Big Brother Canada 5 interview: Winner Kevin Martin on path to victory
So how did Kevin get to the end? Is he processing his victory yet? These are some of the questions discussed in the our interview with him below.
CarterMatt – Has it sunk in yet?
Kevin Martin – Not at all. The next couple of weeks, it’ll sink in. The fact that I’m the season 5 champion is not a reality yet.
Was there ever a moment where you were really confident that you were going to win, or did you find yourself battling a lot of self-doubt throughout the season?
I had a lot of self-doubt early on. I was all over the place and a little bit under the radar. The moment that I thought I had a chance, to be honest, was during the Triple Eviction Power of Veto. After I won that, that was the first time I said there was a chance. I still didn’t think I would do it, but I said ‘there’s a chance’ after I won that Veto.
I feel like that was a bit moment for you, just in terms of freeing yourself from these ghosts that had been haunting you for almost two years. Did you have a sense of that while you were in the game, or am I making it out to be more epic than it really was?
That is EXACTLY what it was. Season 3, I was the outgoing HoH and I got evicted on the triple. In season 5, I was the outgoing HoH going into the triple. It was the same thing happening in two seasons, and I had this terrible nightmare replaying in my mind. Thankfully I was able to rewrite my history. It was a huge moment for me.
Going into this season, I was admittedly worried for you because you were so smart, and you didn’t have that shield anymore of people not knowing anything about you. How were you able to be under the radar and not such an obvious threat?
We’re returning players, so our cards are exposed. Going in, I just wanted to be honest about our physical and mental capabilities, and I hoped people would want to work with me. It worked! I got in a majority alliance very quickly with the six, and that protected me for quite a while, and I always had Neda as a shield.
I did play very sneaky and under-the-radar the first half, but it was very calculated.
What was it about your relationship with Bruno that worked so well this time? You guys weren’t close the first time you played, but here you were thick as thieves.
Season 3, we were direct enemies, and we actually rarely ever talked to each other [since then]. Yet, night 1 when we saw each other, we just knew that we had to align. We’re business players. The familiarity that we had with each other just worked well in this game.
It would have been interesting going down into the final six, final five — would Bruno or I have cut each other? I don’t know. That story won’t get played out, but he was my #1 from my get-go.
Now that the season is over, are you the sort of person who is going to go and try to watch everything, or are you fine to just relax since you lived it on the show?
Not right now. I’m just going to relax, go to Niagara and have some alcohol and hang out with some Big Brother Canada alumni. I’m going to just soak this in. After a little while, I’m sure I’ll watch and see more of what the fans saw.
One of the things that was such a big part of the season was the whole ‘Karen hates Kevin’ storyline, but I talked to Karen earlier and she said that you may come out to see her! Maybe you guys are exchanging Christmas cards and peace is upon us.
I’ll tell you — it’s so crazy. I can actually see Karen being someone I will stay in touch with after the season. We really bonded after the past few weeks. We were SO against each other — ‘That Kevin Martin, slithering around,’ it was so unbearable. I couldn’t stand her, but over time we bonded after we got close to the end together. I really do like that lady.
But what is it like going through this experience knowing that someone is so against you? Is it almost comforting in an odd way knowing where someone stands?
Yeah, and it was also very strategic. I egged Karen on and provoked her in the first half of the game. I wanted that relationship to be at the forefront of people’s minds so that people would know where my head was at. They would think that if I won, Karen was going up. That put people at ease. Having a target named is a good thing. If you don’t have a target named, people are going to get sketched out and wonder where your head is at. Them knowing that I was after Karen really helped the first half of the game.
Also, if you’re going to go after a target, Karen is a good person to go after. The chances of her winning an HoH were on the lower side.
One of the other things that I was really impressed with about your game is how you were able to forge a bond with William despite him not being aligned with many of the same people. How were you effective with that?
We just had a genuine connection. I was working with my side of the house in Neda, Sindy, and Bruno, and I knew I needed a friend on the other side. I had a natural friendship with William, so I tried to press that so I could get information on the other side, and if I ever needed him, he would help me out. It worked! The Secret Power of Veto saved my game. If William didn’t use the secret Power of Veto, I do think that he would have used the real one because we were very close in the house.
I think the last time you were actually vulnerable as a possible replacement nominee was all the way back when Sindy went out. What were you able to do to focus in and be so successful at competitions?
I studied harder than anyone else. My sprinkle graphs, my diagrams, I knew everything that ever happened in this house. Nobody was going to take me to the final two, so from the final eight I won my safety every single week. I had to win. I knew that if I didn’t win, I was going home. I had such a fight in this game, and I wanted to win so badly. I prepared. I put my mind in such a place with all of that preparation I did.
The live feeders are probably sick of looking at those f—ing sprinkles, but I knew that I had to keep looking at them and get that information.
I dunno — the sprinkles were oddly comforting. Maybe that’s me also starting to lose my own mind. In a way, though, was it good that you knew you were the target? You almost didn’t have to worry about having conversations, and you could just focus on studying and the task at hand.
My mission was to win the Final Four Power of Veto, and I studied for seven days beforehand. That was my only mission. In terms of entertaining the other houseguests, I would go have conversations with them — I just knew [the conversations] were useless. I just had to put myself in the best position.
I’m so sick of looking at the sprinkles, dude. I never want to touch them again.
So you’re never going to have a sprinkled doughnut again?
Never! I never want to study again. Anything!
Were there any votes you were surprised to get?
Dillon. I did Dillon really dirty at the final five. I was surprised and pleased to get his vote.
Are you feeling like you’re satisfied with Big Brother and reality TV? Are you sticking to poker from now on? What do you think is next?
I can’t wait to get back to my poker career. I’m going to take some time off, but then I’m going to get back on my Twitch and my YouTube and play some cards. I miss it so much.
I feel like my story is complete for Big Brother. That said, if the phone ever rings again — I doubt it will, but it’s hard to say no.
More Big Brother Canada news
Interested in a little more insight from the various houseguests, including our interviews with the final four? Then be sure to head over to the link here! (Photo: Global.)