If “Big Brother” is a game of chess for the participating houseguests, then putting on the show is a game of Mouse Trap for the people behind the scenes.
Each week every summer, executive producers Allison Grodner, Rich Meehan, host Julie Chen Moonves and the rest of the 24/7 Banijay crew set the Radford Studios stage with every possible piece in play — but it’s up to the mice (or hamsters, in this case) to put their respective plans in motion, even if that means accidentally sacrificing their own games in the process.
This Thursday, CBS celebrates the series’ 1,000th primetime episode with a 90-minute special live eviction installment and a game-changing twist. “BB” will become the first series to ever achieve this milestone, 26 years after it first premiered on July 5, 2000.
In preparation for the big event, TheWrap was invited to the July 13 live eviction taping for Season 28. That Thursday saw a brewing blindside be undercut by a Block Buster win as Haley Thogmartin saved herself from elimination with Barrett Pfeiffer then surviving a 9-1 house vote against Chuk Anyanwu.
Plus, two of our editors were given the chance to test out the night’s challenge ahead of time, with Julie ultimately winning the round of the game, titled Newton’s Apples, on her home court. The game involved rolling “apples” up a ramp and getting them to stop up top, before then knocking them down with smaller balls — what goes up, must come down.
The live taping later that day hosted 32 audience members as they watched the episode play out on large screens from right outside the “Big Brother” house, with Julie expertly rehearsing her blocking between commercial breaks, before Chuk eventually joined her onstage for his brief exit interview.
Audience members were asked to not interact with him too much, but one person in the crowd still managed to impact the game as the contestants were able to hear his overt cheering through the next-door set, potentially swaying what they think America thinks of them.
TheWrap will be back on the set Thursday for the 1,000th episode special, hitting the red carpet to interview as many alumni as the “BB” Gods provide.
“Big Brother” airs Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays on CBS before streaming on Paramount+.
