How to apply for Big Brother 27

We just saw Chelsie Banham win Big Brother 26, capturing the $750,000 grand prize on Finale night and becoming the first female winner of the CBS reality TV show to win a season by a unanimous vote.

So if you are interested in being one of the Houseguests chosen for Big Brother 27 in 2025, how do you go about it? And what are the casting directors looking for? And is submitting a casting video necessary to have a real chance at making the show?

Here are the four steps provided on the Big Brother casting website you need to follow if you are serious about trying to get secluded in that famous house in Studio City, California next summer and play for that massive $750,000 final prize money.

Step 1: Watch the video to see what casting is looking for

Most contestants on Big Brother get to the reality TV competition game show by simply applying for the show through the Big Brother casting website.

"“It’s very time-consuming for us to watch all of these videos and we actually do watch all of them. And then to take the effort to call someone and get to know them, we want to go off the actual audition videos, actually.” —Jesse Tannenbaum, Big Brother Casting Director"

Step 2: Make your casting video audition tape

Simply sending in TikTok videos, wearing sunglasses, overacting and hyping yourself up, making a premeditated script, or having bad sound or lighting is a good way to get yourself eliminated.

The best bet when making your audition tape is to let the casting directors know who you are as a person in your natural surroundings. It’s perfectly ok to swear if that’s the way you talk, but remember not to make your audition too short or too long and try to film it horizontally.

If you are planning to apply for Big Brother 27, check out the above video from Big Brother 25 Houseguest Mecole Hayes who offers up some great advice and provides her successful audition tape which landed her a spot in the house.

To make your video, go to the “video” tab on the CBS Big Brother casting website. You can record your video using a smartphone or PC camera and then save it as a standard video.

But make sure the final video is appropriate for the Big Brother casting website’s specified file type and limitations in file size. And like Big Brother casting director Jesse Tannebaum said in the above video, if you are having trouble with the file types or sizes, simply ask a friend who may know more about it than you.

Step 3: Save the video and a picture on your PC

After you have successfully made your audition tape and are happy with the final product, save it to your PC so it will be easy to just click a button to add it to your application when you decide to apply online and upload it.

Also, have a good current picture of yourself saved on your PC before you apply.

Step 4: Fill out application, upload your video, picture

All Big Brother 27 applications must be submitted at bigbrothercasting.tv. Because of the massive number of applicants each season, don’t expect to be able to ask casting if they actually received your application and casting video. It is just best to assume that they did. This is their job and they have done this for 26 seasons.

And like Jesse said in the video, they do look at all of the videos. Should you be lucky enough to get a call-back from the Big Brother producers and are chosen for an interview, you will hear from them shortly before the interview.

If you are one of the lucky few to make it through that first initial interview process and have caught the attention of casting and make it to the final selection process. Producers will contact you and a trip to Los Angeles for a final in-person interview will mean that you are just one step away from either making the show or not making the final cut.

If you are considered in that final selection process but don’t make that final cut—there were 16 Houseguests on Big Brother 26—don’t give up. Big Brother 8 winner Evel Dick Donato said that he applied several times before finally being chosen by casting for Season 8.

Big Brother eligibility requirements

You can read all of the Big Brother eligibility requirements here. For fans of the show, a lot of this is common sense and common knowledge. Here are some of the more important requirements:

• You need to be a US citizen and live in the United States
• You need to be in excellent physical and mental health
• You can’t be a candidate for political public office
• If chosen to be interviewed, you must complete and send in all documents
• If selected as a Finalist, you need to complete the Participant Form Package

If you do apply to be a Houseguest on Big Brother 27, expect casting to do a thorough background check including driving history, civil, criminal, and financial background history checks. Good luck.