How Life-Changing Is 'Big Brother'?

It’s the line that defined Jason’s personality forever on Big Brother 17: “Big Brother is my highest aspiration in life.” He said it in one of his opening interviews — much to every viewer’s delight—but it got me wondering: does Big Brother actually change anyone’s life?

I mean, I guess for many contestants, the show will most likely provide some opportunities that are better than their current situations. It offers the opportunity to be in the public eye, which leads to exposure and, potentially, more reality television offers. But, is being on Big Brother really a life-changing thing for everyone?

Sure, there are the Jeffs and Jordans of the world — the Season 11 and Season 13 contestants both went on to appear in other reality shows, most recently Marriage Bootcamp. Contestants who have starred on the show and, through some magical combination of fan favoritism and hard work, continue to get jobs from their relative fame happen — but is it really that common? What other past Big Brother stars have gone on to enjoy life-changing fame?

It turns out that there are more than you think. Although — bad news for Jason — it definitely doesn’t happen to everyone, there are a number of past houseguests who have gone on to make it relatively big in the entertainment industry. For people like Season 1's Eddie McGee, who has gone on to star in a number of television shows, being in the Big Brother house really was life-changing. Season 3's Marcellas Reynolds is another example of someone whose life was changed by the show: he went on to do entertainment reporting and nab multiple TV gigs, including The Tyra Banks Show. There are others, too, who have gone on to relative fame after the show, but maybe none more than Frankie Grande, the Season 16 contestant who was pretty well-known before the show thanks to his brotherly relation to Ariana Grande — and even more so now that he’s been on it.

So, will Jason have his life changed by being one of the houseguests in the Big Brother house? It’s possible! He just has to play his cards right and make sure to get through the game with his memory untainted. Because the trick to fame after the Big Brother house definitely seems to be getting far in the house and having a personality that fans love. Luckily for him, it’s totally obvious that Jason definitely has both of those things going for him.

So hang in there, buddy. Reality star fame is totally yours for the taking if you keep your personality on point and your head in the game!

Of course, things change so quickly in the Big Brother house, it can be hard to keep up. To keep track of everything going on in the Big Brother house, check out Bustle’s very own Big Brother podcast, The Diary Room. Listen to the latest episode below, and be sure to check out future episodes on Bustle’s SoundCloud page and iTunes.

Image: CBS; Giphy