New episodes of Big Brother are still over a month away and, while we know some details about Season 25, fans remain eager for more new information about the CBS reality series. Unfortunately, we don't have any news on a potential spinoff that could hit our screen later this year. However, an offshoot could come to fruition at some point, if some executives catch wind of the latest pitch for one from winners, Derrick Levasseur and Cody Calafiore. "The Hitmen" talked about their idea for an "all winners," and I'm on board for it!
During the latest episode of their podcast, The Winner's Circle, Season 22 winner Cody Calafiore and Season 16 champion Derrick Levasseur discussed the notion. They specifically mentioned their conversations with an unnamed third person about making the returnee-based season happen. Calafiore is really excited about the prospect and provided his reasoning as to why the dynamics of such a competition would be so intriguing:
Somebody has to get in the ear of the producers to say, 'We don't need Celebrity Big Brother. We need a shortened returner season.'... Maybe all winners, maybe 45 [days]. That is going to bring a world of complications because it's not the same game that we played then... That would be wild. I still think it would be fire.
Because Cody Calafiore only wants winners in the mix, he wouldn't be facing the same people he played with during Season 22's all-stars. The only winners invited to that season were Ian Terry and Nicole Franzel, and the rest of the cast was a mashup of past favorites or just random Houseguests.
Derrick Levasseur confirmed that he's on board with the idea as well and that it wouldn't be a huge commitment for many former champs to commit to. With only half the time needed to complete a season, he believes that just about all of the contestants could take a break from their daily lives and hang out in front of live feeds for anyone with a Paramount+ subscription:
I think it would work for most of us [winners]. Unless you really got something going on I think most people [could commit].
A "legends" season of Big Brother isn't an entirely novel concept, as something along these lines has been discussed in some form or another over the years. I do think that it's exciting, however, that these guys would only want the cast to consist of winners. There have only been 25 winners of the main version of the game, and I'm guessing that after the franchise apparently shaded Jackson Michie in the Season 25 promo, he wouldn't be invited. Andy Herren is also someone who believes he'd never be asked back, and I don't think Mike Boogie Malin would be an option, given his issues with Dr. Will Kirby.
That would theoretically mean coming up with 16 candidates out of 22 possibilities, which isn't a ton of wiggle room to secure a cast. It's definitely possible that a chunk of winners would decline, so I'd think you'd almost have to invite some past favorite players or well-known veterans to pad out options just a bit. In any case, I like their overall idea and hope that in the (less-than-ideal) event that the WGA writers' strike continues, we'll get the bonus season of Big Brother that was originally rumored -- and that it potentially turns out to be this "winners" concept.
Big Brother Season 25 premieres on CBS on Wednesday, August 2nd, at 8:00 p.m. ET. Those desperate for the season to start should check out past seasons over on Paramount+ or even Big Brother Canada, which is also available to stream.
