American idols, Big Brother guests and TV chefs: 11 SouthCoast people who nailed it on TV

It may be hard to believe, but the modern age of reality TV is about to turn a quarter-century old, with CBS celebrating the 25th season of hit show “Big Brother.”

The long-running reality series locks a group of ordinary people in a house together, cuts them off from the outside world, and records them 24 hours a day, with houseguests periodically voting to evict one member until only one is left to win the competition. Before the premiere of Season 25 on Aug. 2, Entertainment Tonight’s Nischelle Turner hosted a 25th anniversary special that aired Wednesday, July 26, with archival footage from 24 seasons of the show from ET’s vault. The special has clips featuring everything from big fights to marriage proposals, exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes details, and other jaw-dropping moments — and a few house secrets.

Greater Fall River has seen a few locals become shooting stars in the reality TV firmament. Here are 11 people who made it big on the small screen:

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Brooke Torres: “True Life: I’m Too Beautiful” — MTV, 2013

MTV aired the documentary series “True Life” from 1998 to 2017, following people on subjects from drug addiction to being a competitive eater. Torres, a Fall River native, was on episode 280, “I’m Too Beautiful,” which aired June 1, 2013. She learned that reality TV is often less like reality and more like TV, telling The Herald News later that the episode wasn’t what she expected — she had hoped it would show her being a confident young woman and working to not be judged by her appearance. Instead, she said, the show was “about my boyfriend being jealous.” The network’s description of the episode says it follows “two young knockouts … trying to overcome the resentments and jealousies that are making them miserable every day.” Even if her episode didn’t turn out the way she’d hoped, Torres said at the time that she didn’t regret appearing on the show: “Now I have a chance to prove myself even more.”

Jason Roy: “Big Brother” — CBS, 2015

A Swansea native, Roy was a “BB” super-fan before becoming a houseguest on Season 17 of the show. “Jason may be short and skinny, but this Massachusetts boy has got a big mouth on him," was how the official cast list described him, adding that he planned on forming an “all-female alliance.” Roy described much of his time in the BB house as tedious, saying he wasn’t able to read, watch TV, use the internet — “pretty much like being locked in a parking lot with prison walls,” he told The Herald News later. After spending 43 days having his every moment recorded (with cameras even in the bathroom), Roy was evicted from the house — the fifth person of 16 to go. But he enjoyed his experience, and was popular enough to win entry into “Big Brother: Over The Top,” a 10-episode online-only spinoff in 2016. In that show, Roy fared much better, coming in second place.

Courtney Silva: “Spring Baking Championship” — Food Network, 2017

This graduate of Bristol Community College’s Baking and Pastry Arts program appeared on this Food Network cooking competition with a chance to win $50,000. Silva baked tarts, brownies, cookies, doughnuts and an Easter bunny cake, each time impressing judges and getting closer to ultimate victory, but ended up being sent home two episodes from the finals after her deconstructed chocolate mousse with pie crust cookies didn’t make the grade against an unimaginative bread pudding. At the time, viewers were shocked by the result, and even she was frustrated by it. Still, she came away with positive memories, though admitted at the time it wasn’t easy: “It was the best and the hardest experiences I’ve had in my life.”

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Elleni and Terry Skarpos, and Matthew and Joanne Medeiros: “Nailed It! Holiday!” — Netflix, 2018

An episode of Netflix’s hilarious goodies-gone-wrong baking competition featured not one but four locals, for a show titled “A Family A-fail": Elleni and Terry Skarpos of Somerset, of Gus’s Pizza fame, and Matthew and Joanne Medeiros of Fall River. "Nailed It!” has three teams of amateur bakers try to reproduce elaborately decorated cakes and confections with disastrous results — and though there’s money at stake, the show is more about having fun with fondant than about the competition. Though everyone had fun, neither of the local duos won the day.

Samantha Pacheco: “Say Yes to the Dress” — TLC, 2020

This reality TV show on TLC, with 20 seasons and 25 national and international spinoffs, follows the crew at Kleinfeld Bridal in Manhattan as they fit brides for the perfect wedding dress. Fall River native Samantha Pacheco (then Moniz) made it onto the show after losing over 100 pounds and becoming fitter, healthier and happier. She appeared on an episode in season 19 titled “She Popped the Thigh at Me,” where TLC says “Bride Samantha has mastered her weight-loss goals, but now she has to convince her mum to like the dress.”

Jack Colton McGrath: “American Idol” — ABC, 2018

Arguably one of the best-known reality TV shows, “American Idol” sees thousands of contestants strive for musical glory in a fierce nationwide competition. Durfee High graduate Jack Colton McGrath was one of them in 2018, a singer and guitarist known in the local music scene who made it past regional auditions and as far as the top 48 before being eliminated in the final solo rounds of Hollywood Week. McGrath still performs locally. At the time, he said being on “American Idol” was “something I will carry with me for the rest of my life and has changed my music career forever for the better.”

Melissa Teixeira: “Hillbilly Handfishin'” — Animal Planet, 2012

The short-lived reality show ”Hillbilly Handfishin’” took city slickers to rural Oklahoma, where they learned the ancient art of “noodling” — catching catfish by jumping in muddy water and pulling them out by hand. Fall River native and model Melissa Teixeira was one participant who got down and dirty, along with her friend, fellow model Tabby Lovestock. She told The Herald News at the time: “I’ve been all over the world. … It was one of my favorite things to do.”

Delaney Wilson: “American Idol" — ABC, 2022

Delaney Wilson, a Somerset Berkley graduate who went viral on TikTok as the "singing babysitter," found her way from the East Coast to Hollywood. Secretly filmed singing "Part of Your World" from Disney's "The Little Mermaid," Wilson was invited by "American Idol" producers to audition for the show. She auditioned live in front of Luke Bryant, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, but did not advance past the first round. She told The Herald News, “’American Idol’ has always been a big part of my family since I was little," and noted in an Instagram post after her audition that “I am beyond grateful for this experience and all the opportunities it has put upon me. ... There ain't no way this is the last of me."

Dan Medeiros can be reached at dmedeiros@heraldnews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Herald News today.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Reality TV on the SouthCoast: American Idol, Big Brother cast and more