All kinds of Big Brother Season 26 drama is unfolding during Quinn Martin's Week 7 Head of Household, but it feels a little empty. Everyone, including some still in the game, is talking about Tucker Des Lauriers' eviction and commending him on his run. The Houseguest was honored to see praise from legends like Dr. Will and Janelle Pierzina, and he spoke to CinemaBlend about why they may appreciate his game more than others.
After losing the opportunity to see him when streaming Big Brother, I was pumped to get a chance to speak to Tucker about his wild run in the house. I brought up seeing his response to Dr. Will praising his gameplay, and how other players from the early seasons of BB have shared similar sentiments, and then asked if he had any insight as to why legends were so fond of him. He gave me his best guess, saying:
I've been asking myself that same question, but I think that's a really beautiful thing to have coming home because I was playing it how nobody in there wanted it to be played. I know that there's a lot more to that game than people allow it to have. And I think that they just appreciated that because they know how hard it is and they must know all the ins and outs of it.
He makes a good point, as most of these legends know what it takes to win Big Brother if the desire is strong enough. Tucker also noted that he played the game in a way that others shied away from; many of his competitors stuck to the more modern strategy of playing popularized by Season 16 winner Derrick Levasseur.
To their credit, a lot of those Houseguests became the show's new power players without Tucker in the house, essentially by laying low, quietly manipulating the game, and picking their moments to come alive. On the flip side, Tucker won $20,000 for being the A.I. Instigator and could even win another $50,000 if he gets voted America's Favorite Houseguest.
Sure, it's not $750,000, but it'd certainly be a lot more than other Houseguests were paid by the end of the season if he wins both. In fact, it'd only be $5,000 less than the runner-up wins, so there's value in being entertaining.
While it remains to be seen if Tucker will end up winning the fan-voted prize for America's Favorite Houseguest, it's safe to say he's amassed a pretty large following. He told CinemaBlend he has been sent a ton of messages from all sorts of people and hasn't had the time to go through all of them yet. For those he hasn't responded to yet, don't worry, but it could take some time for him to get to you for one specific reason:
I have so many messages I've been going through in my Instagram and it's just overwhelmingly fun, but I have to go slow, and I wanna be personal with everybody. So I'm taking my time, but I'm getting there, so I'll share everything when I can.
If I were to give my personal thoughts on why classic Big Brother players love Tucker Des Lauriers, it's because he played the game in a way that was unpredictable and entertaining. Derrick Levasseur cracked the code for the most sure-fire way to win Big Brother, but its also a strategy that makes for very boring gameplay. It doesn't include public call-outs, house meetings, and stating direct rivalries with other players.
All of these things were prevalent in classic Big Brother and Tucker's game. As a bonus for modern fans, Tucker was able to do all of this in a way that wasn't toxic or offensive. Here's hoping Season 27 will attract many people looking to replicate his style of play, and we'll truly enter a new era of the game where safe gameplay is frowned upon.
Big Brother is Tucker-less but continues to air on CBS on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. ET and on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET. CinemaBlend will continue to give updates on the season as it goes along, and root for our remaining favorites in the game.
