Julie Chen Moonves is dropping hints about the theme forBig Brotherseason 27 coming this July, but what do her hints mean?Big Brotherwill be returning for season 27, continuing its legacy as a summer reality show staple. This season, however, will look a little bit different from years past. While the show will still air three days per week,the Wednesday episodes will be 90-minutes long, up from the usual 60-minutes.
Big Brotherseason 27 will also introducean aftershow calledBig Brother: Unlocked,which will be hosted by three formerBig Brotherplayers.The theme of the season is not usually announced until the houseguests move in, but Julie’s hints have given a lot of insight. With only a few weeks before the premiere ofBig Brotherseason 27, what are some potential themes based on Julie’s clue?
Big Brother’s History With Themes
Every Season Has A New Twist
Since season 6,Big Brotherhas introduced a new theme every season, often based on the cultural zeitgeist. Last year’s theme was, appropriately, AI, and the related twists started immediately. Not long after entering the house, theBig Brotherseason 26 cast membershad to vote on whether to allow a 17th houseguest into the game. They then found out that the potential new houseguest, Ainsley, wasn’t a person at all, but an AI bot who would antagonize the houseguests for the rest of the season.
Big Brotherseason 21 had a summer camp theme, paving the way for other summer camp-set shows likeBuddy Gamesand Netflix’sBattle Camp. The competitions that season largely followed that theme, although manytried-and-trueBig Brotherclassics were still played, such as OTEV and Slippery Slope.
Some seasons introduce themes that change the format of the game.
InBig Brotherseason 11,the houseguests were split into four cliquesbased on what high school archetype they best fit. The four categories were Athletes, Populars, Brains, and Off-Beats. When someone won Head Of Household, their entire clique was safe for the week.
TheBig Brotherseason 16 house was nature-themed, with the Have-Not room designed to look like an ice box.Season 16 also introduced a new formatfor the long-running competition show, where two people were crowned Head Of Household each week and each nominated two people, forcing those duos to compete for safety and to overthrow one of the HOHs.
Keys Are Important In Big Brother
Will They Be Extra Crucial This Season?
In an exclusive interview withEntertainment Weekly, Julie really stressed"keys.“As an object, keys play an important role in Big Brother. In every houseguest’s intro, they find a key with their name on it hidden somewhere, letting them know they’re going to be participating in the social experiment all summer. Plus, at the end of each HOH competition, the key to the winner’s new room is placed around their neck.
The HOH’s weekly nominees are locked in by turning two keys. However, before season 16,the nomination ceremony utilized a key wheel.Houseguests would take turns pulling a key, and whoever’s name was on the key was safe from the initial nominations. The last two players without keys had been nominated by the HOH. Does Julie’s Instagram photo with a ton of keys mean the key wheel is returning?
What Could Julie’s Hints Mean?
Fans Are Posting Theories
Beyond an Instagram photo withJulie posing in front of a wall of keys, her interview withEntertainment Weeklymentioned the word quite frequently. Julie wasn’t the only person dropping hints.Big BrotherExecutive Producers Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan were also interviewed, and they said the following:
“The key to a perfect summer is no mystery. Get ready to unlock the most unexpected season ofBig Brotheryet!”
Some fans have speculated that the plethora of keys in the photo means the key wheel is returning, although that’s not enough of a twist for a show with the motto,“Expect the unexpected.“The CBS competition show has incorporated a twin twist multiple times, where a set of twins switches in and out of the house, acting as one person, so there’s always a chanceBig Brotheris bringing that back. Alternatively,the keys could open new, secret rooms in the house.
However, since the themes usually relate to something in the current zeitgeist, the key hints would need to feel culturally relevant. Unfortunately, the hints given so far are pretty vague. Viewers will have to tune in to theBig Brotherseason 27 premiere to find out the official theme and twists for the upcoming season.
Big Brotherseason 27 will premiere on Thursday, July 10 at 8 p.m. EDT on CBS.
