Written by Kevin Kokoszka
Many things in life just go together perfectly. Batman and Robin. Peanut butter and jelly. Comedy and Adam Sandler. However, nothing pairs better than summer and a brand-new season of Big Brother.
We’re a few weeks away from the premiere of Big Brother 28. So it’s time for every Big Brother fan’s favorite activity: theorizing what big twists are in store for the show. Last season, we saw the return of legendary Big Brother player Rachel Reilly, which really excited fans.Â
Because of this, there have been rumors of Big Brother 28 bringing back returnee players for the summer. We don’t know if this is true, and even if it is, we don’t know what returnee format we will see. It could be captains, fans vs favorites, or just a singular returnee like last season. Nonetheless, I want to give out my list of five Big Brother players who I would love to see return. And before you complain about my list, let me just clear up one thing. Yes, I’d love to see all-time players like Dan Gheesling, Dr. Will, Danielle Reyes, but I want to talk about players who we’ve yet to see get a second chance to play Big Brother.Â
Before we start, I want to give some honorable mentions to: Monica from BB2, Jessica from BB8, Crazy James from BB9, Russell from BB11, Matt from BB12, Porsche from BB13, Johnny Mac from BB17, and JC from BB20.Â
Now let’s get to the list.
Eric Stein (BB8)
Summer of Stein 2026! Big Brother really dropped the ball on never having Eric back for another season. He played on Season 8 back in 2007, where he was part of a twist called America’s Player. I won’t get too into the details, but essentially, he was forced to vote out and target whoever the fans wanted him to. Fans would constantly have him do things that didn’t benefit his own game, and he was put in many sticky situations where he needed to claw his way out. Imagine Michael Jordan if he were forced to play with one hand tied behind his back. Despite this, Eric managed to run the house for almost the whole season. If the America’s Player twist did not exist, Eric would have won the season without a doubt. It was nice to see Eric make a cameo last season as part of the Mastermind twist, but I would love to see him get a shot to play Big Brother without having the burden of being America’s Player.
Helen Kim (BB15)
I would love to see Helen get a second chance to play the game. Season 15 was marred with controversy, which seems to be the main reason why Big Brother hasn’t brought anyone back from it. Helen was a big player out of the gate and controlled the house for most of the early part of the game. She teamed up with the only other mother in the house, Elissa, which worked out well for her. Helen’s downfall came from being too big a target too early on, but you need players like that on Big Brother to make for an entertaining show. I don’t know how eager CBS is to bring back anyone from Big Brother 15, but if they do, I think Helen would be their number one choice. Let’s just hope that she doesn’t have to compete in another Wall Endurance competition.
Jozea Flores (BB18)
Big Brother needs a good mix of people who are super strategic and some people who are just there to start drama. Jozea would definitely fit the latter half of that statement. In Season 18, Jozea was only on the show for around two weeks, but he brought so much entertainment in that little amount of time. He would say how he was running the house, constantly call himself the Messiah, and compare himself to Obama. and . He even openly targeted the first Head of the Household (HOH) of the season, which led to his demise. It’s safe to say that Jozea isn’t a strategic mastermind, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be brought back. There is a 20minute edit of Jozea’s most delusional moments in the house on YouTube. There are players who made it to finale night who don’t have a highlight reel half as entertaining or long as Jozea’s.
Vanessa Rousso (BB17)
It’s rare in Big Brother for a player to be both entertaining and really good at the game. But Vanessa definitely fits this mold. She viewed the game very mathematically and logically, which makes sense due to her background in professional poker. Unlike most players who play the game this way, she was also excellent socially and had an uncanny ability to manipulate the emotions of other players. Vanessa was very polarizing because she had numerous emotional outbursts, but that helped her build connections in the game. She was also really good at the competitions, winning four HOHs and three POVS. Despite her dominant run, she was unable to win the final HOH, which would have secured her winning $500,000.
Morgan Pope / Vince Panaro (BB27)
Okay, I lied. Technically, this list has six people. But you can’t mention Morgan or Vince without the other. Last summer on Big Brother 27, we saw Vince and Morgan completely run things in the house. While it’d be really surprising if both returned together, I would love to see either Morgan or Vince get a second chance to redeem themselves. In Season 27, they became the talk of the summer because of their controversial showmance despite Vince having a girlfriend back home. Together, they won a combined 11 competitions, and had it not been for Ashley winning the final HOH, we would’ve likely seen the two of them sitting together at the end, with Morgan most likely winning the season. After several underwhelming seasons stretching back to BB21, Morgan and Vince helped make BB27 feel more like old school Big Brother.
Final Thoughts
I would be happy to see even just one of the players I mentioned come back for Season 28 of Big Brother. This might be an unpopular opinion amongst Big Brother fans, but I love when they do seasons with a couple of returnee players in the mix. I’d much rather watch someone who hasn’t played Big Brother in 15 years than another recruit who discovered the show a month before moving into the house.
