When Can I Say "I Told You So?" Big Brother Canada 5 Spoiler Alert!!!

Well, hell-ooo 2017!

I see you. Hiding in your safe space. I know it's been scary. I know it's been difficult. After all, you have a lot of hopes riding on the presumption that you are going to be so much better than 2016. And that Trump guy in the States sure isn't helping, is he?

Well. You can come out now. We have HOPE. After all, it's Canada's sesquicentennial year. And what's more important is Big Brother Canada 5 is now less than 5 weeks away. That's right. Although there has been no formal announcement, we can probably put money on the premiere being Wednesday, March 15. That is because ACTRA Toronto lists a filming start date as March 10. Translation: the HGs enter the house and begin filming on that date. (Thanks to ACTRA, we also know the season finale is May 18th)

I also know that many of you are so anxious to hear of news that you analyze every single spoiler out there. And this happens every bloody year.

All I can say is BE SKEPTICAL.

Currently, there are two theories that have been making the rounds: 1) It is a full on All-Stars season. All Canadian, that is. And, 2) It is BBCan vs BBUS All-Stars. So which is it? Let's look at these a little closer.

All-Stars from Seasons 1 to 4.

I guess it depends what you would call an "All-Star." Are there enough talented master-manipulators from seasons past? I mean, there's Neda. And then there's Neda. Oh and there's also Neda. So, I'm guessing...probably not. But there are certainly more than enough strong characters - fan favourites in the pool. People that we would absolutely LOVE to see play again. Ika, Cass, JP, Mumsy, Arlie, Kenny, Kevin, Bruno, Godfrey. And Naeha, of course. So the real question becomes, who among them are willing and able to commit to another season? And are they going to upset their lives and settle for the basic stipend? Or settle for the regular Grand Prize? No, I am guessing not. And there is the catch. The show is going to have to come up with more MONEY.

Oh, I know what you're saying: "But last year! Nikki and Tim. They were paid more. A LOT MORE." Yes. You are correct. But there is an explanation for that. Production received a nice little grant from Bell Fund in October, 2015, which I can only surmise, offset the additional talent fees. As of today, production has not been awarded the same grant for this season. Also consider that production spent money on their nationwide open casting calls. Do you really think they have the budget to set up phoney auditions?

BBCan vs. BBUS

...or vs. Internationals. Here is a beauty that hit Twitter just last night:

Well, it must be true. I mean I don't think I've ever heard one of these people who claim they are getting the info from a close friend in Production before. Please. I've been looking at spoilers since Survivor Season 2. These people are better off not saying who their source is. And I don't know if you would exactly characterize North American fans as having a "lust" for a crossover All-Star season. Sure they would like to see one. But just the biggest fans. Dare I say "Super fans"? The casual fans could probably care less OR would be VERY PISSED OFF at the thought of Americans coming up here taking "OUR" spots. Nikki and Tim were forgivable last year - even the biggest dissenters out there quickly learned to love them. I know because I had to defend the casting call on Twitter and Facebook. But 8 American players? With the current political climate? In our sesquicentennial year? NO. And then there are the same budget problems. More so, in fact. Do you think the American players will do this for the same payoff as the Canadians? Even if they are older players, presumably ones who have been out of the limelight for so long?

But the big giveaway here is the bit about attracting more U.S. viewers. Officially, there ARE NO U.S. viewers. Officially. Global receives no advertising dollars from American viewers. Sure, they know Americans bypass the geo-blocking. But Global ignores it. Probably because they can get huge numbers when fan-voting occurs. Yes, we watch BBUS here in Canada but that was optioned out long before our version started - just like we watch every other U.S. TV show. As far as Endemol is concerned, each franchise is a separate entity.

So what exactly is going on? Why did Erin Brock and Robyn Kass tease us with "something that's never been done before?"

Well, having said all this, I do foresee one situation that would make this viable. If CBS aired BBCan5 on All-Access, and paid Global TV a nice huge fee and/or Global started charging us Canadians for feeds, well then maybe, just maybe it could happen. And yes, if such an arrangement happened, we would have to pay for feeds - since Americans know how to get past the geo-blocking why would they pay?

Sooo, what is my prediction? I'm glad you asked.

I keep flip-flopping with each new rumour. Right now, I am leaning towards a mix - alumni & newbs. If alumni are involved, it is with a twist that limits their involvement. 

Look at Peter Brown's cryptic gif clues. LOST gifs suggest "we have to go back" or "The Others." Then he followed up with ones from two Black Mirror episodes. One where people are forced to earn merit points for food - and appearing on TV. The other involves people who can edit others out of their lives with the click of a remote control. (Although I don't know why anyone would want to delete Jon Hamm out of their lives) All these clues sound more akin to recent seasons of BBUK/CBB. But don't forget, Big Brother Canada producers have done this before...calling things we've seen in other franchises a "new" twist.

Maybe we should all just chill out. We're going to know within a couple of weeks. 

And when is it socially acceptable to say, "I told you so?"