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Big Brother season 26 aired its special two-night premiere on Wednesday, July 17, and Thursday, July 18. It promised a cut-throat competition, with 16 participants competing against each other for a chance to win $750,000.
While the first part of the premiere saw eight contestants enter the Big Brother house, the other eight cast members were featured on the second night. Both groups cast their votes to decide on the entry of a seventeenth participant, Ainsley. As the results were announced, it was revealed that Ainsley was not granted entry into the Big Brother house.
It was soon disclosed that Ainsley was the BB AI and not a contestant. Contestants who voted for her entry participated in a challenge to earn an upgrade. In contrast, the ones who voted "no," participated in another challenge, which would give the loser a downgrade. Chelsie and Cedric failed to outperform the others in the tasks, earning downgrades on nights one and two, respectively.
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Consequently, Chelsie and Cedric would not be allowed to volunteer for the Head of Household or have the Power of Veto. They could also get nominated for eviction but would not be able to nominate others.
Big Brother fans took to X to express their opinions on the downgrade. They disapproved of it as it threatened Chelsie and Cedric's positions in the house.
"That downgrade is way too harsh. #bb26," a netizen wrote.
"This isn't a downgrade, this is f**king destruction. They have no vote for people to lobby for, they have no chance at power. This is week 1. What are we doing? #BB26," a fan tweeted.
"this downgrade is kinda crazy and it sets them up to be an easy target to evict like omg #bb26," one person wrote.
Big Brother season 26 fans were not in favor of the downgrade twist. They felt it was unjust to make the cast members vulnerable right after they entered the house.
"Chelsie and Cedric please hang in there. Ainsley when I find you it's on site!! #BB26," another person wrote.
"#bb26 The HOH basically has to nominate Cedric and Chelsea. They can't play for veto or vote! Talk about putting production's thumb on the scale..." a netizen tweeted.
"Damnnn Chelsea and Cedric that sucks #BB26," one person wrote.
Viewers of the CBS show stated that since Cedric and Chelsie had no power, the other houseguests could easily nominate them for eviction.
"Me when Cedric and Chelsea r OBVIOUSLY the first two nominated #bb26," a fan commented.
"I would be sick rn if I were Chelsea or Cedric bc not being eligible to play HoH or Veto, and have no vote is insaneee #bb26," one person tweeted.
"So Cedric and Chelsea going on the block first #bb26," a fan wrote.
Chelsie and Cedric become BB AI Mascots in Big Brother season 26
Chelsie, Cam, Tucker, and Kimo voted against Ainsley's entry into the Big Brother house on night one. They were given a task where they had to put their heads inside a box filled with insects and restructure the jumbled word written inside. Chelsie struggled to find the correct answers. She finished the game with the slowest time, earning herself the downgrade.
On the second night, Big Brother cast members Cedric, Brooklyn, Kenny, Lisa, Matt, and T-Kor voted against Ainsley's arrival. Meanwhile, Leah and Quinn voted for her entry. The contestants who voted "no" were challenged in another game. The players had to use their faces to move discs through a maze within 60 seconds.
The player who collected the least number of discs would get downgraded. Cedric struggled to move the discs and recorded the slowest time out of everyone. As a result, he received a downgrade disadvantage.
After the challenges ended, the two groups of cast members reunited. Big Brother's AI Ainsley greeted the houseguests and revealed the disadvantages that Chelsie and Cedric garnered.
The two were stripped of their right to vote during the eviction. However, they could be nominated for eviction by other cast members. They were also ineligible to compete for Head of Household, lost their Power of Veto, and were transformed into BB AI Mascots. The mascots could only watch the other contestants compete.
The revelation surprised the Big Brother viewers since it put Chelsie and Cedric's spots in the house at risk.
Big Brother season 26 will air new episodes on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 9 pm ET only on CBS.
