With Big Brother 26 over, the fans and production team are looking ahead to Big Brother 27. However, we can’t forget the past season’s iconic and groundbreaking nature. Not only did it have a very likable set of houseguests but it introduced one of the series’ best twists. The AI Arena was this twist of course.
It made the game unpredictable, led to some great live moments, and helped keep a big alliance from dominating. Big Brother 26 was a game-changer season. And it looks like Big Brother producers Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan recognize that this twist is one reason the season worked so well.
In an interview with EW, the producers discussed plans for Big Brother 27, including the AI Arena returning in some form. They also discussed the idea’s inception. Meehan and Grodner recognized that Thursday’s episodes needed some innovation. They had become stale since the Head of Household competitions were removed from live episodes.
The Big Brother bosses wanted to add some excitement back into Thursdays, so the AI Arena was born. Grodner and Meehan also wanted to inject more surprises into Thursday’s live shows. Meehan made the following statement to Entertainment Weekly about the intentions and outcome of the AI Arena.
It made the live show more unpredictable. It created kind of a must-see event of what’s going to happen, and hopefully it was part of the reason why we didn’t have one-sided votes. The live show was more dramatic. From a viewer’s perspective, you never know what’s going to happen, which is really the goal.
Everyone’s unexpected Holiday favorite, Reindeer Games, also contributed to the creation of the AI Arena. The Big Brother producers also revealed that the importance of competitions on that series made them want to add competitions with the same importance and impact. Grodner and Meehan ended their interview confirming plans to bring the AI Arena back but different from the original AI Arena.
I think the AI arena was a big success, and we’ve learned a lot from it, I think it’s something that as we look towards the summer, nothing’s ever going to be exactly the same. We love mixing things up. But I think the essence of that, it’s very likely to be carried forward.
Grodner’s statement also implies that a three-nominee format with a Thursday night fight to save yourself competition may become a staple in the franchise, similar to the Veto Competition.
Are you happy a version of the AI Arena will likely return for Big Brother 27? Let us know in the comments.