Okay, so if you’ve been anywhere near Twitter during a “Big Brother” episode this summer, you already know season 28 has been a mess in the best possible way. And now Kyland Young – yes, the guy from season 23, the one who actually won the whole thing – is weighing in on the two Survivor transplants who basically hijacked the house. Dee Valladares and Rick Devens. Let’s get into it.

Wait, Why Are Survivor Players in the Big Brother House?

Right, backstory first. Back in July, fans found out that season 28 wasn’t just gonna be your standard rotation of superfans and himbos in tank tops. CBS brought in Survivor 50 alum Devens, 42, as one of 14 players this season, and honestly? Genius move. Or chaotic move. Maybe both. Dee came along too, and between the two of them they basically imported an entirely different strategic language into a house that usually runs on vibes and grudges.

Kyland talked to Us Weekly about all this on Saturday, September 19, while he was walking the red carpet for UFC 331 on Paramount+ outside Crypto.com Arena in LA (random crossover, I know, but that’s reality TV alums for you – they show up everywhere). And he did not hold back on the praise.

“This season of Big Brother has been absolutely insane,” Kyland said. Which, fair. I’ve watched every season since Kyland’s own run and I don’t think I’ve heard a former winner sound this genuinely hyped about a cast that isn’t his own.

The Survivor Effect

“I mean, one – shoutout to the Survivors for sure. They are entertaining. They brought some amazing people,” he continued. And look, I get why he’s saying this. Survivor players think in terms of alliances that shift by the hour and social capital that has to be earned, not assumed. Big Brother houseguests, bless them, often think a good showmance and a decent competition record is enough. It rarely is.

So What Does Kyland Actually Think of Dee and Devens?

Here’s where it gets personal – literally. Kyland actually knows Dee. “Dee is someone who I’ve met. She’s wonderful,” he said. Short. Simple. No tea spilled there, which, fine, I respect the loyalty.

Devens is a different story. Kyland hasn’t met him in person but he’s been a fan for a while now. “Devens, I haven’t met but he was actually one of the first seasons I watched of Survivor. I see why he’s a fan favorite, for sure.”

“I see why he’s a fan favorite, for sure.”

Not gonna lie, that line stuck with me. Because Devens has always had this underdog charm on Survivor – the guy who gets voted out early, comes back, gets voted out again, comes back again… at some point you just start rooting for him out of sheer stubbornness on his part. Bringing that energy into a house full of Big Brother diehards? That’s a recipe for either total domination or an early blindside. Maybe both, honestly, knowing this show.

Why This Crossover Actually Works (When It Could’ve Flopped)

The thing is, crossover seasons are risky. Really risky. You’d think mixing two fanbases and two totally different strategic playbooks would just create chaos for chaos’s sake. And sure, there’s some of that. But what’s interesting here is how it’s forced actual gameplay evolution in real time. You’re watching Big Brother players suddenly have to think three moves ahead because there’s a Survivor brain in the house calculating jury votes before jury even exists.

I’ve seen this pattern before in other franchise crossovers – the outsiders either get eaten alive in week one, or they completely reshape how the game gets played. Based on what Kyland’s saying (and honestly, based on what I’ve seen from clips floating around), Dee and Devens are doing the second thing. They’re not just surviving in there. They’re actually influencing the whole ecosystem of the house.

A Quick Reality Check

Now, is Kyland a completely neutral source here? Probably not. He’s a Big Brother alum talking up his own show’s season, at a UFC event, doing press for Paramount+. There’s a little bit of “everything is great, please keep watching” energy baked into any of these red carpet quotes. That’s just how the machine works. Doesn’t make what he said wrong, just… context.

What This Actually Means

Look, I think the bigger story here isn’t even about Dee or Devens individually – it’s about what happens when you stop treating reality show genres like separate universes. CBS clearly figured out that fans of one show will absolutely tune into another if you give them a reason, and pairing Survivor’s cutthroat strategic culture with Big Brother’s slower, more claustrophobic social pressure cooker? That’s basically a lab experiment in real time.

Will this become a regular thing – Survivor players parachuting into Big Brother, maybe even the reverse someday? Kind of feels like it’s heading that way. And if season 28 keeps producing this much drama and this much genuine strategic tension, I don’t see why CBS would stop now. Devens might get voted out next week for all I know. Or he might go all the way. That unpredictability, honestly, is the whole point.