Danielle reacts to Britney's savage “Big Brother Reindeer Games” move

Cody also discusses his early exit and how stacking his team backfired.

They showed up in ugly Christmas sweaters, but when all was said and done, their showings on Big Brother Reindeer Games were a bit ugly themselves. Cameron Hardin, Cody Calafiore, and Danielle Reyes were the first three players eliminated on CBS’ reality spin-off.

Cameron didn’t have much of a chance to begin with, as he was immediately targeted by the group since he was fresh out of the Big Brother house and didn’t have any friendships among the players. Cody went next after stocking his team with competition beats for the second Jingle Bell Brawl. But when his side lost, that meant he had to go up against Frankie Grande and Xavier Prather to save his skin, and could not.

But the most brutal of the eliminations occurred on Thursday’s episode when a hamster wheel maze was introduced with a diabolical twist: The first person to compete would be eliminated if they could not complete it in under five minutes and thirty seconds. However, if they were successful, the next person would have a minute less time to do it. And every successive person would have one minute less than the person before, with this continuing until someone was eliminated.

Frankie, Xavier, and Britney Haynes were all successful. When Taylor Hale volunteered to go next before even more time was taken away, it appeared Britney would choose her, but after Xavier explained he chose Britney to go to protect Danielle, Britney made a savage move to take out the season 3 fan favorite — selecting her to complete the puzzle in only two minutes and thirty seconds. It was a death sentence, and Danielle was indeed eliminated.

How does Danielle feel about Britney’s big move. We spoke to her and Cody to get their thoughts on season 1 of the surprisingly entertaining Big Brother Reindeer Games and getting sent Ho-Ho-Home from the house.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Let’s talk about Britney. What did you make of her decision to put you in there with only two minutes and thirty seconds to finish that hamster wheel maze, pretty much knowing she was giving you a death sentence by doing so?

DANIELLE REYES: Yeah, I was completely shocked that she put me in there. Britney and I — that was my ride or die. She was my person. The person that I was wanting to go to the finals with was Britney. And so when she put me in, it was very shocking. So I think that's probably why I didn't do so well in the comp, because I couldn't get my head around that this friend of mine put me in this game knowing that I was not going to come back.

So it was very difficult for me during that time because people don't understand. I've always loved Britney in her original seasons and it broke my heart. I was devastated, and I actually teared up when I watched her season when the Brigade told her about their alliance and seeing her cry. It was very hard for me to watch.

I always had this undying love for her, and so when I finally got to meet her, when we did the laser thing for Big Brother 25, I felt like this was my person. I cherished her. We had a relationship outside the game, and so I felt that she was a dear friend going into the game. And we spoke and I looked at her in her face and I said, “I will give you my undying word on the love of my grandkid that I will work with you in this house.”

So it was very devastating for me. And even when I came out the house, I just didn't understand why she did what she did. And it was like I kept playing it in my head. I was like, “What happened?” So yeah, that's how I dealt with it. I understand she did it for game purposes, and she said she had thoughts or feelings about me in the house, but again, my feelings were based on my relationship outside the game. So that's where I stand with her decision making. Like I said, I was hurt. I was taken aback by it.

And even when she went in on [the wheel], I cried because I didn't think Britney was coming back in the house. I really thought my person was gone. When she came back, I was elated. That blindside was something else, so it was very hard for me.

Did you blame Xavier at all for telling Britney he put her in there to protect you? Do you think that's what moved the needle?

DANIELLE: In the beginning of the episode, her and Nicole already had reservations about me. And what so funny about that is I was so adamant — and if you look at Big Brother history in general, all the Big Brother female winners don't get the flowers that they deserve. As always, they have to be in a showmance or they have to be sitting next to another woman. Nicole changed that with the historic win over Paul.

So Britney knew how adamant I was for women to be united and actually work together. And we were outnumbered in this game. So before we even knew Reindeer Games was going to happen, her and I talk, and she knew how passionate I was about females sticking together. And I talked about what she went through, what Diane went through, what Keisha went through. It was so important to me personally that females will stay together. Of course, we might have some females get kicked out, and that's expected, but for me, when I live in that house, my main goal was for a female to get to the end with me, and Britney was my person. So it was very shocking, to say the least.

I didn't blame Xavier. I know he had good intentions. I believe his thought process was he suspected Britney and I were working together, and so by him telling her “I did it to protect her,” he thought that that will solidify her, protecting me. She knew he was protecting me. And so not once did he think that she was going to actually put me in. When he went and told her that, I think he was trying to say, “Hey, I didn't know you and Danielle are close,” and he thought she was going to be like, “Great, you and I are with Danielle! Let's work together.”

I don't blame Xavier because when a person plays a game like that, they have in their mind what they want to do. And in a house like that, he just basically gave her justification for what she really wanted to do. I think she used that as an excuse to solidify what she wanted to do, because in her mind, I think she wanted to get rid of me from the jump, quite frankly.

What did you make watching the episode back last night and seeing the reaction of Taylor and Xavier when you were eliminated?

DANIELLE: I guess for me, it's hard. You don't realize where you fit in your role in the Big Brother world. It was hard for me to watch that because I didn't realize what impact I had on a game. I just figured I'm Danielle, and I'm just here to play the game and to see that…. The admiration I have for Xavier and Taylor is beyond what anyone can understand, and for them to react that way….  I'm getting choked up just thinking about it. It was nice. I love them.

Cody, you stacked your team, or so you thought, for that second Jingle Bell Brawl. Was there ever a thought to put some competitors on your team that you felt you might have an easier time beating in the Santa’s Showdown competition should you all lose the team challenge?

CODY CALAFIORE: I was definitely thinking about that. I was weighing all options. When I spoke to Xavier, there were a lot of different things that were running through my head. I was like: Okay, do I play and protect myself for a loss, or do I play like the entire house is coming after me? So it's like I can either play nice and set myself up to possibly beat some people in Santa’s Showdown, but we had no idea how it was going to play out in Santa’s Showdown. We didn't know. All we knew was at the winning team is safe and determined who's in Santa’s Showdown. We didn't know if it was going to be all four people, two people, three people. We found that out after the competition.

So I was like: I can play this one of two ways. I can play it safe, or I can just be like, everybody on the other side are really people that I know won't protect me. I kind of rolled with it that way. And quite frankly, you could just tell that the women had banded together. It's not a secret. And so I really wanted to go into it with Frankie, X, Josh — I wanted to pull all four of us on a team and just ride with it

But then it's like everything weighs on you. It's like: Okay, well, how will that be perceived? It's like, “Oh, what? Does he just want to do a guy's team? He thinks women are weak.” So I was like, alright, let me bring Nicole over. I've already dogged her a little bit.

With Josh, even though I just had met him, he was honest. I said something the day before, I was like, “Bro, is everybody coming for me and am I going to have to battle every day?” And he goes, “Yes, you are. Everybody's coming for you.” And so it was kind of weighing those options of do I play it safe and ultimately play to lose, or do I play to win and keep people safe and then send other people down there and possibly save Josh? You go big or you go home. And unfortunately I went big and I went home.

What did you make of Britney and Taylor coming after you so early?

CODY: Danielle was saying it. Nicole was saying it. Britney was saying it. Taylor was saying it. I feel like people needed and wanted to hear that there were numbers to get me out. They needed to know, “Okay, there's multiple people.” Britney would've never given me the disadvantage if she didn't feel comfortable enough with a big group of people behind her. People made her comfortable enough to put me as a disadvantage without even knowing what it was.

So I kind of had that feeling, but I was kind of just hoping to win competitions and keep myself there. But very early on, the whole aspect of disadvantages and the sabotage competition, to be 100% honest, I checked out of that after I won All Stars. I was like, I don't want this. I don't feel like sabotaging people. I feel bad now. It's weird to say, but I don't want to hurt people's feelings.

Danielle asking to be on my team and not being able to have her on my team, I went into the DR and was not happy. I was like, “Guys, this is ridiculous.” I cared more about hurting Danielle's feelings than about the game. I cared more about people's feelings in there than I did about really doing what I needed to do and backstabbing all people that I knew were coming after me. So it's like when you're in that mentality, the blood's in the water, man, then these women are sharks. These are great whites that they put in the house coming after me.

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