Big Brother 19 interview: Allison Grodner on Halting Hex rule, Temptation Competition

Another week has gone by in the Big Brother 19 house, and with that it means that we have another Allison Grodner – CarterMatt interview! The show’s executive producer has been kind enough to talk with us every week after eviction night, and we’ve got another brief Q&A for you below.

This time around, we had a chance to get Grodner’s take on Jessica revealing the Halting Hex (sort of) on last night’s show, and also a clarification on who is eligible to compete for the next Head of Household. She also talks to us about the Temptation Competition, which is the latest twist in the game initiated by Jessica’s temptation. It really all comes back to her getting that Hex, doesn’t it?

CarterMatt – What excites you the most about bringing the Temptation Competition into the game? Will you be bummed if people don’t want to take part in it?

Allison Grodner – For the first time in Big Brother we have a competition that has both a big reward (safety) and a huge risk (instant nomination) to the people who choose to play. It is also exciting to have them make the decision in secret so it is possible that, when the players are revealed, only one person chooses to play and therefore wins safety automatically. This is a season of temptations and there is always a chance that no one chooses to be tempted. The possibility that no one chooses to play is part of the twist and could be an interesting reveal as well.

This question is mostly about the rules of the Halting Hex. If Jessica plays it this week, will she be eligible to compete in the next Head of Household? Or, will she still be treated again as the outgoing HOH and Paul will be able to compete?

The Halting Hex is separate from the HOH and the rules of the HOH. She will be eligible to play the week after it is used unless she is already HOH. Paul will be ineligible to play in the next HOH just as it would have been without the Hex.

When Jessica revealed that she had the Halting Hex at the end of the show, were you surprised she admitted it so quickly?

It was a pretty funny moment when the houseguests were almost waiting for Julie to confirm/deny if it was true. We were all a little surprised she chose that moment, but it was very dramatic. Since the temptation is given in secret, Julie and Big Brother cannot confirm it. The houseguests will only know for sure if Jessica has such a power when she chooses to use it.

For more news on the live feeds…

Be sure to head over to the link here, where you can get our daily updates on all the live feed action. We’ll have an update later about the end result of the Temptation Competition, plus also one coming up about the Nomination Ceremony, provided that it happens today as it has in the past. (Photo: CBS.)