James has made a reputation for himself as the "house prankster" on this season of Big Brother, but this time instead of pranking the other houseguests, he may have pranked the audience. The houseguests are no stranger to rumors of America's Player on Big Brother 17, but the last time these rumors went around the house, it was other houseguests who thought Audrey may have been America's Player due to her odd gameplay. This time, no one in the house suspects America's Player to be active, but a leaked exchange of James in the Diary Room has fans scrambling to put together clues.
At 3:35 a.m. on Aug. 7, James was called to the DR. Upon entering, live feed watchers heard the James exclaim "What? America's Player Card!" followed by an unfamiliar voice saying "Congratulations." (The unfamiliar voice was most likely a member of the production team). The diary room audio then cut out, so there is no certainty that James truly won the role of "America's Player," and if he did, it likely won't be revealed until Sunday's episode at the latest.
All of this seems awful fishy, so here is a collection of evidence (both for and against) James being America's Player in BB17.
PRO: People Love James
After splitting up Clelli, people have been supporting James all over Twitter, Tumblr, and other social media. James is interested in playing the game honestly, and brutally, and long-time fans of the show know that a player like him doesn't come along that often. If anyone is going to be chosen to be America's Player, James is a very likely candidate.
CON: James Loves Playing Pranks
James has played a number of pranks in the house, from making it look like fake houseguests were sleeping in the beds to placing a zucchini with a condom on it under Meg's pillow. On one hand, America's Players in the past have had to perform pranks for money, so James is a perfect candidate. On the other hand, James is a jokester and very well may have been joking with production when he said "America's Player Card!"
PRO: This Could Be The Return of the BB Takeover
At the beginning of the season, it was promised that there would be a new twist every week, but after Week 3 the BB Takeover seemed to disappear. The sudden announcement of America's Player would be the perfect way to mark the return of BB Takeover.
CON: It's Pretty Late To Introduce America's Player
Last season's Team America twist was introduced in the very first week of the game, and the twist played out through the entire season. BB17 just arrived at the point where the remaining evictees will be sent to jury and now Big Brother is suddenly going to add a brand new twist into a season that already has a great deal of dramatic momentum? If America's Player was going to be announced, it's likely it would've happened earlier in the season.
PRO: James Was In The Diary Room For A Long Time
When James was called into the Diary Room and the "America's Player Card!" line leaked, he went on to stay in the Diary Room for over an hour. James doesn't have anything going on this week that would require him to talk about it to the production team for that long. That is, of course, unless they were spending that time on debriefing him so that he knew all the rules for being America's Player.
CON: There Was No Voting Process
In the past, there has been a vote to determine who America wanted to be America's Player. There has been no vote to determine America's Player this season, which debunks the entire America's Player myth. Unless CBS was using #BBSoundoff to collect opinions from Twitter on what America thought of the players in the house, and then decided that the player who was mentioned the most would become America's Player.
Is James America's Player? We just don't know. There is an equal amount of evidence on either side to suggest that America's Player may, or may not, be happening this season. Only one thing is certain: If America's Player isn't happening, then this is James' greatest prank yet. For more on this season, check out Bustle's BB17 podcast, The Diary Room.
Images: Monty Brinton/CBS; Giphy (6)
