These Are the Controversial Comments That Made Big Brother 21's Finale Awkward

From Oprah Magazine

At the end of a long day, sometimes the best way to feel like you're living your best life is with some comfy PJ's, a glass of wine, and gratuitous reality television. In our series "Not-So-Guilty Pleasures," we remove the "guilt" and break down the latest happenings in your favorite TV indulgences.

• During the September 25 finale of Big Brother 21, Jackson Michie won and took home the $500,000 grand prize.

• But his win was mired with accusations of racism, bullying, and misogyny surrounding the season.

• What did Jackson (and the rest of the cast) say that was so controversial?

After winning a total of 10 competitions, acting as a member of the alliance dubbed "Gr8tful," pulling off what could be the ultimate manipulation of the summer, and making it to the final two with his showmance partner Holly Allen, Jackson Michie was officially crowned the winner of Big Brother 21. Yes, with a jury vote of 6 to 3, the 24-year-old Nashville server took home the $500,000 prize.

But unlike the 23 BB victors that have come before him, after Julie Chen Moonves announced his name—and he walked out to celebratory confetti—a crestfallen Jackson did not look like a guy who'd just won half a million dollars. Why? Because just moments before his triumph, Moonves informed him that in the eyes of some viewers, his reasoning for targeting David, Ovi, and Kemi in the early days of the game was because they were minorities.

This was in addition to Ovi admitting he witnessed bullying while in the house, David confessing that he observed "implicit bias," Kemi calling for the houseguests to become better people, and women on the jury admitting they felt degraded and condescended to by Jackson. So yeah, all of that made for a super awkward finale night—and a timid winner.

To many who watch Big Brother's 24/7 live feeds, the questioning and confrontation of hard-to-talk about topics served as retribution for a disappointing season made up of a cast that was—honestly—incredibly disliked. But to viewers who solely tune in to the show three nights a week, the latter half of the finale seemed a bit random, depressing, and uncalled for. In fact, Moonves was getting so much hate for her line of questioning that she restricted Instagram comments on a post. An example of warring viewer perspectives? That's where Twitter comes in handy.

So for those who are a little lost, and for those who need a refresher, this is exactly why Big Brother 21's finale was...what it was.

What did Jackson Michie even say in the first place?

Let's start out with Jackson, as his was the win that ended up mired in controversy. Honestly, it all started on day one, when he and the rest of the "Gr8tful" alliance began to target the eventual Came Comeback members: David, Ovi, and Kemi. It was not missed by viewers that they all were people of color, with many of the attacks seeming to go beyond game, turning a bit personal and malicious.

Jackson had a particularly contentious relationship with David. He was caught on live feeds saying about the photographer: "I f*cking hate that dude;" "I want to mule kick him in the teeth," "I'm gonna find out what makes him tick and torture him;" I'm gonna own his soul;" "he is the cancer of the house;" and "You're not on Bravo or BET." There were also these conversations:

Jackson also speculated—the reasoning is up in the air—that David had been in prison at some point. (He hasn't been, for the record.) Jack then quickly debunked this theory because "David's teeth are too nice to be incarcerated."

While none of these comments are overtly prejudiced in the way many think of when they hear the term "racism," the acts of assuming a Black man could have been in prison, discussing his apparent threatening nature (without much to go on) and zeroing in on him as a source of social trouble are all unconscious biases that have historically affected how people of color are perceived in society. So, though Jackson may not have meant or been aware of the implication of his words (like he's since said), it's important that their impact be made clear.

"Today, racism doesn't look like what it did back in the day because you do have social media, live feeds, people trying to be a little bit more politically correct for the sake of the appearance of themselves," Kemi told OprahMag.com in August. "But from my experience, a lot of these times racism these days is expressed through microaggressions. It's easy to slap a term on something, but it's also sort of a feeling. There's a certain sort of aggression, and these ridiculous words that were tossed on to me, and David, specifically."

In regards to how he treated women, at one point following a fight between Jackson and Kat, the latter was left in tears and said "I just don't like being yelled at all the time," and "the way he treats me makes me feel unsafe in this house." While speaking with Holly and Christie about the fight, Jackson said "I just had to walk away because if not, I was gonna run her."

(To be fair, it seems that they have since tentatively made up.)

A couple more things from Jackson that earned critique from fans? He referred to the house's supply of eggs as "a Jessica-sized portion," while many perceived his words towards Holly during their fights as belittling and "gaslighting."

...Okay. What about the other houseguests?

No, Jackson was in no way the only cast member who got heat from live feed viewers. As OprahMag.com shared in July, a petition was created for Jack to be expelled from the game due to his problematic actions and words—particularly towards Kemi. They also earned him a super uncomfortable eviction interview by way of Moonves. But some of the moments that weren't as publicized?

Nick vocalized about Kemi: "I literally would actually f*cking spit right between her eyes. She's a piece of sh*t."

The following comments were also made about Nicole.

And throughout the summer, Christie was often heard accusing Kemi of stealing her personal belongings—another microagression often made against people of color. Later, the boutique owner admitted that she may have overreacted.

And following an incident in which Kemi asked to borrow Analyse's hair straightener, Christie assumed that it was because, "Maybe she meant I'm not lucky to have Analyse's hair...I'm straightening my hair cause I don't have Analyse's." Though an admittedly petty and small thing to focus on, the curly, societal perceptions of beauty have often looked down on African Americans' more textured hair, in favor of straighter locks.

So there's a little insight for you into why Kemi had this to say on finale night: "Jack, Jackson, Christie and Nick, I'm not exactly sure what your obsession was with me. A lot of the things that were said about me were completely inexcusable and unforgivable."

But does any of that justify the tense finale?

Honestly, that's up for you as a fan to determine. As we've heard so many times, Big Brother is a social experiment. It's a group of strangers living in a house and fighting for $500,000. But they're also aware they're watched 24/7. Every single word said is up for judgement, particularly when they directly offend any individual.

For many of these houseguests, this was the first time they'd heard their words had made any kind of negative impact. But while jury members have been existing in ignorance for three months regarding the response to their actions, houseguests like David, Ovi, and Kemi had to deal with the fallout while also learning what had been said about them both behind their backs and on a nationally televised show. In my humble opinion, pre-jury members had the right to make their feelings known on screen, when their counterparts (Christie, Jackson, Jack, etc.) had more than enough chances to show their own cards when all of America was listening in.

"Big Brother is a reflection of our society, " Ovi said in an interview with ET Canada."When we have issues in our society, we will see those reflected on Big Brother's television screens, so it's important that we address these situations because uncomfortable times take uncomfortable questions to advance forward."

But where did CBS go wrong? At least some of what was previously explained should have made the broadcasted shows. (You know, instead of Tommy's flash dance or pies in the face.) It's understandable that viewers were puzzled by Moonves's line of questioning because not much of the aforementioned misogyny, racism, or bullying even made it to air. Maybe next time they should create a more accurate edit, depicting the houseguests as they eventually did in the finale episode.

Where does Jackson, and the rest of the cast, go from here?

Well, Jackson has $500,000, so there's that. But in case you're curious, we've included some links to a few of the game players' responses in interviews post-finale.

Christie Murphy Jack Matthews Jackson Michie Nick Maccarone David Alexander Kemi Fakunle

And to leave you with one final thought on this insane season we called Big Brother 21, (and as we await next summer), here's a tweet from BB veteran Angela Rockstar. Because, of course.

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