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Over the past several months, Big Brother fans have been quite worried that there would be no Season 22 this year, due to the stay-away-from-others nature of current, daily life. As such, there have been tons of rumors and lots of speculation about who the houseguests might be, as well as when (and even where) the planned season might film. Well, a new report is suggesting that the Big Brother wheels are finally turning for real, so fans might actually have a light coming at the end of this tunnel.
According to Deadline, the movement on production for Big Brother Season 22 has come in the form of the famed house finally being under construction on CBS’ Radford lot, which is in Los Angeles. There's also word that the production team on the show has gotten the go-ahead to begin other preparations for the new season, but, apparently, there is quite a bit of work to be done before any filming can get underway as producers still need guild and union approval before any cameras can roll. And, on top of that, there's also been no word on the cast.
Obviously, by this point, TV and film productions have been shut down for several months, and everyone is hoping to get things going again sooner rather than later. The problem, of course, is that the nation is still battling the coronavirus, with last month's lessening of restrictions on which businesses can open leading to spikes in cases around the country, including in California, where Big Brother films. This has led many states (again, including California) to roll back reopening plans, at least in some counties.
As you might imagine, there are many new guidelines and restrictions already in place for those who hope to return to work on film and television sets, and the case is no different with Big Brother. The crews who have started work in production and for construction on the set, especially, are being tested for the virus on a regular basis, with the construction crews mandated to continue social distancing as they work, and to also wear PPE equipment.
Former Big Brother houseguest Cody Nickson came out recently and said he doesn't believe that Season 22 will happen any time soon, mostly because of the difficulty in quarantining the crew for the show. The cast is already signing up to isolate themselves from the rest of the world for several weeks, so having them quarantine for two weeks, to make sure they're healthy, before living in the Big Brother house isn't a problem, but to do the same with the crew who'd be needed to help production run smoothy during filming is a much bigger ask, as they'd all likely have to be just as quarantined as the cast while the show is in production.
That very issue is one of the reasons that a rumor was floated, very recently, that the production was at least considering abandoning the COVID hotbed of the United States and taking things to the Love Island setup...in Fiji. There still would have been a mandatory 14-day quarantine for everyone once they got there and tons of testing for the virus during their stay, but it was thought that the remote nature of the island would have helped to keep cast and crew safe.
While Big Brother typically begins by the end of June, I don't think any fan will be too upset about the show needing to take a breather while our health crisis can be figured out, and while the producers implement steps to make sure everyone involved stays safe. Hopefully, if they really are gearing up for a start in the near future, things can run smoothly for the duration.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more on Big Brother and other TV and film news. To see what you can watch right now, check out our 2020 Netflix guide and see what's new to TV this summer!
