Big Brother 28

Format

Big Brother follows a group of contestants, known as HouseGuests, who live inside a custom-built house outfitted with cameras and microphones recording their every move 24 hours a day. The HouseGuests are sequestered with no contact with the outside world. During their stay, the HouseGuests share their thoughts on their day-to-day lives inside the house in a private room known as the Diary Room. Each week, the HouseGuests compete in competitions in order to win power and safety inside the house. At the start of each week, the Houseguests compete in a Head of Household (abbreviated as "HOH") competition. The winner of the HoH competition is immune from eviction and selects three HouseGuests to be nominated for eviction.

Six HouseGuests are then selected to compete in the Power of Veto (abbreviated as "PoV") competition: the reigning HoH, the nominees, and other players selected by random draw. The winner of the PoV competition has the right to either revoke the nomination of one of the nominated HouseGuests or leave them as is. If the veto winner uses this power, the HoH must immediately nominate another HouseGuest for eviction. The PoV winner is also immune from being named as the replacement nominee.

On eviction night, the three nominated HouseGuests compete in the BB Block Buster competition to be immediately removed off the block. The two remaining HouseGuests face the house vote for possible eviction.

All HouseGuests vote to evict one of the nominees, though the Head of Household and the nominees are not allowed to vote. This vote is conducted in the privacy of the Diary Room. The nominee with the most votes is evicted from the house. In the event of a tie, the Head of Household publicly casts the tie-breaking vote in front of their fellow HouseGuests. The last seven evicted HouseGuests comprise the Jury and are sequestered in a separate location following their eviction. The Jury is only allowed to see the competitions and ceremonies that include all of the remaining HouseGuests; they are not shown any interviews or other footage that might include strategy or details regarding nominations. Once there are only two remaining HouseGuests, the Jury will vote between the two to pick the season's winner. The viewing public is able to award an additional prize by choosing "America's Favorite HouseGuest", with the award being worth $50,000. All Houseguests are eligible to win this award except for those who either voluntarily leave or are forcibly removed for rule violations.

Format changes and additions

A new twist known as the "BB Time Capsule" was introduced in the second week; through the seventh week, a HouseGuest determined by a weekly viewer vote will be sent into the eponymous room to attempt a challenge; if they are successful, they will earn a power reprised from a previous season of Big Brother. If unsuccessful, they will likewise receive a punishment from a past season. Each HouseGuest is only eligible to win the vote once. The "BB Block Buster" also returned.

HouseGuests

The initial cast of 14 contestants was revealed on July 7, 2026. Among the HouseGuests is Jason De Puy, a drag queen who performs under the stage name Salina EsTitties, who competed on the fifteenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race and the eleventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars. A few other HouseGuests had made previous appearances on reality television: Drew Campbell, son of rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Buzz Campbell, previously appeared on season one of Beast Games, Let's Make a Deal, America Says, The Hot Seat, and The Price Is Right, Lyric Medeiros, daughter of American singer Glenn Medeiros, appeared on season 21 of American Idol, and Yash Patel appeared on The Quiz with Balls in 2025. Around the same time, Campbell was also one of fifty finalists to compete on Wonka's The Golden Ticket, but was not chosen as a contestant.

Entertainment Weekly later revealed Survivor: Edge of Extinction and Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans castaway Rick Devens would be competing on the season. Former Big Brother 26 contestant Angela Murray was also announced to be participating on the season. During the first episode of Big Brother: Unlocked, Survivor 45 winner, The Challenge: Vets & New Threats contestant, and Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans castaway Dee Valladares was announced as the final HouseGuest of the season.

Men's Journal had erroneously reported that Levi Banks, a 28-year-old winery executive from Pilot Mountain, North Carolina was set to compete on the season. Through his personal Instagram account, Banks revealed that he voluntarily withdrew before entering the house.

Episodes

Notes

Voting history

Color key:

Notes

Production

Development

On May 13, 2026, CBS announced that Big Brother 28 would premiere on July 9, 2026. Julie Chen Moonves teased in April 2026 that the theme of the season was "brilliant" enough that she asked the producers why they had not done it before. On July 1, 2026, the theme was revealed as "Time Trip", promoted as "turning time into the ultimate twist" and "where history is rewritten and anything is possible"; the house featured rooms and "relics" themed after specific time periods and time itself, including a "living room of eras", a futuristic room with sleep pods, a clockwork-themed bathroom, and a hallway of "failed inventions" (including a keytar, pogo stick, and the "Time Laser" from Big Brother 25). A new twist known as the "BB Time Capsule" provided the opportunity for contestants to receive powers or punishments revived from previous seasons.

On August 27, 2026, Big Brother became the first U.S. primetime television series to reach 1,000 episodes. The episode featured retrospectives on the show's history, and presentations of viewer-voted awards for memorable houseguests and moments, including Dan Gheesling winning the awards for best winner (Big Brother 10) and best moment (Big Brother 14's "funeral"), and Janelle Pierzina winning the award for best non-winning houseguest.

Release

Broadcast

The season premiered on CBS on July 9, 2026. Thereafter, new episodes air on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with Wednesday night episodes lasting 90 minutes long. Big Brother: Unlocked also returned bi-weekly on Friday nights throughout the season with a live studio audience. On June 30, it was announced that Jerry O'Connell would joining previous hosts Taylor Hale and Derrick Levasseur on Unlocked. Additionally, CBS teased that they would launch a new interactive fan vote during these episodes.

Streaming

Following its broadcast, new episodes stream on Paramount+ and CBS On Demand. As with previous seasons, Paramount+ is also providing access to 24/7 live feeds. The live feeds also stream on Pluto TV in a free advertisement-supported format. Live feeds, for the first time, stream on YouTube for limited period following each episode.

Critical response

Kamu Kirk's controversies

Viewers criticized houseguest Kamu Kirk following anti-drag remarks he made on live feeds. During Week 2, Kirk and Rick Devens, the Head of Household, reacted to fellow houseguests Barrett Pfeiffer and Drew Campbell wearing unicorn-themed garments around the house. After Devens asked Kirk if Pfeiffer and Campbell were dressed in "women's clothes", Kirk responded with "I said, 'Bro, miss me with that drag stuff. Miss me. I'm still an MMA guy, and I have an image to uphold.'"

Viewers and alumni criticized Kirk's response with the awareness of houseguest Jason De Puy's drag queen history. Alumni such as Big Brother 15 winner Andy Herren, Big Brother 23 runner-up Derek Frazier, and Big Brother 27 winner Ashley Hollis criticized Kirk's comments on live feeds.

Big Brother 16 alum Frankie Grande, also friends with De Puy, criticized Kirk's remarks on X and called Kirk and Devens' exchange "homophobia incarnate." Initially critical of Devens in the exchange, Grande wrote, "Regardless, men behaving in a repulsed or shocked way when a man dresses feminine or in women's clothing is homophobic. Period." Big Brother 27 alum Jimmy Heagerty also criticized Kirk's comments on X, calling Kirk "disgusting" and "the opposite of masculinity." Heagerty wrote, "Nobody's forcing you to get in drag, nobody's forcing you to wear unicorn pajamas, and if you don't wanna wear it, you can just shut the fuck up."

In week 3 of the season, during Kirk's reign as Head of Household, a December 2025 video on Kirk's Instagram account resurfaced on social media of him mocking George Floyd's murder in 2020. In a video visible in his profile's highlights, Kirk is shown recording an incident of a person being arrested, who is heard saying "I can't breathe" numerous times. Kirk mocks the person and says, "Bro thinks he's George Floyd." At the end of the video, he makes a remark about taking the parking spot in the police's vicinity. Viewers criticized Kirk's resurfaced video and called for his expulsion from the show.

In week 5, Kirk was discussing the idea of children with fellow houseguests Rick Devens, Yash Patel, and Melody Morris, the latter of whom expressed a desire to be childless. Kirk spoke to the cameras, encouraging viewers to message Morris baby emojis, stating "We're getting you pregnant, whether you like it or not". He later told her about his sister, who initially did not want children, but now has a family. This led to further backlash online as viewers criticized the statements. In interviews, Kirk stated he "[didn't] remember that comment being made" and that it was "purely a joke".