This Is Why Danielle Reyes Didn't Join Big Brother: All Stars

Big Brother is back for season 22 with 16 alumni re-entering the iconic house for the Big Brother: All Stars season. This second all-stars season premiered Aug. 5, 2020 — later than its usual June start date. According to CBS, the delayed start was due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the network assured fans that it would film in the safest of conditions, which included a pre-production quarantine, daily symptom monitoring, and routine cleaning.

The all-star cast consists of previous winners Nicole Franzel (Season 18) and Ian Terry (Season 14), along with Christmas Abbot, David Alexander, Nicole Anthony, Dani Briones, Cody Calafiore, Kevin "KC" Campbell, Tyler Crispen, Bayleigh Dayton, Memphis Garrett, Enzo Palumbo, Janelle Pierzina, Kaysar Ridha, Da'Vonne Rogers, and Keesha Smith. That's a lot of interesting characters, but fans were quick to notice that one franchise favorite was missing from the lineup.

Danielle Reyes — the BB3 runner-up who also fought her way through much of the first Big Brother: All Stars season — is not returning for this star-studded reunion. Why would Reyes turn down yet another opportunity to win $500,00 after she was supposedly asked "multiple times?" We've got the scoop.

Danielle Reyes had a good reason to avoid Big Brother

Danielle Reyes is a working mother of two and a grandmother to five, and she's reportedly putting her family first by deciding to decline the BB22 invitation. After the new Big Brother: All Stars season was announced, Reyes immediately told persistent fans that she was definitely not going to appear on the reality show. "Guys, stop it," she tweeted. "I promise you, I'm not in sequester. I will not be on Big Brother. I'm officially retired from Big Brother."

In the days that followed, the San Francisco transplant tweeted back and forth with fans about the hit series. "I turned down [the show] because [of] the state of our economy," she tweeted. "Too much of a risk to leave a job for 3 months during a recession." Hey, even Big Brother favorites need to work for a living, right? That didn't stop her fans from clamoring for another run with Reyes.

Danielle Reyes thinks she's too old for Big Brother

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Danielle Reyes became a franchise favorite during her two seasons with the show. During Big Brother Season 3, she proved to be a fierce competitor with sharp strategies. She finagled her way to the final two with the help of a two-person alliance. She later talked about her approach with Entertainment Weekly. "My strategy was for people to underestimate me. I was a brutal game player," she said. 

Reyes was less successful during her return in the first All Star season. That time around, her peers knew how competitively she played the game and viewed her as a threat, but she remained a favorite among the BB faithful and attended the wrap party for Big Brother Season 4 (pictured above).

Although fans clearly want to see her back on Big Brother, Reyes does not seem willing to ever consider a return to the series. In addition to announcing her retirement on Twitter, Reyes also dished that she does not feel comfortable potentially being the oldest reality star in the house. "They asked but I respectfully declined," she tweeted in response to Season 22. "Thank God. I would have been the old house guest. Yikes." 

Despite her unwillingness to join the cast, Reyes has expressed nothing but love for the show and is excited to watch along with the rest of its loyal viewers.

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