I'm Sad Reindeer Games Isn't Happening This Year, But There's One Fan-Suggested Big Brother Series I Still Hope Does Happen

After Big Brother Season 25 ended, CBS shocked many fans by announcing a new spin-off series called Reindeer Games. Many and I were skeptical about this holiday-themed Big Brother show. It looked ridiculous, and we had already just spent 100 days with the past cast. I didn’t want Big Brother: Reindeer Games.

Thankfully, my naysayer ways were immediately shut down when I fell in love with this new holiday TV show. I wanted it to become a holiday tradition. Wanting more Big Brother after spending too much time with Big Brother? Blasphemy. So imagine my shock and disappointment when the Big Brother producers revealed that Reindeer Games wouldn’t return this holiday season.

However, they didn’t rule out the possibility of it returning at some point. That’s great but now I need a new Big Brother spin-off to tide me over until the upcoming season, and I have a suggestion.

I Want To See A Valentine’s Day Themed Spin-Off Big Brother Series

During Big Brother: Reindeer Games’ original run, fans suggested that CBS and Paramount make another holiday-themed spin-off. The idea became even more popular during Big Brother Season 26. Fans suggested a Valentine’s Day-themed spin-off called Big Brother: Cupid Games.

Big Brother Season 24 winner Taylor Hale also supported this idea by mentioning it in her interview with The Wrap.

The premise would involve showmances and Valentine’s Day-themed activities. It could air in February and have a similar competition focus as Reindeer Games but with love and romance-based challenges. I loved this idea because I already love Big Brother: Reindeer Games, so this would essentially be the same thing but with the complication (or perk) of couples competing together.

Some Great, Entertaining Couples From Past Seasons Could Appear On It

Julie Chen-Moonves loves to mention how Big Brother has a better marriage success rate than The Bachelor. As of 2024, Nine Big Brother couples from the North American franchise have been married, and at least eleven couples who met on Big Brother are still together. Also, there are a couple of pairs who married or dated players from other Big Brother seasons. The pool of potential couples is large enough that the Big Brother producers have plenty of options.

Additionally, the show could even maybe invite former couples who are still friends, such as Taylor Hale and Joseph Abdin, or get messy and invite former couples who are no longer friends.

Rubina Bernabe and Tucker Des Lauriers are the most recent showmance who became a real-life couple. They would be great candidates for a potential Cupid Games, especially given Tucker’s America’s Favorite Houseguest status, and because so many (myself included) loved Big Brother 26. We’re sure many would welcome the recent couple back. Then Derek Xiao was one of the stars of Big Brother: Reindeer Games Season 1 (with his hilarious hosting), so he and Claire Rehfuss also seem like a pretty guaranteed pair for this spin-off series.

Also as a newer Big Brother showmance turned couple America Lopez and Cory Wurtenberger could likely make an appearance. Classic Big Brother couples like Brendon Villegas and Rachel Reilly, and Jeff Schroeder and Jordan Lloyd seem guaranteed spots on this hypothetical showmance against showmance show. Big Brother should even look to their North American brothers and sisters by involving some Big Brother Canada couples.

Though Big Brother Canada is no longer available to stream on Paramount Plus, it was for a little while. This may have familiarized some Big Brother superfans with Canada’s past contestants and couples. Newlyweds Ika Wong and Demetres Giannitsos would be perfect candidates for Cupid Games.

Ika has vowed reality TV retirement but she may be tempted back for a brief competition series. A lot of these showmances turned real-life couples have at least one person in the pair with a big personality. It would be very fun seeing Derek, Tucker, Rachel, and Ika all on the same series. Those personalities together seem like potential chaos but in an entertaining manner.

This Spin-Off Might Fit Better Into The Winter Schedule

The main reason that Big Brother producers Rich Meehan and Allison Grodner gave for no Reindeer Games in 2024 was because it didn’t fit within CBS’s fall schedule. The CBS winter schedule, especially January and February, looks fairly full but that doesn’t necessarily mean it would be an impossible fit. CBS could even work some magic and make it a three or four-night event leading up to Valentine’s Day.

Additionally, some of us loved the exclusively online spin-off series Big Brother Over the Top. Therefore, we would gladly watch another online exclusive show. Cupid Games could be a Paramount Plus Original event for Valentine’s Day. If it’s successful, CBS could eventually air it on the network. NBC did something similar with The Traitors Season 2. After The Traitors became popular on Peacock, it aired episodes on NBC a little later.

Therefore, if Cupid Games received enough online attention, CBS could show it.

It Would Be A Good Buffer To Tide Fans Over Before The Next Season

I watch Big Brother and Big Brother Canada. Corus Entertainment recently canceled Big Brother Canada. The Canadian version usually aired from March to May, so fans who watched both shows only had a few months without Big Brother.

Now that the Canadian version is gone there is a huge gap before the next North American season. There is a lot of other reality TV that can be consumed between November and next June or July, but none of them hit the same level of devotion and temporary insanity as Big Brother. Even a shorter series, like another Reindeer Games type show, could give fans of the 24/7 reality TV show something to ease the wait.

I Want To See What The Competition Creators Come Up With

Big Brother: Reindeer Games had plenty of great competitions, including some we would love to see appear in a regular season. Additionally, I would like to believe that this spin-off series taught the producers some lessons that made Season 26 entertaining, including creating more equitable competitions.

Since Cupid Games would be all about couples competing, then we should see all, or mostly, activities that involve couples working together. Occasionally, Big Brother has created challenges with houseguests teaming up, but not often. This means we could see a lot of new competitions on Cupid Games, or reworking some old ones in creative ways. It would push the production team to be even more innovative with challenges.

We saw the magic that happened because of the Reindeer Games, I want to see what competition magic happens because of the Cupid Games.

This Series Could Open The Door For More Holiday-Themed Big Brother

Eleven couples is a lot, and there'd be more as more seasons air. However, there are probably not enough couples to make Big Brother: Cupid Games an annual event, unless the same couples continue to return (similar to The Challenge format). Therefore, a potential Cupid Games could be a one-and-done series or something that happens maybe every five years or so, when the pool of showmances increases. Reindeer Games is something that could have been annual because of such a large pool of former houseguests.

Since it’s not going to be an annual event, then maybe just holiday-themed Big Brother spin-off TV shows could become yearly events that happen at different times of the year. We could see Big Brother: Bunny Bash, Big Brother: March Madness, Big Brother: New Year Extravaganza, and so many more potential holidays. These series could become buffers between the end of the last season and the start of a new season.

I still want a Cupid Games series to happen first, and the return of Reindeer Games, but I would support any future holiday Big Brother spin-off series.

Stream Big Brother: Reindeer Games on Paramount Plus.