Due to the Ontario government recently calling a state of emergency surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak in that Canadian province, Big Brother Canada production has announced that effective today they have ended production on the show.
Season 8 of Big Brother Canada, despite having only premiered on March 4th, has been an exciting season and one that no one will likely forget - no matter how much fans might want to. On Day 5 in the house, contestant Nico Vera chose to self-evict. Just days later from one another, both Jamar Lee and Kyle Rozendal Carol Rosher was going to self-evict as well this week, if she wasn't evicted by her fellow houseguests. This season was an unprecedented one, and while it may have been a chaotic season thus far, it's unfortunate it had to end like this.
On Tuesday afternoon, Insight Productions announced (via Big Brother Canada's website) that they have shut down production of the season, with host Arisa Cox explaining that "Big Brother Canada is a labor of love for so many, and even though it hurts to say goodbye to the season, it's the right thing to do." As of midnight tonight there will be new government mandates coming into effect in Ontario to counteract the spread of COVID-19 in the province which affects all "non-essential" businesses. Cox's statement read: "On behalf of the incredible people who put this show together, thank you to everyone who started this journey with us." They then urged everyone to "please take care and be safe!" Check out the Big Brother Canada tweet below:
This past week a number of on the production crew reportedly quit (via The Logic) the season due to concerns over COVID-19 and combined with these new mandates the producers aren't left with much of a choice. At this time there is no talk of when production will resume, and the show will end in a two night finale on Wednesday March 25th at 7 p.m. ET/PT and Wednesday April 1 at 7 p.m. ET/PT. There have been a variety of reactions to the news on social media from the viewers, With season 8 of Big Brother Canada unable to finish properly, it technically makes contestant Micheal Stubley the only person to ever be the only person to be evicted from a season, so at least he can take that away with him.
After the double-ejection of Kyle and Jamar some fans called for a reset of the season, and while a full shut down wasn't what anyone wanted, the most important thing is to keep the houseguests as well as the crew safe during these unpredictable times. All we can hope is that this season won't affect whether or not Big Brother Canada will be renewed for a ninth season. Some fans are calling for a Big Brother Canada 8.5, where they reboot this season and bring on the same houseguests for a season filled with mishaps, before being canceled altogether.
Source: The Logic, Big Brother Canada,