threats evicted. Will made it to the final 4, but lost the veto competition to Janelle Pierzina, who ended up evicting him.
2. Dan Gheesling
Many people argue that Dan Gheesling deserves the title of the best Big Brother player of all time. He began on season 10, where he immediately was on the outs due to his close ally being evicted the first week. However, he managed to turn this around by throwing competitions and giving off the perception that he was a weak player. His strategic game play allowed him to win the season by a unanimous vote, 7-0.
Dan returned for Big Brother 14 to play as a coach, and after a few weeks passed, the game changed and Dan was in as a regular houseguest. Dan was in the dominant alliance called the Quack Pack that was seemingly controlling the house. When Frank, a houseguest not in the alliance, won HOH, Dan was placed on the block on day 49. He was set to go home when he lost the veto and was placed in solitary confinement as a punishment. However, he constructed a master plan to save himself, and put together his own funeral. Dan stayed in the house, where he eventually made it to the final two, but lost the jury vote.
3. Derrick Levasseur
Derrick Levasseur played a masterful game during Big Brother 16 where he ran the house week after week. Derrick entered the Big Brother house hiding his true identity as an undercover detective. He used the skills he learned from his career to further himself in the game, and he made it throughout the duration of the season without ever touching the block. This statistic is quite impressive when you take into consideration that this season had four nominees each week, instead of the regular two. Not only was he never put on the block, but he was never even considered as a potential target, and this is due to the reason that he had formed strong friendships with every houseguest.
Derrick had a final two alliance with houseguest Cody Calafiore, and although Derrick lost the final HOH to Cody, his loyal teammate still decided to take him to the final two.
4. Vanessa Rousso
Vanessa was a houseguest on season 17 of Big Brother, and she was controlling the house for the majority of the game. She found herself in a few of the dominant alliances; the Sixth Sense and Scamper Squad. Vanessa’s strategic game play and manipulation of other houseguests allowed her to control many of the evictions in the house. She won competitions when she needed, and made deals with houseguests in order to further her game. Vanessa made it to finale night, but lost the final HOH competition to Steve, thus came in third place.
5. Janelle Pierzina
Janelle is often noted as the queen of Big Brother. She has competed on the show more than any other houseguest, competing 4 different times. Across her four seasons, Janelle has won HOH 6 times, and the veto 7 times.
Janelle came in third place on both Big Brother 6 and 7 (so close to winning!), but her great game play and popularity among fans allowed her to come back for Big Brother 14, this time as a coach, and then later as a player. She was evicted early into the season, because of her reputation.
Later, she came back for Big Brother 22 – Allstars, which was her second all-star season, but again, was evicted early due to her notable reputation.
6. Tyler Crispen
Tyler Crispen was the mastermind behind his season, and although he ended up coming in second place, many regard him as the true winner. During Tyler’s first season, season 20, he partnered up with 5 other houseguests, forming the dominant alliance, Level 6. Even though Tyler was in this alliance, he had great relationships with almost every other person in the house. He controlled every eviction, and his several final two deals with other houseguests allowed him to get to the final two easily. Tyler lost 5-4, because of a bitter jury.
Tyler returned for Big Brother Allstars and again, joined the dominant house alliance, called The Committee. The Committee won almost every competition during the season, and that helped secure Tyler’s spot as 6th place.
7. Danielle Reyes
Danielle Reyes competed on season 3 of the show, and later returned for Big Brother 7, All Stars. She is noted as being one of the greatest players to never win, because of her strong social game and strategic abilities.
The format of the show changed after Big Brother 3. For those first few seasons, when houseguests were evicted they got to go home and watch the season. Danielle made it to the final two of her first season, but lost because the evicted houseguests were offended by her diary room sessions. After this, Big Brother changed the rules of the game, and evicted houseguests now enter the jury, where they continue to be cut off from the outside world.
If Big Brother had implemented this rule one season earlier, Danielle most likely would have won her first season!
8. Andy Herren
Andy is one winner of Big Brother that I feel does not get the recognition he deserves. In the game of Big Brother, houseguests are expected to lie, backstab, and manipulate. This is exactly what Andy Herren did.
Andy laid low for the first half of his game, closely aligning himself with bigger targets so he would always be shielded. He later flipped on this alliance, and went over to the other side of the house where the power was. Andy masterminded the eviction of houseguest Elissa, who was a contender to win. Andy won his way through the final competitions, securing himself a spot in the final two, where he won on a 7-2 vote.
9. Cody Calafiore
It can be argued that Cody Calafiore played the most dominant game in Big Brother history. He began on season 16, where he partnered up with Derrick Levassaur to form the Hitmen alliance. Their alliance made it to the final two, with Derrick taking home the win and Cody getting second place.
Cody then returned to Big Brother six years later for season 22, the all-star season. Cody started off the summer with a bang, winning the first HOH competition. From that point, he controlled almost every eviction, had alliances with the majority of the house, and won several competitions. Cody made it to the end of the season without ever being nominated, and won the season by a unanimous vote.
10. Paul Abrahamian
Paul is another player who played a very dominant game. We first saw Paul on season 18 of the show, where they quickly formed strong relationships with many of the other houseguests. Paul’s great social game took them to the final two of season 18, but they lost the final vote to Nicole Franzel.
Paul returned the next summer to compete on Big Brother 19. As the only returning veteran houseguest, it could be assumed that they would have been an immediate target. Paul was granted safety for the first few weeks of the summer, and this time allowed for them to form solid relationships. Paul was aligned closely with almost every houseguest, and manipulated and backstabbed them to reach the final two. The jury was bitter against Paul for this, which caused them to get second place again.
