CBS will premiere the first U.S. edition of ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ on Wednesday, Feb. 7.
Celebrity Big Brother is coming stateside for the first-time ever, which means a whole new experience for viewers and the famous faces moving into the Big Brother house!
Ahead of the show’s Feb. 7 launch on CBS, ET has some advice for the as-yet-to-be-named cast of 10 celebs set to compete -- straight from the season 19 houseguests! Back at their September season finale, all 16 present competitors and host Julie Chen shared insight into surviving the game.
“We think we know famous people, because of the roles that they play on the big screen or the small screen. What I'm looking forward to is, what happens behind the magic?” Julie says. “Behind the hair and makeup, behind the curtain. So, I'm looking forward to getting to know, even if it's a celebrity that really isn't on my radar, I just want to see the human side of celebrities.”
“I’m surprised that celebrities are even doing it!” season 19’s first evicted houseguest, Cameron Heard, admits (though, this was before CBS announced the celebs would be in the house for less than a month vs. the typical 90 days inside).
“If you are not mentally prepared to play the game of Big Brother, do not sign up,” season 19 winner Josh Martinez cautions. “It's intense. It's brutal. It's a roller coaster of emotions. You better be mentally prepared and you better be able to play.”
“Listen, celebs, y'all are gonna crack!” two-time runner-up Paul Abrahamian adds. “I don't care what you say, I don't care how hyped up you are. You're gonna walk into that Big Brother house, your manager's not gonna be in the house. Your producer's not gonna be there. You're gonna be crying at the door. You're gonna run out of ham. No eggs. What are you gonna do? What are you gonna do? You're gonna 100 percent lose it.”
Paul advises to not get too emotional, either, and avoid showmances at all cost. The No. 1 piece of advice shared by the season 19 cast was to not trust anyone. Alex Ow, Christmas Abbott and Mark Jansen all echoed that thought, while others had words of wisdom about the house itself.
“If you think you're moving into a mansion, you are dead wrong,” Jessica Graf notes. “Just kinda accept it for what it is.”
“Get ready, put your big boy panties on, and girls,” Raven Walton adds. “There's one bathroom, good luck with that.”
“Pretend you’re back in college,” Kevin Schlehuber suggests. “Pretend you're in the college dorm and use it that way.”
“Pack more lounging clothes than you think you need, because you're living in a house,” Elena Davies chimes in. “You need way less heels than you think you need.”
Cody Nickson has the simplest advice of all -- “just be yourself” -- while Jillian Parker has the most celebrity-specific direction.
“OK, whichever one's the biggest celebrity, whoever's fangirling over you, just keep 'em around,” she says with a laugh.
Check out the video above for more thoughts from the season 19 cast, and stick with ET for all things Celebrity Big Brother! We’ll have the full cast announcement next week and exclusive elimination interviews each week once the show starts. Tune into the season premiere of Celebrity Big Brother on CBS on Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 8 p.m. ET.
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