Cast of Big Brother 2026: Meet All 17 BB28 Houseguests

The cast of Big Brother 2026 includes 17 Houseguests competing in Season 28. CBS first revealed 14 new players ahead of the July 9 premiere, then added three surprise competitors: Survivor veterans Rick Devens and Dee Valladares, plus returning Big Brother player Angela Murray. Julie Chen Moonves is back as host, and the Houseguests are competing for the $750,000 grand prize.

BB28 brings together bartenders, analysts, a rocket scientist, an attorney, an MMA fighter, a drag performer, a game-show host and experienced reality television players. Fans who enjoy large competition ensembles can also explore our Outlast Netflix cast guide, which introduces another group of contestants trying to outlast one another under pressure.

Instagram note: The table below links to the public Instagram profiles associated with the cast. Usernames can change, and some accounts may be managed by friends or family while a Houseguest is filming.

Yash Patel account note: CBS-related cast posts also tagged @yash.p. His public creator profile is listed as @yashliveslife, so both usernames may appear in BB28 coverage.

Meet the 14 first-time BB28 Houseguests

Ashley Trail

Ashley Trail joined the cast as a 24-year-old bartender originally from Alton, Illinois, and living in Chicago. She represents the kind of socially active contestant who is accustomed to meeting new people, reading a room and keeping conversations moving. In a game where relationships can change from one conversation to the next, that professional background gives her an immediately understandable place in the cast.

Barrett Pfeiffer

Barrett Pfeiffer is a 27-year-old Jumbotron engineer from Benton, Arkansas, who lives in Austin, Texas. His unusual job helps him stand out in a cast filled with varied careers. Barrett entered as a fan of the format, bringing a combination of technical work experience, confidence and familiarity with the social mechanics that shape Big Brother.

Chuk Anyanwu

Chuk Anyanwu is a 27-year-old supply chain analyst from Dallas. His work centers on organization, planning and understanding how different parts of a system affect one another. Those skills make him an interesting addition to a competition built around shifting alliances, limited information and decisions that can create consequences across the entire house.

Drew Campbell

At 22, Drew Campbell is the youngest member of the announced newcomer group. He works as a surgical dental assistant and comes from Temecula, California. Drew adds youthful energy to the cast, but his healthcare role also suggests comfort with responsibility, close teamwork and high-pressure environments. His public Instagram account identifies him directly with BB28.

Haley Thogmartin

Haley Thogmartin is a 29-year-old telemedicine executive from Missouri. CBS lists Neosho as her hometown and Wildwood as her current city. Her professional background places her among the more business-oriented players in the group. Haley enters the house with experience communicating remotely, managing people and navigating situations where tone and trust matter.

Jason De Puy, also known as Salina EsTitties

Jason De Puy is better known to many viewers by the drag stage name Salina EsTitties. The 35-year-old performer is from San Francisco and lives in West Hollywood. Jason previously competed in the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise, making him one of the most recognizable newcomers even though this is his first Big Brother season. His performance experience gives the cast a player who is already comfortable with cameras, confessionals and public attention.

Kamuela “Kamu” Kirk

Kamuela “Kamu” Kirk is a 32-year-old MMA fighter from Phoenix, Arizona. His athletic career makes him one of the clearest physical threats on paper. Big Brother competitions do not reward strength alone, but a background in combat sports usually brings discipline, endurance and comfort under pressure. His Instagram account uses his fighting nickname, The Jawaiian.

LaTrice “La La” Verrett

LaTrice “La La” Verrett is a 57-year-old boutique salesperson originally from Kankakee, Illinois, and living in Maplewood, New Jersey. As the oldest first-time player in the announced cast, she brings a different life perspective to a group that includes several contestants in their early and mid-twenties. Her retail background also means she is used to connecting with many kinds of personalities.

Lyric Medeiros

Lyric Medeiros is a 25-year-old attorney from Honolulu, Hawaii. Her legal training makes her one of the cast members most clearly associated with argument, analysis and careful language. In Big Brother, those strengths can help a player explain decisions and notice inconsistencies, although the game also rewards emotional awareness and flexibility.

Mallory Aurichio

Mallory Aurichio is a 24-year-old rocket scientist from Township of Washington, New Jersey. Her profession instantly makes her one of the most memorable people in the cast list. Mallory brings a highly analytical background into a game where puzzles, probabilities and strategic planning often matter, but where success still depends on building genuine personal relationships.

Melody Morris

Melody Morris is a 24-year-old corporate game-show host from Thornton, Colorado, who lives in Maricopa, Arizona. She is already familiar with competitive formats, audience-facing presentation and keeping energy high. That makes her a natural fit for reality television and gives the BB28 cast another player who is comfortable speaking clearly in front of cameras.

Jack “Rome” Seymour

Jack Seymour competes under the name Rome Seymour. The 28-year-old pickleball coach is from Traverse City, Michigan, and lives in Delray Beach, Florida. His sports background puts him among the physically active members of the cast, while coaching requires patience, observation and the ability to adjust a plan according to another person’s strengths and weaknesses.

Taylor Brown

Taylor Brown is a 27-year-old elementary school counselor from Deerfield Beach, Florida. Her work centers on listening, conflict resolution and helping people communicate, all of which are directly relevant to the social side of Big Brother. Taylor’s background gives the cast a player whose professional strengths are rooted less in spectacle and more in understanding people.

Yash Patel

Yash Patel is a 24-year-old financial analyst from Monroe Township, New Jersey. He joined the lineup as a late replacement before the premiere, but he is part of the official 14-player newcomer group. His work with numbers and financial information suggests an analytical approach, while his public social media presence shows a more outgoing side than his job title alone might suggest.

For another reality lineup built around personalities, alliances and public attention, see our Love Island Season 8 cast guide. Readers following current competition television can also compare the BB28 lineup with the Dancing with the Stars cast 2026.

The three surprise Houseguests

Rick Devens

Rick Devens enters Big Brother 28 with extensive reality competition experience from Survivor. The communications director from Macon, Georgia, is known for energetic confessionals, visible strategic play and resilience when his position is threatened. His presence changes the balance of the BB28 cast because the newcomers must decide whether his experience makes him a useful ally or an immediate target.

Angela Murray

Angela Murray is the only returning Big Brother Houseguest in the Season 28 cast. The real estate agent from Syracuse, Utah, previously competed on Big Brother 26 and later appeared on The Amazing Race. She already understands the house, live feeds, Diary Room process and nomination cycle, giving her practical knowledge that none of the 14 first-time players had before entering.

Dee Valladares

Dee Valladares joins BB28 after competing on Survivor and winning her original season. The Miami entrepreneur brings a proven record in social positioning, alliance management and late-game decision-making. She was revealed after the premiere as the third surprise Houseguest, completing the full 17-person cast. Her presence gives the season another experienced strategist with a major reality television résumé.

Julie Chen Moonves returns as host

Julie Chen Moonves remains the central on-screen host of Big Brother 28. She introduces competitions, speaks with the Houseguests during live episodes, oversees eviction results and conducts exit interviews. Although she is not part of the competing cast, she is the returning face who connects BB28 with the earlier seasons of the CBS franchise.

What makes the Big Brother 2026 cast different?

The cast of Big Brother 2026 is designed around contrast. The 14 first-time players range from 22 to 57 and come from careers that include law, science, healthcare, sports, entertainment, finance, retail and education. The three surprise Houseguests add a second layer because they already understand reality competition television, and Angela Murray has direct experience inside the Big Brother house.

That mix creates the season’s central cast question: can the new players use fresh relationships and unpredictability to control the game, or will the returning competitors convert experience into power? The answer depends on social connections as much as competitions, which is why every person in the lineup matters beyond a job title or Instagram following.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Paramount+: Meet the Big Brother Season 28 Cast
• CBS: Big Brother official show page
• CBS Big Brother Instagram: Official BB28 cast reveal
• Cosmopolitan: Big Brother Season 28 cast and Instagram guide