Big Brother: 5 Best Players of the 2010s

Big Brother US had some amazing players this past decade, so Inside the BB House decided to take an in-depth look at the best five of the 2010s.

The 2010s were a thrill ride for Big Brother fans everywhere with more returning houseguests each season than ever before. The 2020 rendition of Big Brother US is getting off to a rocky start considering what is currently taking place in the United States with COVID-19, but will surely follow suit in the near future.

Per usual, we saw drama, showmances, and gameplay like never before. This decade was so good that I believe we need another All-Star season in the near future!

With the beginning of the new decade, I thought it best to take a look at the best Big Brother players from the 2010s. It was a hard list to create, but I was able to effectively narrow it down to five extraordinary houseguests. For clarification, I excluded players who were returning houseguests that had their first season occur prior to the 2010s. For example, Mike ‘Boogie’ Malin was exempt from consideration because he played in BB2 and BB All-Stars prior to BB14.

Derrick Levasseur (BB16 Winner)

Across Big Brother history, there have always been masterminds and people who have the extraordinary talent of manipulation. However, in Derrick’s case, he had a unique skill: the art of subtlety. In past seasons, houseguests knew exactly who the masterminds were and were actively trying to get them out as the season progressed. As a result, most of the ‘best players’ were evicted midway through the season or right before finale night. Derrick was different. People knew he was a smart guy, but they never really made an effort to evict him. He was helped by Team America and his alliance, but he manipulated everyone without them knowing it.

Ian Terry (BB14 Winner)

How can you not include someone that was solely responsible for the eviction of Mike Boogie? Ian is one of the smartest players in the history of Big Brother with a case for being the smartest. He also happens to be the youngest winner in the history of the show. A Tulane-educated physics teacher is someone you don’t want to mess with. He didn’t have the strongest social game, but he won competitions (4 HOHs) and played the entire house without directly confronting them. It was quite a skill on display.

Paul Abrahamian (Second Place BB18, BB19)

I’m sorry, but Paul should have won both BB18 and BB19. He will go down as one of the absolute best Big Brother contestants to never win a season. In BB18, he took Nicole Franzel to the finale (his own decision) and lost despite Nicole’s lackluster game. Paul simply annoyed people because of how good he was at the game and his fellow houseguests’ sensitivity led to his runner-up status. In BB19, he headed to the finale with Josh Martinez and once again, lost. Josh played a semi-decent social game, but it simply didn’t match Paul’s ability.

Rachel Reilly (Ninth Place BB12, BB13 Winner)

Rachel Reilly rivals Janelle Pierzina as the best female contestant in the history of Big Brother. She made an early exit in BB12, but she was always a solid player – her showmance painted a target on her back. She won in BB13 despite everyone knowing about her active relationship with Brendon Villegas. She was loud and often annoying, but she could absolutely play the game of Big Brother. An excellent social game despite her personality and her ability to win competitions at an above-average rate make her one of the best to ever do it

Hayden Moss (BB12 Winner)

The Brigade is arguably the best alliance of all-time. That might be a hot take, but they are certainly in the conversation. Hayden was the puppet master of The Brigade. Lane Elenburg (runner-up), Enzo Palumbo (3rd), and Matt Hoffman (7th) were all members of the alliance and they all did pretty well for themselves in the game. Hoffman is infamous for lying about his wife having cancer and it almost led to the demise of Hayden’s game. However, his excellent social skills, good looks, and ability to win competitions will make him an obvious choice for the fifth spot on this list.