When does Big Brother 2026 start? Big Brother Season 28 begins Thursday, July 9 at 8 p.m. ET, and Julie Chen Moonves returns to host the 90-minute opener. The launch gives Viewers of Big Brother Season a fixed timetable from the first broadcast through the first overnight feed window.
14 contestants were revealed on July 7, with CBS saying additional surprise houseguests will be announced later. Rick Devens, 42, is among the names in the cast after a memorable run on Survivor 50, which gives the season one recognizable competitor before the full field is set.
Julie Chen Moonves and 90 minutes
90 minutes is the clearest operational signal here. The premiere is not being treated like a routine hour-long start; it is being used to introduce the season, establish the time trip theme, and give the audience a longer first look before the weekly schedule settles into place. Big Brother Season 28 will then air on Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET, with Wednesday episodes running 90 minutes and Sunday and Thursday episodes running an hour.
Thursday episodes will carry the live eviction, which makes the opening night placement more than a ceremonial reset. For viewers, the practical change is simple: Wednesday is the long midweek block, Thursday is the eviction night, and Sunday rounds out the weekly cycle on TV.
Rick Devens at 42
Rick Devens, 42, adds a built-in storyline to the cast because he arrives fresh off Survivor 50. A Georgia news anchor entering Big Brother Season 28 is the kind of cross-show casting that gives the season a known personality before the game even starts, and it helps explain why the initial cast reveal landed with more weight than a standard pre-season roll call.
The time trip theme leans on nostalgia from different decades, which should shape challenges, twists and house decor without changing the core mechanics of the game. That means the marketing hook is a design layer, not a format overhaul, so the real value remains in how the cast handles the isolation, votes and evictions.
Friday, July 10 at 9 p.m. ET
Friday, July 10 at 9 p.m. ET is the first clear follow-up date for anyone who wants the season in real time. The live feeds go live then on Paramount+ or Pluto TV, and Big Brother will also run live feeds on its YouTube channel for a limited time after every episode. Big Brother: Unlocked will air weekly on Friday nights at 8 p.m. ET, giving the franchise a second weekly lane beyond the main broadcast.
14 contestants are already public, but the later surprise-houseguest reveal keeps the cast list open for one more beat. For viewers, that means the cleanest plan is to watch the July 9 premiere, then check back the next night at 9 p.m. ET if they want the first unfiltered read on how Season 28 really starts.
