Cirie Fields has officially made her way into the Big Brother house, ready to take a stab at a brand new game after being deemed a Survivor legend (and she is doing great so far).
While the immunity and reward challenges we see on Survivor tend to test the physical and mental abilities of its castaways, the HoH and PoV competitions we see on Big Brother tend to be more simple, with a greater emphasis on themes (if you watched the show’s cringe-worthy HOH competition on Sunday, you know exactly what we’re talking about). Because of this, you do not need to be the most physical player to do well on Big Brother — It is clearly a much more social game.
While Cirie may have not been the most physical player throughout her Survivor journey (we all remember that reward challenge in Survivor: Game Changers where her teammates had to help her across the balance beam), she played an impeccable social game on four separate occasions, which will likely play to her advantage on this season of Big Brother.
After Cirie’s shocking (but thrilling) entry into the Big Brother house, we began to wonder which other castaways would thrive on the show. From Kelley Wentworth to Chrissy Hofbeck to Victoria Baamonde and beyond, we compiled a list of some Survivor veterans who we would love to see on Big Brother, not because of their athleticism, but because of their stellar strategic and social games. We think these six castaways have what it takes to bring home the $750,000 check!
Zeke Smith (Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X, Survivor: Game Changers)
If you are a Survivor fan, chances are that you have a special place in your heart for the one and only Zeke Smith.
During both Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X and Survivor: Game Changers, Zeke proved himself to be a massive social threat on numerous occasions. Most notably, throughout his first season, the Oklahoma native found himself on the bottom of his original tribe, however, he managed to lead his own majority alliance post-merge. Only a player with an insane social game could pull off a stunt like that!
After being outed as transgender by his tribemate, Jeff Varner, in one of the most heartbreaking tribal councils of all time, we think Zeke deserves a chance at redemption. What better place to do that than the Big Brother house?
In an exclusive interview with Dalton Ross at Entertainment Weekly, Zeke revealed whether or not he would hit the beach to play Survivor another time, all while hinting at a few other shows that may tickle his fancy:
“No, I won’t play again. I’ve done it — twice! I’m a person who craves new experiences and I don’t believe there’s anything more I could get out of playing a third time… I would, however, love to compete on Supermarket Sweep, The Amazing Race, and/or a cooking show!”
While he gave Survivor a hard pass, Zeke did not close the door on competition shows just yet. Big Brother may be his time to shine!
Kelley Wentworth (Survivor: San Juan del Sur, Survivor: Cambodia, Survivor: Edge of Extinction)
Serving as the perfect combination of brains, brawn, and beauty, we have been dying to see the legendary Kelley Wentworth back on our television screens.
While she played on Survivor: San Juan del Sur and Survivor: Edge of Extinction, Survivor: Cambodia is where Kelley cemented herself as a triple threat, using her hidden immunity idol to cause Andrew Savage’s legendary blindside, as well as executing numerous other game-changing moves.
Lucky for fans of Kelley Wentworth, she appears to be open to more competition shows than just Survivor. In an exclusive interview with The Seattle Times, Kelley dished about how Survivor was not even her first choice when it comes to competition shows:
“My father and I applied for The Amazing Race because we wanted to be a pair and adventure the world and challenge ourselves in that way. We didn’t get too far in the process, but we did receive a call from Survivor five years later… We had never even talked about going on Survivor, [so] it was totally shocking and out of the blue and totally exciting at the same time. The Wentworth file was just waiting.”
After applying to The Amazing Race, as well as competing on Survivor on three separate occasions, could Big Brother be Kelley’s next adventure? Only time will tell…
Aubry Bracco (Survivor: Kaôh Rōng, Survivor: Game Changers, Survivor: Edge of Extinction)
To know her is to love her! We need to see Aubry Bracco in the Big Brother house ASAP.
Starting out her Survivor journey as a member of the brains tribe on Survivor: Kaôh Rōng, Aubry began to come out of her shell as the season progressed, ultimately placing second overall and being asked to return for Survivor: Game Changers and Survivor: Edge of Extinction.
While Aubry Bracco is known for being a very strategic player each and every time she has stepped foot on the beach, her social game is equally as exceptional. Forming the Dara Women’s Alliance alongside Cydney Gillon and controlling a majority of the game her first time around, Aubry has proved that she is able to build trust with her fellow players and have the vote go in her favor time and time again.
With top-notch social and strategic skills, we know that Aubry would thrive on Big Brother, building connections with her fellow houseguests and controlling the vote there as well.
Tommy Sheehan (Survivor: Island of the Idols)
With one of the most controversial wins of all time, we have no doubt that the “Sole Survivor” of Survivor: Island of the Idols would have quite the success on Big Brother.
Tommy Sheehan is known for playing in the middle during his time on Survivor: Island of the Idols, building strong bonds with individuals on both sides of the tribal line, ultimately keeping him from being voted out as the competition progressed. The defining moment that proved Tommy to be a real weapon when it comes to his social game was convincing Noura Salman to bring him to the final three, despite losing the final immunity challenge.
How did he manage to pull off a stunt like that? The world may never know…
Tommy’s strong social game and manipulation skills caused him to win the game, setting him apart from the season’s runner-up, Dean Kowalski, who had no real relationships and used immunity necklaces, immunity idols, and other advantages to further his game instead.
Given that he is considered an underwhelming winner in Survivor history, we are confident that Tommy’s stellar social game would be advantageous on Big Brother, proving to the public that he was worthy of his win back in 2019.
Chrissy Hofbeck (Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers)
While the jury criticized Chrissy Hofbeck for having a weak social game on Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, we think that Big Brother could be her chance at redemption.
Chrissy was in the majority alliance throughout her Survivor journey, however, things changed at the final nine when four of her allies flipped, ultimately leaving her vulnerable. Going on to win four immunity challenges (tying the record for most wins for a female contestant in a single season), Chrissy coasted her way into the final three, where she finished second in a 5-2-1 vote against Ben Driebergen due to her lack of a strong social game.
Despite the criticism she faced from both Survivor fans and the jury alike, Chrissy built strong relationships with her fellow castaways throughout her time on Survivor, remaining loyal to her allies since day one. Chrissy’s social skills were nowhere near bad, however, her downfall was not building relationships outside of her alliance, which essentially lead to her second-place finish in the end.
In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, Chrissy answered the question everyone has been wondering since her phenomenal journey back in 2017: Will she ever play Survivor again?
“I don’t know. I think a lot of people play because they want to correct their mistakes and do better, but honestly I feel so happy with how this played out. I feel really proud of how I did, and I don’t feel I need to prove that I can do better. Maybe if Jeff Probst himself called me on the phone and said, ‘I need to have you play my game,’ then maybe I’d think about it.”
While she is uncertain as to whether or not she will return to the beach, Chrissy said nothing about a different competition show. With a social game that has been undermined for years, Big Brother would be Chrissy’s chance that she is more than just a challenge beast, giving her the opportunity to correct her mistakes from years prior.
Victoria Baamonde (Survivor: Edge of Extinction)
Last but not least, one of the most underrated castaways of all time, Victoria Baamonde, deserves her second chance at victory, but this time on Big Brother.
Throughout Survivor: Edge of Extinction, Victoria was a keen strategist and social player, however, her edit on the show did not show how truly powerful she was. She organized blindside after blindside, even taking part in the demise of returning players Aubry Bracco and Joe Anglim. Because of this, Victoria was deemed both a social and strategic threat, ultimately leading to her elimination on day 36 of the game.
In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, Victoria gushed about her gameplay, revealing what really went on during her time on Survivor: Edge of Extinction:
“I think my game was a little too heady for it to really translate. I wasn’t ‘in the shadows’ like everyone says. I was a very active strategist and was able to always know what was going on. There was not a single vote that surprised me (I never voted incorrectly, until I was voted out). My game play, though, isn’t flashy and I never pandered to the camera. I really didn’t even consider the fact that this would be on TV one day, I was just there to win.”
With the ability to control the vote time and time again, all while remaining under the radar, we can already envision Victoria having a flawless HoH week as a Big Brother houseguest.