Big Brother U.S. (franchise)

This article is about the English Version in the United States. For the Spanish Version, see Gran Hermano USA.

Big Brother U.S. (franchise)
Country	United States
Language(s)	English
Executive Producer(s)	Allison Grodner Rich Meehan
Television Network(s)	CBS CBS All-Access
Host	Julie Chen (2000 - Present) Ian O'Malley (2000)
Series Run	July 5, 2000 - Present

Big Brother is a popular international reality show franchise with an American version owned by CBS.

How it Works

The amount of days per season.

Big Brother is a reality television show in which a group of people live together in a large house, isolated from the outside world but continuously watched by television cameras. Each series lasts for around three months, and there are 10-17 participants. The housemates try to win a cash prize by avoiding periodic evictions from the house.

American series

The amount of episodes per season

While most versions of Big Brother feature evictions that are voted on by polling television audiences over the phone or the internet, the American version shifted before Big Brother 2 to play off the popularity of Survivor and changed the format to have the other house guests evict players.

Retrieved from CBS
BIG BROTHER follows a group of people living together in a house outfitted with dozens of high-definition cameras and microphones recording their every move, 24 hours a day. Each week, the houseguests will vote someone out of the house. At the end, the last remaining houseguest will receive the grand prize of $500,000.

History

The idea for the show is said to come during a brainstorm session at the production house of John de Mol Produkties (an independent part of Endemol) on 4 September 1997. The first Big Brother broadcast was in the Netherlands in 1999 on the Veronica TV channel. It was picked up by Germany, Portugal, USA, UK, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Switzerland and Italy the following year and became a worldwide sensation. Since then it has been a prime-time hit in almost 70 countries. The show's name comes from George Orwell's 1948 dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four.

As of Celebrity Big Brother 2 (US), a total of 291 people have participated across 20 main broadcast seasons, one digital season, and two celebrity seasons, with 29 playing the game twice. Two out of those 29 then went on to play the game for a third time.

Editions

Big Brother (US) Seasons
Season	Season Run	Days	HouseGuests	Winner	Runner-Up	Final Vote
Big Brother 1 (US)	July 5, 2000 - September 29, 2000	88	10	Eddie McGee	Josh Souza	59–27-14%1
Big Brother 2 (US)	July 5, 2001 - September 20, 2001	82	12	Will Kirby	Nicole Nilson Schaffrich	5-2 (6-3)
Big Brother 3 (US)	July 10, 2002 - September 25, 2002			Lisa Donahue	Danielle Reyes	9-1
Big Brother 4 (US)	July 8, 2003 - September 24, 2003		132	Jun Song	Alison Irwin	6-1
Big Brother 5 (US)	July 6, 2004 - September 21, 2004		143	Drew Daniel	Michael Ellis	4-3
Big Brother 6 (US)	July 7, 2005 - September 20, 2005	80	144	Maggie Ausburn	Ivette Corredero	4-3
Big Brother 7 (US)	July 6, 2006 - September 12, 2006	72	145	Mike Malin	Erika Landin	6-1
Big Brother 8 (US)	July 5, 2007 - September 18, 2007	81	146	Dick Donato	Daniele Donato	5-2
Big Brother 9 (US)	February 12, 2008 - April 27, 2008		167	Adam Jasinski	Ryan Quicksall	6-1
Big Brother 10 (US)	July 13, 2008 - September 16, 2008	71	13	Dan Gheesling	Memphis Garrett	7-0
Big Brother 11 (US)	July 9, 2009 - September 15, 2009	73	138	Jordan Lloyd	Natalie Martinez	5-2
Big Brother 12 (US)	July 8, 2010 - September 15, 2010	75	13	Hayden Moss	Lane Elenburg	4-3
Big Brother 13 (US)	July 4, 2011 - September 14, 2011		149	Rachel Reilly	Porsche Briggs	4-3
Big Brother 14 (US)	July 12, 2012 - September 19, 2012		1610	Ian Terry	Dan Gheesling	6-1
Big Brother 15 (US)	June 26, 2013 - September 18, 2013	90	16	Andy Herren	GinaMarie Zimmerman	7-2
Big Brother 16 (US)	June 25, 2014 - September 24, 2014	97		Derrick Levasseur	Cody Calafiore	7-2
Big Brother 17 (US)	June 24, 2015 - September 23, 2015	98	1711	Steve Moses	Liz Nolan	6-3
Big Brother 18 (US)	June 22, 2016 - September 21, 2016	99	1612	Nicole Franzel	Paul Abrahamian	5-4
Big Brother: Over The Top	September 28, 2016 - December 1, 2016	65	1313	Morgan Willett	Jason Roy	Unknown1
Big Brother 19 (US)	June 28, 2017 - September 20, 2017	92	1714	Josh Martinez	Paul Abrahamian	5-4
Celebrity Big Brother 1 (US)	February 7, 2018 - February 25, 2018	26	1115	Marissa Jaret Winokur	Ross Mathews	6-3
Big Brother 20 (US)	June 27, 2018 - September 26, 2018	99	16	Kaycee Clark	Tyler Crispen	5-4
Celebrity Big Brother 2 (US)	January 21, 2019 - February 13, 2019	29	1215, 16	Tamar Braxton	Ricky Williams	9-0
Big Brother 21 (US)	June 25, 2019 - September 25, 2019	99	1617	Jackson Michie	Holly Allen	6-3
Big Brother 22 (US)	August 5, 2020 - October 28, 202018	85	1619	Cody Calafiore	Enzo Palumbo	9-0
Big Brother 23 (US)	July 7, 2021 - September 29, 2021		16	Xavier Prather	Derek Frazier	9-0
Celebrity Big Brother 3 (US)	February 2, 2022 - February 23, 2022	29	1115	Miesha Tate	Todrick Hall	7-1
Big Brother 24 (US)	July 6, 2022 - September 25, 2022	82	16	Taylor Hale	Monte Taylor	8-1
Big Brother 25 (US)	August 2, 2023 - November 9, 202320	100	1721	Jag Bains	Matt Klotz	5-2
Big Brother: Reindeer Games	December 11, 2023 - December 21, 202322	6	923	Nicole Franzel	Taylor Hale	No Vote24
Big Brother 26 (US)	Summer 2024	To Be Determined

Notes

^1 The viewing public decided the winner of the season, voting between a Final Three instead of a Final Two. ^2 Eight houseguests entered the house, followed by five houseguests that were ex-girlfriends and ex-boyfriends of five people from the original eight. ^3 Thirteen houseguests entered the house, including a set of identical twins secretly playing as one houseguest and a pair of siblings that didn't know of the other's existence. After surviving the first four evictions, the twins were allowed to compete as individuals. ^4 Fourteen houseguests entered the house, each with a secret partner unknown to the rest of the houseguests. ^5 The fourteen returning houseguests were chosen among twenty candidates — eight through public vote, and six by the producers. ^6 Eleven houseguests entered the house, with three "rivals" to three people from the original group watching them from inside of the HOH room that later joined the group. ^7 Sixteen houseguests were divided up into eight couples, including two relationships from outside the house. ^8 Twelve houseguests entered the house divided into four cliques. The clique who won the first HOH competition allowed a returning player allocated to their clique to enter the game. ^9 Eight houseguests entered the house divided into duos, followed by three additional sets of duos returning from past seasons. ^10 Twelve houseguests entered the house, followed by four returning houseguests as coaches who divided the houseguests into teams. The coaches later entered the game as fully fledged houseguests. ^11 Fourteen houseguests entered the house, including a set of identical twins secretly playing as one houseguest, followed by two houseguests that were crossing over from The Amazing Race 26. After surviving the first five evictions, the twins were allowed to compete as individuals. ^12 Twelve houseguests entered the house, followed by four returning players who divided up into teams. ^13 Twelve houseguests entered the house, including a pair of sisters, followed by one returning houseguest voted in by the audience. ^14 Sixteen houseguests entered the house, followed by one returning houseguest taking one of their spots on Night One. ^15 Instead of normal houseguests, celebrities occupied the house. ^16 Twelve people entered the house, but one of them was revealed to be a fake houseguest. ^17 Sixteen houseguests entered the house, including two friendships from outside the house. ^18 Season delayed from initial June-September dates due to the 2019-2020 COVID-19 Pandemic. ^19 The sixteen returning houseguests were chosen among players who felt like they had something to prove. ^20 Season delayed from initial July-September dates due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. ^21 Sixteen houseguests entered the house, followed by a houseguest that was crossing over from Survivor, who was also the mother of one of the original sixteen houseguests. ^22 Season pre-recorded entirely, as opposed to the game playing out in in real time and having a live finale. Filmed between December 2nd to 4th and 7th to 9th, 2023 and aired six episodes across two weeks, one game day per episode. ^23 The nine returning houseguests were chosen among legendary players, with three other players appearing to co-host throughout the season. ^24 The winner of the season was determined by a final competition tournament, starting between the Final Four and working down to just the Final Two.

Logo History

Used for season 1 in 2000 alongside various countries

Used between season 2 in 2001 up until season 15 in 2013

Used Since season 16 in 2014

Used Since the first celebrity season in 2018

Ratings

Note: For a simpler version, click here

Big Brother (US) Average Viewers Per Season
Season	Premiere Date	Finale Date	Avg Viewers (in millions)		Episodes	Network
			Live + SD	Live + DVR		Main Show	Live Feeds		After Dark
Big Brother 1	July 5, 2000	September 29, 2000	8.95		70	CBS	AOL
Big Brother 2	July 5, 2001	September 20, 2001	7.90		30		RealNetworks
Big Brother 3	July 10, 2002	September 25, 2002	8.70		33
Big Brother 4	July 8, 2003	September 24, 2003	8.80
Big Brother 5	July 6, 2004	September 21, 2004	8.23		31
Big Brother 6	July 7, 2005	September 20, 2005	7.16		30
Big Brother 7	July 6, 2006	September 12, 2006	7.45		28
Big Brother 8	July 5, 2007	September 18, 2007	7.24	7.96§	33				Showtime 2
Big Brother 9	February 12, 2008	April 27, 2008	6.33	6.50§
Big Brother 10	July 13, 2008	September 16, 2008	6.26	6.83§	29
Big Brother 11	July 9, 2009	September 15, 2009	6.83		30
Big Brother 12	July 8, 2010	September 15, 2010	7.24
Big Brother 13	July 4, 2011	September 14, 2011	7.43		29
Big Brother 14	July 12, 2012	September 19, 2012	6.05		30
Big Brother 15	June 26, 2013	September 18, 2013	6.47		36		CBS.com		TVGN
Big Brother 16	June 25, 2014	September 24, 2014	6.41		40
Big Brother 17	June 24, 2015	September 23, 2015	6.18	7.58^†			CBS All-Access
Big Brother 18	June 22, 2016	September 21, 2016	5.79	7.20^‡	42				Pop
Big Brother: Over The Top	September 28, 2016	December 1, 2016	N/A		10	CBS All-Access
Big Brother 19	June 28, 2017	September 20, 2017	6.06	7.53^†	39	CBS	CBS All-Access		Pop
Celebrity Big Brother 1	February 7, 2018	February 25, 2018	5.05	7.14^†	13
Big Brother 20	June 27, 2018	September 26, 2018	5.41	6.89	40
Celebrity Big Brother 2	January 21, 2019	February 13, 2019	4.40	5.81	13
Big Brother 21	June 25, 2019	September 25, 2019	4.28	5.65	40
Big Brother 22	August 5, 2020	October 28, 2020	3.95	5.24§	37
Big Brother 23	July 7, 2021	September 29, 2021	3.72	4.92§			Paramount+
Celebrity Big Brother 3	February 2, 2022	February 23, 2022	2.64	3.60	15
Big Brother 24	July 6, 2022	September 25, 2022	3.66	4.66§	34
Big Brother 25	August 2, 2023	November 9, 2023	3.05	TBD	42		Paramount+	Pluto TV
Big Brother: Reindeer Games	December 11, 2023	December 21, 2023	1.88	TBD	6

Key:

Increase in Viewership

Decrease in Viewership

Notes

^§ Nielsen did not release Live +7 data for every single episode. So some episodes have been left out. However, a significant number of episodes are still available. ^† Nielsen did not release Live +7 data for every single episode. So some episodes have been replaced with Live +3 data. ^‡ Nielsen did not release Live +7 data for every single episode. So some episodes have been left out. However, some of the missing episodes had Live +3 numbers available, but not all of them.. In

Network History

Civilian	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	OTT	19		20		21	22	23		24	25
Celebrity																					1		2				3
Main Show	CBS																		AA	CBS
Live Feeds	AOL	RealNetworks													Website		CBS All-Access									Paramount+
BBAD								Showtime 2							TVGN			Pop		Pop

Trivia

• Big Brother US used to have a theme song entitled "Live" performed by Jonathan Clarke. However it was only used in the show's first season and was dropped after major changes to the production and format took place before the second season started.
• Big Brother US is the first international franchise to move away from the original format of Big Brother.
• In every season to feature a male-female Final Two, the male houseguest has won, up until Big Brother 18, where Nicole Franzel beat out Paul Abrahamian by one vote. Coincidentally, so far every season after that, main or spin-off, the female houseguest has always won against the male.
• There have been 13 men and 10 women who have won Big Brother US.