Big Brother 5 (U.S.) - Format

Format

The format remained largely unchanged from previous seasons. HouseGuests were sequestered in the Big Brother House with no contact to and from the outside world. Each week, the HouseGuests took part in several compulsory challenges that determined who would win food, luxuries, and power in the House. The winner of the Head of Household competition was immune from nominations and was instructed to nominate two fellow HouseGuests for eviction. After a HouseGuest became Head of Household he or she was ineligible to take part in the next Head of Household competition. HouseGuests also took part in a weekly food competition, with the losing team being placed on the peanut butter and jelly diet for a week. Some competitions allowed all HouseGuests to earn food for the week, while others cause them all to lose food for the week. The winner of the Power of Veto competition won the right to save one of the nominated HouseGuests from eviction. If the Veto winner exercised the power, the Head of Household then had to nominate another HouseGuest for eviction.

On eviction night all HouseGuests except for the Head of Household and the two nominees voted to evict one of the two nominees. Before the voting began the nominees had the chance to record a final message to their fellow HouseGuests. This compulsory vote was conducted in the privacy of the Diary Room by the host Julie Chen. In the event of a tie, the Head of Household would break the tie and reveal their vote in front of the other HouseGuests. Unlike other versions of Big Brother, the HouseGuests could discuss the nomination and eviction process open and freely. The nominee with the most votes from the other HouseGuests was evicted from the House on Thursday and interviewed by Julie Chen. HouseGuests could voluntarily leave the House at any time and those who broke the rules were expelled by Big Brother. The last seven evictees of the season, known as the jury members, voted for the winner on the season finale. The jury members were sequestered in a separate house and were not allowed to watch the show except for segments that included all of the HouseGuests. The jury members were not shown any Diary Room interviews or any footage that included strategy or details regarding nominations.

Two major twists were implemented into Big Brother 5. The twists earned the season the surname Project Do Not Assume, or Project DNA for short. The first of these twists were that HouseGuests Michael "Cowboy" Ellis and Jennifer "Nakomis" Dedmon were actually blood siblings, and had no idea. The two share the same father, whom Ellis had never met. Ellis quickly figured out the twist, and Big Brother later gave the two letters from home explaining the situation. This twist had no impact on the format of the game, other than the personal implications that arise with the situation. The second twist was that a set of twins were switching spots in the house, with the goal of making it to the fifth week. If they succeeded this without getting caught, they would both be eligible to play as individuals. The twins, Adria and Natalie, both played as Adria, and would switch places at various times in the Diary Room. The sisters succeeded in the task, and Natalie entered the game on Day 35.