Since 2000, Big Brother has become one of the most popular and beloved reality TV shows.
Every summer, fans devote their lives for about 100 days to watching strangers interact, strategize, form relationships, backstab, and all the rollercoaster of emotions that comes with being a Big Brother fan. However, once those nearly 100 days are over, you may be in dire need of a replacement show.
You need something that will offer a similar thrill to Big Brother. A show that will be just as entertaining, but not require the same level of devotion. Well, let me tell you about these unscripted shows that may make the Big Brother hiatus seem less daunting.
Big Brother: Over The Top (Paramount+)
In 2016, CBS: All Access introduced a Big Brother spin-off series called Big Brother: Over the Top. Basically, it was the same series as the CBS network version but shorter and online. The series included twists, weekly competitions, and 24-hour access to the contestants. Big Brother: Over the Top had some distinct features that differentiated it from the primetime version. It gave viewers even more access to the contestants.
Over the Top gave viewers access to competitions, meetings, diary room sessions and other things not normally seen on Big Brother. The series also had more fan input with such things as the extension of the Big Brother Care Packages (introduced in Big Brother 18). This twist allowed new powers and prizes to enter the game each week. Big Brother Over the Top only aired for one season and forever remains in limbo. Fans of Big Brother should check out Over the Top if they missed it during its original run.
Stream Big Brother Over the Top on Paramount+.
The Circle (Netflix)
The Circle is like Big Brother if the contestants played only via the internet. The Circle starts with eight players living in their own apartments and only interacting through a chat app called The Circle. The contestants can play the game as their real selves or by pretending to be someone else. The Circle originally aired in the UK for two seasons before Netflix adapted it. The first season of Netflix’s The Circle launched in January of 2020 and released four episodes a week for three weeks.
The Circle has the same opportunity for strategizing, alliance forming, and connection-making that Big Brother offers, but with the inclusion of social media instead of face-to-face contact. The Circle is a clever update of a Big Brother type game, while having its own identity. It’s also just a really engaging and fun reality series.
Survivor (Paramount+)
Survivor and Big Brother premiered on CBS around the same time, but Survivor has a few more seasons under its belt. The hit CBS series usually airs multiple times a year and has much shorter seasons than Big Brother. Survivor puts a group of strangers on an island, where they need to survive the elements and weekly votes. The winner of Survivor is the person who convinces a jury of eliminated contestants to give him or her the grand prize.
Survivor and Big Brother share a network and many similarities. Both shows involve strategizing, alliances, and they even share some contestants. A few Big Brother players have appeared on Survivor, like Big Brother 16’s Caleb Reynolds and Big Brother 12’s winner Hayden Moss. Survivor’s season with former winners competing for $2 million might be the best season to start because it has the best of the best playing.
Stream Survivor on Paramount+.
Big Brother Canada (Paramount+)
Big Brother Canada premiered in 2013 and isn’t just the US’ versions odd cousin. It’s just as exciting as the other North American version. The formats are pretty much the same, but in 2023, Big Brother Canada made the controversial decision to eliminate live feeds and replace them with something called “The Digital Dailies.”
Despite the change, Big Brother Canada is worth watching for its own brand of drama, strategizing, and entertaining gameplay. Fortunately for Big Brother fans, Paramount+ has multiple past seasons available to stream.
Stream Big Brother Canada on Paramount+.
The Challenge (Paramount+)
The Challenge has been on the air since its 1998 debut. The series originated as a competition show between The Real World and Road Rules contestants. It’s evolved to include MTV stars, international reality contestants, professional athletes, and many US reality show stars. Each season, The Challenge has a different theme, but the format stays similar. Weekly, teams compete in challenges, and then two contestants battle each other to avoid elimination.
The Challenge combines the two greatest aspects of reality TV: drama and challenges. The series has built itself on the drama that exists between contestants. Unlike many competition reality series, The Challenge doesn’t involve a new cast every year. Instead, The Challenge vets often return and win seasons after seasons. Former Big Brother contestants have become a regular part of The Challenge. The series also has many spin-off series that are also available to watch on Paramount+.
Stream The Challenge on Paramount+.
Claim To Fame (Hulu)
Claim to Fame is an ABC reality show that enlists the relatives of famous people. Basically, it’s a live action version of Guess Who, but the guessing involves figuring out famous relatives. Each week, these relatives of celebrities must try to hide their identities and win competitions to not face elimination.
It’s a reality show that is a lot more strategic than it may seem, because the contestants will often form alliances and strategize to make it to the end and win the prize. Claim to Fame is also a fun reality show to watch and practice your own guessing and detective skills.
Ex On The Beach (Paramount+)
Similar to Love Island, Ex on the Beach involves hot, young singles. The shows differ in Ex On The Beach is specifically designed to bring romantic drama. The series starts with a bunch of single people and each week, an ex from one single’s past shows up to join them as a contestant.
Ex on the Beach may appeal to Big Brother fans because the American version includes former Big Brother contestants. Big Brother 19’s former showmance Mark Jansen and Elena Davies appeared on it as exes, and the Big Brother Over the Top winner made an appearance. Additionally, Big Brother fan favorite Da’Vonne Rogers has appeared on Ex on the Beach.
Stream Ex On The Beach on Paramount+
The Amazing Race (Paramount+)
The Amazing Race involves teams racing around the world to win $1 million. Each week, the teams must complete a series of tasks or challenges in order to advance in the race. The players who arrive last to a designated checkpoint may be eliminated. Some weeks, there are no eliminations but the last place finishers receive a penalty that could hurt the team’s chances of making it to the next checkpoint.
The Amazing Race is more task-based than Big Brother. A team’s performance is what usually determines if they win the game. However, there is some strategizing and social game involved. At multiple points, players can try to hinder another team’s winning chances. Many famous Big Brother couples have appeared on The Amazing Race, and Big Brother 19’s Jessica Graf and Cody Nickson and Big Brother 23’s Derek Xiao and Claire Rehfuss even won it.
Stream The Amazing Race on Paramount+.
Pressure Cooker (Netflix)
Pressure Cooker is a reality cooking show that involves the contestants living and cooking together. Each week, they’re given challenges and must vote for best and worst dish.
It’s a lot more strategic and cutthroat than many other cooking shows because it puts the power to pick a winner in the hands of the contestants themselves. This means that contestants often join forces to take out a contestant, or they don’t necessarily pick based on who actually made the best dish. It’s the cooking series closest to Big Brother, but a new upcoming reality TV show may also add to the new strategic cooking show genre.
Stream Pressure Cooker on Netflix.
The Traitors (Peacock)
Like Big Brother, The Traitors is an international series that started off as a Dutch series and then quickly expanded to many international versions. The American version of The Traitors began with reality TV stars and civilians competing for a grand prize. Each week, the contestants must build their pot. However, there are traitors among them.
The Traitors’ goal is to remain hidden among the civilians. If one or more Traitors make it to the end, they steal the grand prize away from the civilians. If the civilians get rid of all the traitors, they split the grand prize.
The first season of The Traitors included a few Big Brother alumni, including Rachel Reilly. It’s a game all about manipulation and strategizing. Peacock also has other international versions of The Traitors available to stream.
Stream The Traitors on Peacock.
Stars on Mars (Hulu)
Imagine Big Brother but on mars and you have Stars on Mars. It’s similar to Celebrity Big Brother in that every few days celebrities are eliminated basically by a vote. Then it also includes challenges and a Head of Household type figure.
Stars on Mars very much takes inspiration from Big Brother but the celebrities seem a little more well-known than many of the ones we’ve seen on Celebrity Big Brother, but they also aren’t bringing the drama as much as the Celebrity Big Brother version.
Outlast (Netflix)
Outlast is a lot more like Survivor than Big Brother because it involves people being put in the middle of nowhere and told to survive. However, it shares Big Brother’s social experiment roots. It wants to know what happens when people must survive in the wilderness with minimal supervision.
The results are outstanding as people go to extreme measures, including a bit of cruelty. It’s a fascinating show but often too difficult to digest. Still, it says a lot about what happens when people are stripped of their comforts.
Sequester (Youtube)
Big Brother 17’s Audrey Middleton created Sequester. The series originally began in 2016 and it used to include contestants interacting and voting each other off all through live video chats. Since then, Sequester has evolved to a reality show about 20 contestants moving into a house together. They then must compete in challenges and strategize to win the grand prize.
Sequester is very similar to Big Brother, but it’s more fast-paced and strategy based. It also has different layers of challenges and eliminations. For example, when Sequester reaches the jury portion, once a player gets voted off, he or she can challenge anyone who voted for them off to a battle. These two players then compete in a challenge, and whoever wins, stays. Former Big Brother USA and Canada players also appeared on Sequester, like Judd Daugherty from Big Brother 15.
Big Brother returns to CBS this summer. All past seasons are available to stream. Stream Big Brother on Paramount+.
