Big Brother is back on the air for 2024 with a few important changes along with a whole new cast of contestants for Season 26.
First originated in 2000, the hit reality series sets up a group of contestants living in a massive house together, which is monitored and recorded 24/7. There, they have various challenges to complete while vying for a sizable $750,000 grand prize.
2024's Season 26 is set to debut on CBS on July 17 as fans wait to see how the dynamic between this new group of HouseGuests kicks off in Episode 1.
Contestants & Host of Big Brother 2024
Julie Chen Moonves (Host)
Instagram: @juliechenmooves
Continuing in the role she has had since Big Brother started in 2000, Julie Chen Moonves will be back in the host seat for 2024's Season 26.
Sometimes referred to as the "Chenbot," Moonves is known for her incredibly precise style on camera and her passion for objectivity, which she has shown throughout her run on the series.
Confirming her return on Instagram in June 2024, Moonves told fans there would be something wild in Season 26, saying it will be "unlike any season we’ve had yet:"
"Not everything is as it seems this summer. ['Big Brother 26'] is unlike any season we’ve had yet and we’re just one month away."
Shortly ahead of Big Brother 2024's premiere in July, Mooves further teased the new season with Entertainment Weekly as she discussed the use of artificial intelligence, which was said to be "more artificial than intelligent:"
"This season of 'Big Brother,' it's all about what everyone is talking about, artificial intelligence. And we're going to show you it's more artificial than intelligent. We're calling it BB AI."
She also offered a bold prediction that she would be "involved in the game like never before," hinting at a take on the "Chenbot" that has not been seen:
"My bold prediction of something that's going to happen on 'Big Brother' this summer is I get involved in the game like never before. You're going to see a whole new side to the Chenbot."
Angela Murray
Instagram: @angelamurray_utah_realtor
50-year-old Angela Murray comes to the Big Brother house from Syracuse, Utah, where she works as a real estate agent. Speaking with Parade, she explained how she wanted to be on Big Brother "pretty much since [she] saw the show," applying for it after her kids were grown and out of the house.
Murray feels she will win the grand prize due to being a "people person," feeling confident she will "know when people are scheming" against her. As for her strategy, Angela will lean on being her "unapologetic" self, and she hopes to become the first 50-year-old woman to win the grand prize.
Brooklyn Rivera
Instagram: @mrsbrooklynrivera
Brooklyn Rivera is a 34-year-old business administrator who comes to Los Angeles, California for Big Brother by way of Dallas, Texas. She watches the show "religiously" with her husband and has gotten her "kids involved with it," strategizing at home on how she would compete.
Rivera is confident in her chances of winning, banking on her resiliency and stubborn nature to be the last HouseGuest standing. She wants to become "the first married mother to win this show," hoping to use "conversation as a secret weapon" to get inside her fellow competitors' heads.
Cam Sullivan-Brown
Instagram: @_itsjust_camm
Cam Sullivan-Brown makes a cross-country trip from Bowie, Maryland for Big Brother, working as a physical therapist. Upon finding out about the show being "just a social experiment," which he has lived through his whole life, he joined the show in the hope that he would make friends and compete at the same time.
Sullivan-Brown's ability to "get along with everybody" is what he hopes will lead him to victory, calling himself "charismatic" while also being "competitive." Planning to use his strategic mind and charm, his goal is to befriend some of the older contestants to benefit himself in the long run.
Cedric Hodges
Instagram: @officiallyced
21-year-old former Marine Cedric Hodges joins the Big Brother 2024 cast as he travels south from Boise, Idaho. His siblings give him a reason to compete in the series, wanting to instill a sense of competition in them while strengthening their bonds with one another.
Hodges' "ability to adapt to any situation" is his calling card, noting that the social part of the game is the part that is often overlooked. As for why he thinks he will win, he goes back to that adaptability and teases the well-roundedness in his approach to the game.
Chelsie Baham
Instagram: @chelsiebaham
Coming from Rancho Cucamonga, California, 27-year-old Chelsie Baham spends her days working as a director of a nonprofit organization. Having been a huge fan of the show for a decade, she wants to take her fandom to the next level by winning the game herself.
Her dedication to Big Brother is one of the reasons she is confident in her chances of winning along with the fact that it is a game of strategy. She hopes to use her smarts to dominate the game while also developing genuine relationships with the rest of the HouseGuests.
Joseph Rodriguez
30-year-old Joseph Rodriguez joins the Big Brother 2024 cast from Tampa, Florida, temporarily leaving behind his job as a video store clerk. He admits to having consumed "a disgusting amount of reality TV" over his life, and he is also a competitor in his regular life through outlets like poker.
He feels he is well-rounded enough in each category of the competition to pull through to the end while not being overbearingly good at any of them. To win, he hopes to sneak in and "play coy at first," not letting fandom show in the beginning and slipping by without seeming like a threat.
Kenney Kelly
Big Brother Season 26's oldest competitor is Boston, Massachusetts native Kenney Kelly, a 52-year-old former undercover cop. His experience with this series started when he saw New England police officer Derrick Levasseur win Big Brother Season 16, and he also wanted to impress his wife, who is a fan of the show.
Kelly is banking on his age and experience to win the competition, using a complicated strategy going into the game. He hopes to take the challenges week by week and wind up in the middle of the pack while feeling everybody out, using his ability to read people and come out on top.
Kimo Apaka
Hilo, Hawai'i native Kimo Apaka (35 years old) is a mattress sales rep by day, hoping to perform well in the Big Brother mansion. Coming in as a fan of the show ever since he was a kid, he's wanted to be part of it and applied multiple times before being accepted for Season 26.
Apaka hopes his dedication to the show will propel him to victory along with the motivation to win the $750,000 grand prize. As for strategy, he plans to use his Hawaiian roots and the "aloha spirit" to ease into it, wanting to disarm his competitors and work his way into their good graces.
Leah Peters
Instagram: @leahpeterss
Leah Peters is a 26-year-old VIP cocktail server who currently resides in Miami, Florida after originally coming from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her desire to be on the show comes from her mom and sister being diehard fans and telling her that she would be a great fit if she went for it.
Her reason why she feels she will win is quite simple compared to other contestants, as the 26-year-old with a "26" tattoo feels she is meant to win Season 26. In terms of strategy, she plans on meeting the other contestants first before coming up with a plan, playing on her social skills to get people to like her.
Lisa Weintraub
Instagram: @dulce__de__lisa
33-year-old Lisa Weintraub, who works as a celebrity chef, gets to take on the Big Brother challenge in her hometown of Los Angeles, California. Competing on this show was an easy decision, simply asking the question, "Why not?" and wanting to prove she can do anything she puts her mind to.
Confidence is Weintraub's biggest advantage, telling People she is "the best" and "in it to win it" when asked why she will come out on top. The chef plans to use her skills with food to win over her competition and warm them up to her while also building personal connections and using her personality to win.
Makensy Manbeck
Instagram: @makensyjomanbeck
One of the younger competitors comes in 22-year-old Makensy Manbeck, a construction project manager from Houston, Texas. Unlike others in the group, she is one of Big Brother's newer fans, but she feels she has the right makeup to be successful amidst her foes.
Manbeck feels confident in her abilities as a triple threat socially, mentally, and physically, hoping that will make her the best competitor of the bunch. She plans on starting things off on the shy side, not wanting to come on too strong and wanting to befriend people before striking harder.
Matt Hardeman
Instagram: @matt_hardeman
Matt Hardeman is a Roswell, Georgia resident who is 25 years old and works as a tech sales representative. Coming on Big Brother gives him a chance to get out of his Georgia bubble, allowing him to be genuine and kind while building new kinds of relationships with different people.
Hardeman feels he is a balanced competitor physically and socially, wanting people to know he has far more depth to him than his looks and physical prowess. He is also aware of his weaknesses but hopes to play on his nature as a guy people's parents can meet to win favor with those around him.
Quinn Martin
Coming out of Lawton, Oklahoma, 25-year-old Quinn Martin works as a nurse recruiter for his day job. Having watched every season of Big Brother since Season 11, the medical professional got tired of watching from outside and called it a "bucket list item" for him to be in the cast.
Martin is another contestant who is sure he has the right combination of traits to win, being a dual-sport college athlete and having a history of working well with people. He only hopes to lie, cheat, and steal when he is out of options, hoping to tie himself to more emotional contestants so he won't be betrayed later.
Rubina Bernabe
Instagram: @withrubina
Another Los Angeles native comes into play in Rubina Bernabe, who is 35 years old and works as an event bartender. While she is not necessarily a hardcore fan, she believes she belongs in the cast after working tough odd jobs and going through plenty of hardships.
Noting how people need "a Filipino in their life," Bernabe wants to use her heritage as a motivator in her pursuit of a win. While she is not trying to be a huge target, she wants to bring "big sis energy" into the contest and keep things real with the other HouseGuests.
T'kor Clottey
Instagram: @tkorcouture
23-year-old T'Lor Clottey lives in Atlanta, Georgia after initially coming to the United States from London, England, and she owns her own crochet business. She is one to take risks and try new things, making her want to compete on Big Brother and make her two mothers proud.
Clottey plans on winning the show by using the skills she has learned throughout her life, especially her degree in sociology, as she hopes to read people well. She looks to use positive energy to warm herself up to everyone else in the house before letting her competitive nature come through.
Tucker Des Lauriers
Instagram: @tsdeslauriers
Tucker Des Lauriers (30 years old) made the cross-country trek from Brooklyn, New York, where he works as a marketing and sales executive, to be on the show. After going to school away from his family and living in Los Angeles for multiple summers, he loves the idea of playing "human chess" with new competitive people.
Being the youngest kid in his "loud, wild Italian family," he has seen various angles of life and knows how to compete and work with all kinds of people, embracing competition nearly every day. He also knows how much people like food as he plans to cook meals for people and loosen them up in terms of secrets.
New episodes of Big Brother air every air Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.
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