Jonathan Bennett on Being the First Evicted From ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ Season 2
Q&A
In a move that was anything but fetch, actor and host Jonathan Bennett was the first houseguest evicted on Season 2 of Celebrity Big Brother.
This came after a number of curveballs being thrown at the cast early in the game — perhaps none bigger than former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci being revealed as a fake Houseguest.
Coming off the Mean Girls star’s unexpected exit, Bennett reviews what might went wrong and who he wants to win the $250,000.
Peel back the curtain a bit, let us know what happened after you exited the house.
Jonathan Bennett: After you exit the house you have no phone, no wallet, no nothing. My boyfriend is out of town right now doing a job, so my agent picked me up from the lot and took me to my good friend Marissa Winokur’s house. I’m currently at Marissa’s, the former Celebrity Big Brother winner. I’m currently at her house laying in a bed surrounded by golden doodles. It’s the best place to decompress after that. If you lose Celebrity Big Brother, you run to the former winner’s house to decompress.
Jonathan Bennett playing Veto Comp “Celebrity Giddy Up!” (Photo: CBS)
Before we get into everything that happened, how did you prepare going into the show? What was your expectations?
I had no expectations going into Big Brother other than I wanted to do a bunch of challenges and have fun. I just wanted to go in and have a good time That’s what I did, so I’m extremely happy that I got the opportunity to go in and be part of the CBS Big Brother family.
It seemed like you were pretty much the most enthusiastic person to be there in the house. You saw that in your face. Do you think that outward excitement hindered you a little bit because they saw how much you wanted to be there, how much background you had in knowing the show?
I was a huge fan of the show, but I was just a fan of being in that experience. I’m so grateful to play. It seemed like having gratitude and excitement for life was not the best strategy in that house. I should maybe not have been showing that excitement maybe, I don’t know. I don’t know if I was more excited to be there or was one of the only people who understood what a veto meant.
(Photo: Monty Brinton/CBS)
It did seem like you had to explain the game to some of the houseguests.
To everyone all I did was explain the game, but at the end of the day, it was the right thing to do. I could have said nothing to everyone. I could have acted dumb and not explained how everything worked, but that wasn’t the right thing to do. It’s being a good human. Forget Big Brother — as a human being, you want to do the right thing. And that’s what I felt like I did.
Now that you’ve had more time to think about what happened, is there anything you would have done differently?
I think where it went wrong was that first twist and when I won the first [Head of Household] and was put on the block. That’s where everything went wrong because my plan to just stay under the radar and try to float a little bit became impossible because when you compete with an Olympic athlete, he is not not going to win a competition. So, by winning is how I lost. Then when I was put on the block within a few hours of being in the house, that put a target on my back.
If I didn’t win the first HOH, I probably would have stayed quieter and might still be living in the house. However, sticking my neck out for Dina Lohan was the best decision I have ever done, and I would do it again because it’s just the right thing to do as a human being when you’re playing a game like that. It’s Lindsay’s mom, I grew up with her. You don’t throw your childhood friend’s mom under the boss on Celebrity Big Brother. You protect her as much as you can.
Do you think you’re going to be friends with Ryan outside the house?
I literally had dreams about Ryan Lochte. My first night out of the house I had dreams that Ryan and I were still forming an alliance in a way to save both of us and get us out of the house. It’s safe to say me and Lochte are going to be bromos for life.
Who do you think will win this season?
I would like it to be Dina Lohan. I really would for two reasons. One, she has done so much for all of her kids and put them in the spotlight. It would be nice for her to have a chance in the spotlight now, let her shine for once. That would be amazing. The other reason is she is the Marissa — nobody pays any attention to her or thinks she is any type of threat. And all the mean girls are going to start imploding in on each other because everyone is attacking the game so physically and aggressively that it could cause a disastrous outcome for them in the end.
L-R: Ryan Lochte and Jonathan Bennett. Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS
If you had a Burn Book on your housemates, who would be the first on your list?
If I had a Burn Book, I would definitely put the mean girls of the house and the alliance in it.
What’s next? Would you do another reality show after this?
I would love to do another reality show. Anyone reading this, send the offers my way because I love entertaining America. It’s one of my favorite things to do, and I feel like I didn’t get a chance to do it for as long as I’d hoped. After this I go to Supergirl for an arc. It’s fun. I think I’m going to also host more of MTV’s Lohan Beach Club after shows.
View this post on Instagram
It’s great you and Lindsay are close after all these years. We’ve heard interest from Lindsay and Tina Fey in a potential Mean Girls sequel. With the Broadway musical so popular and celebration of Mean Girls Day, is now the time for the next chapter?
I think it is time to do Mean Girls 2. The fans want it. Everyone wants it. I think it is time to for a sequel. It’s time to bring Cady and Aaron back together.
Big Brother next airs Sunday, January 27, 8/7c, CBS
