10 Big Brother houseguests who lived in Las Vegas

Through the 26 seasons of Big Brother, we have seen many players living in the same area making it to Studio City. Here are 10 Big Brother houseguests who called Las Vegas home when they played their seasons.

Tonya Paoni, Big Brother 3

Tonya Paoni became the first houseguest from the state of Nevada when this then 35-year-old retail sales specialist and Las Vegas resident—born and raised in Sin City—competed on Big Brother 3 where she was the second player evicted (Day 20).

Tonya, now age 57, did make the Jury that year—back when the show had its largest Jury (10)—and had 0 HoH’s and 0 PoV’s and later appeared on Playboy’s Girls of Reality TV stream. Little did she know how many others from Las Vegas would follow in her Reality TV show steps.

Maggie Ausburn, Big Brother 6

Maggie Ausburn was a 26-year-old emergency room nurse in Las Vegas when she won Big Brother 6, taking the $500,000 grand prize back to Glitter Gulch. Maggie lasted all 80 days, was the first (and only) winner ever from Las Vegas, and won one HoH (Week 4) and one veto (Day 62).

Maggie was nominated four times (Week 3, Week 7, Week 10, week 11), and competed as part of an all-women’s Final 3 with 2nd-place finisher Ivette Cordero and 3rd-place finisher Janelle Pierzina—both then residents of the Miami metropolitan area.

Now age 46, Maggie would be a great choice for a future All-Stars season, maybe for Big Brother 30?

Amber Siyavus, Big Brother 8

One big nemesis of Big Brother 8 winner Evel Dick was Amber (Whamber) Siyavus, who came on the show as a 27-year-old cocktail waitress from Las Vegas and was allied with Jameeka Cameron. Amber finished in 7th place (Day 62), had no HoH or PoV wins, and was nominated for eviction three times (Week 1, Week 7, Week 8).

Now 44, Late Night Crew alliance member Amber attended Silverado High School where she played soccer. She is still a cocktail waitress at the MGM Grand on The Strip.

Rachel Reilly, Big Brother 12

Most who end up living in Las Vegas are transplants, and that was the case with 25-year-old Rachel “I am Vegas” Reilly, who was also a cocktail waitress on The Strip as well as a graduate student in Sin City when she burst onto the scene on Big Brother 12.

Rachel was evicted on Day 41 and finished in 9th place in her first season at Studio City, but she returned the following season (Big Brother 13) with newfound fling and ally Brendon and won the season—now an event hostess—and the $500,000 in another all-women Final 2 with runner-up Porsche Briggs.

Now aged 40 and happily married to Brendon, Rachel Reilly Villegas no longer calls Las Vegas home. A graduate of Western Carolina University, Rachel finished third on The Amazing Race with Brendon and won Celebrity Fear Factor with him as well.

She also was a co-winner on Snake in the Grass with Janelle and Cirie Fields and was on The Traitors two years ago where she was a Faithful and saw her banishment in Episode 8.

James Rhine, Big Brother 6

James Rhine bounces around more than a pachinko ball, and the multi-season houseguest once lived here in Las Vegas, but not at the time he was on either of his seasons. James was on Big Brother 6 and was a loss prevention manager in Atlanta.

When he returned at age 50 on Big Brother 7, James—a native of Chicago—was then a resident of Miami. Then I believe he lived in Las Vegas a few years before moving to California maybe, and now he seems to be back in Miami although his Twitter still has him in Las Vegas.

Jackie Ibarra, Big Brother 17

Another sexy Las Vegas resident who appeared on Big Brother was Jacklyn “Jackie” Ibarra, who was a professional dancer and age 28 when she was on Big Brother 17.

Jackie won one HoH (Week 5)—and was dethroned that same week—one Battle of the Block (BotB) win, zero Vetoes, and was nominated three times (Week 1, Week 4, Day 57) and was evicted on Day 57 in 10th place. Jackie is now 37, still in Vegas, and was also on The Amazing Race like Rachel.

Jackie and Jeff Weldon became the first two houseguests to transfer from The Amazing Race to Big Brother. The duo finished in 7th place on The Amazing Race 26. Jackie, now 37, and her longtime boyfriend Drew gave birth to a son late in 2021. 

Vanessa Rousso, Big Brother 17

Another Big Brother 17 houseguest who lived in Las Vegas was Vanessa Rousso, a 32-year-old professional poker player who was relatively well-known around the circuit. Vanessa did pretty well on Big Brother 17, finishing in 3rd place (Day 98) in the season that saw Steve Moses win over Twins Twist sister Liz Nolan.

Vanessa won four HoHs (Week 3, Week 5, Week 10, Week 12) and three PoVs (Week 4, Week 9, Day 89) and for all of her hard work and success, what exactly did she win? A meeting with Arianna and Frankie Grande. In some nations, that is considered a form of punishment.

A DJ and music producer with her wife Melissa Ouellet (N1TEL1TE), Vanessa gave birth to London and Lorenzo, identical twin boys, to join her previous son, Lucas. Vanessa would also be nice to see on a potential future Big Brother: All-Stars season.

Jillian Parker, Big Brother 19

Jillian Parker was a 24-year-old timeshare sales rep from Las Vegas when she played, but like Tonya, and Amber, she was evicted early on (Day 16) and finished in 15th place with no HoH or PoV wins.

Jillian, also a native of Celebration, Florida, is now 31 and was nominated for eviction twice (Day 1, Week 1) and this The Oddballs alliance member didn’t have much of a chance in Big Brother 19, the season won by returnee Nicole Franzel.

Rachel Swindler, Big Brother 20

A year after Jillian, another Las Vegan made the cut, this time Rachel Swindler, a 29-year-old entertainer finished in 12th place and was evicted on Day 44. During her stay in the game, Rachel won no HoHs or PoVs, and the Level 6 alliance member was nominated just once (Week 5).

Rachel is now 36 and lives in Myrtle Beach, Florida. She was cast as Tina in Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding at Buca di Beppo when Big Brother came calling back in 2018.

Daniel Durston, Big Brother 24

The last resident of Las Vegas to appear on Big Brother was Superfan Daniel Durston, a 35-year-old Vegas performer who also finished in 12th place, being evicted from the fake house on a parking lot on Day 37.

A Las Vegas transplant from Ontario, California, Daniel won one HoH (Week 1) and one PoV (Week 40) and was nominated just once (Day 45). The last three houseguests from Las Vegas have finished 15th (Jillian), 12th (Rachel), and 12th (Daniel) and stayed in the house a combined 97 days—one less day than Vanessa Rousso on BB17.