Big Brother All-Stars Is Already Getting Controversial Ahead Of Season 22 Premiere

Julie Chen Big Brother CBS

Big Brother All-Stars hasn't even premiered yet, and things are already getting messy for contestants alleged to be heading into the house. Specifically, Season 18 winner Nicole Franzel found herself at the center of massive controversy Sunday night and facing allegations that she acted as a "spy" for CBS production to obtain a roster spot on the show. That alone was tantalizing enough for fans to bite, but when it was alleged that her actions led to winners Dan Gheesling and Derrick Levasseur being uninvited, things quickly spiraled out of control.

As Big Brother lovers may remember, Nicole Franzel was part of some rumors weeks ago when Dick Donato alleged she was upset about not being invited to Big Brother All-Stars. The story since then (which came from Twitter account @Dylandoez) was that Nicole agreed to act as a spy for the production team, and was said to join "pre-game" chats in which invited players were discussing strategy. Nicole then allegedly told CBS production that Derrick and Dan were discussing game ahead of the season and was given one of the spots they lost.

It seemed like a wild theory at first, and to be frank, suspicious due to it coming from an account not typically known within the Big Brother spoiler fold. Nevertheless, the theory gained some real steam when it was quote-tweeted by Derrick Levasseur himself, who said the following.

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Derrick confirmed he wasn't happy with Nicole Franzel, but disputed all the talk regarding a "group chat" that discussed pre-game. Fans began to react by calling Nicole a snake for her actions and took Derrick's statement as potential proof that Nicole flat out made the whole scenario up to get herself on the show at the expense of others. It seems like Derrick saw some of those theories and later clarified the situation in a follow-up tweet.

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It's a bit of a whiplash follow-up from Derrick, who essentially clarified that he's mad at Nicole Franzel but said that she has nothing to do with why he isn't on Big Brother All-Stars. That was backed up by Swaggy C, who tweeted that Derrick had told him in a conversation a month prior that his daughter didn't want him to go. So is Derrick mad at Nicole because of something related to Big Brother All-Stars, or something else?

This is just pure speculation on my end, but to go back to Dick Donato's tweet about Nicole Franzel back on June 16th, Derrick Levasseur and Dan Gheesling weren't mentioned in the tweet. The story was that Nicole Franzel complained to CBS after learning about Big Brother All-Stars from Paul Abrahamian and Josh Martinez. Amidst all this drama, Paul has confirmed he's not participating in Season 22.

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Is it possible Nicole made a call to CBS that resulted in people being uninvited for breaking non-disclosure agreements? Anything is possible, though Paul didn't mention Nicole as a factor in his sitting out. It's also been heavily rumored that Josh Martinez will be in Big Brother All-Stars, so it wouldn't make much sense that Josh got to stay but Paul didn't.

The main takeaway is that no one seems to have any real answer as to what's going on, and why Nicole and Derrick would have beef. If it is tied to Big Brother All-Stars in some way, the truth may come out, but in the meantime, it seems like Nicole is not guilty of some of the rumors presently swirling about her. Hopefully, we can get a cast reveal soon if only to keep these small rumors from spiraling out of control.

Big Brother All-Stars will premiere Wednesday, August 5 with a live two-hour move in starting at 9:00 p.m. ET. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on the reality series, and other news happening in the world of television and movies.

Mick Joest
Content Producer

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.