Tucker Des Lauriers and 3 other Big Brother 26 contestants who went home too soon

BIG BROTHER season 26 August 7 on the CBS Television Network and live streaming on Paramount+ and PlutoTV. Pictured: Angela Murray, Tucker Des Lauriers and Kenney Kelley.. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available.
BIG BROTHER season 26 August 7 on the CBS Television Network and live streaming on Paramount+ and PlutoTV. Pictured: Angela Murray, Tucker Des Lauriers and Kenney Kelley.. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available. /
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Big Brother season 26 will go down in history as one of the best seasons of the CBS reality TV series. Sure, the AI twist is a large part of why the season has been so interesting, especially when it comes to the introduction of a third nominee on the block as well as the introduction of the BBAI Arena where contestants can pull themselves off. However, what's carried the season is the incredible ensemble of cast members we've been blessed with.

From social beasts like Brooklyn Rivera, who always knew how to keep the houseguests wrapped around her finger, to competitive legends like Tucker Des Lauriers who managed to win almost every game that was thrown his direction, the season 26 houseguests have not failed to keep us entertained. But with most of these houseguests evicted with seemingly no chance at a battle back, we're now in the phase of the season where we start missing certain houseguests terribly.

Perhaps you feel the same way and wish a houseguest was back in the house. If so, maybe your list will match up with ours! Here are four Big Brother season 26 houseguests we wish stayed a little longer.

Tucker Des Lauriers

Between using the Golden Power of Veto to inspire the house to stop going with safe nominations to volunteering himself on the block multiple times because he was that sure of his ability to take himself off the block, Tucker Des Lauriers was easily the star of Big Brother season 26.

Big Brother Season 26 - Photo Credits: ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
BIG BROTHER season 26 August 14 on the CBS Television Network and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)* Pictured: Tucker Des Lauriers. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available. /

While in the house, Tucker had a strong social game with very important people. Even though most of the house was threatened by his competitive power, he always had the charisma to be able to ensure that the right people were never angry with him and trusted him all the more. Tucker even made it a point to never make the game too personal with his sworn enemies, Cedric Hodges and Quinn Martin, since, in the end, they couldn't even be mad that Tucker made the moves that he did.

Outside of his social game, we loved his confidence when it came to games. He loved puzzles and always finished them to completion. What's more, he's an endurance king, showing that he may be a jack of all trades but not a master of none.

All around, Tucker proved to be a great player. If only, he stopped testing his luck on the block and refrained from volunteering to go as a pawn, he would easily still be in the house and possibly in the running to be the winner of season 26.

Cedric Hodges

Speaking of people who kept volunteering as a pawn, we have none other than the youngest competitor of the season, Cedric Hodges.

Big Brother Season 26 - Photo Credits: ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
BIG BROTHER season 26 August 7 on the CBS Television Network and live streaming on Paramount+ and PlutoTV. Pictured: Cedric Hodges. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available. /

Like Tucker, Cedric was in a pretty decent position in the house. He got along well with virtually everyone, while also making sure to prioritize his strong alliance, The Collective. Cedric also did a good job at being there for other people outside his alliance so that, when the time came, he knew they had his back.

Unfortunately, despite a social game so strong, he tested fate by pairing up with the ultimate fate tester, Quinn Martin. Despite Quinn having multiple failed attempts at overturning the competition, Cedric wanted to lend a helping hand, providing himself as Quinn's third nominee since Quinn didn't want too much blood on his hands. Cedric and Quinn teamed up because they both wanted Tucker gone, but with Tucker on his power trip and luck on his side, it's clear that Cedric was better off safe on the sidelines of his alliance.

Cedric's game came to an end far too soon, making his blindside one of the most heart-wrenching evictions of all time. But, as fans always remind houseguests, foolish actions lead to foolish consequences.

Brooklyn Rivera

In a world full of Tuckers and Cedrics, we all need a Brooklyn Rivera who serves as the mastermind pulling all the strings.

Big Brother Season 26 - Photo Credits: ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
BIG BROTHER season 26 August 18 on the CBS Television Network and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)* Pictured: Brooklyn Rivera. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available. /

Although Brooklyn didn't win any competitions during her stay in the game, she didn't really need to up until the end of her days in the Big Brother house. She knew when to speak up and she knew when to fall back, two important things that take plenty of people far in the house. Brooklyn was also very great at keeping a balanced mind, which helped her to help her alliance members make sound decisions not grounded in emotion.

Some may have mistaken Brookyln's cool-headedness for being an ice queen villain. However, we see it as a pro since, more often than not, emotions run far too wild in the game, sullying strategy, or even logical decisions in the house. If she's a villain, then we would have loved to see her supervillain reign as Head of Household because Brookyln would have easily shaken up the house without so much as breaking a nail.

Quinn Martin

While Quinn Martin often missed most of his shots while also blundering his big game moves, he was a delight to watch.

Big Brother Season 26 - Photo Credits: ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
BIG BROTHER season 26 August 18 on the CBS Television Network and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs)* Pictured: Quinn Martin. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Highest quality screengrab available. /

Quinn was a textbook superfan who knew all about how to make it far in the game while keeping yourself clean from any unnecessary blood. He also thrived in knowing all about how to ensure he wasn't at the bottom of any alliances, often becoming the shot-caller that people trusted more often than not. Even so, Quinn highlighted why knowing and doing are two different things in the game of Big Brother and why, more than anything, it's integral to have both skills down pat.

Quinn fell into the tried and true path of being the superfan who ran their mouths too much. Overpromising and overexplaining led to Quinn's self-destruction because he always had his cards exposed with little to no gameplay to back it up. Yes, it was great that he targeted Tucker rather than get misted by Tucker's charm. But if he wanted to make waves in the game, Quinn should've put his money where his mouth was and put up all of Tucker's allies on the block, not pawns. What could've been a monumental move in the house wound up blowing up Quinn's game forever.

Sometimes we wished Quinn took the social out of his game and laid low. In this way, even if his plans didn't go the way he thought, he would be able to stay hidden and try again. But, sadly, Quinn didn't understand the power of being quiet.

If given the chance, we're sure all these houseguests would go about their games differently. Hopefully, one day, we'll get to see them return and play a much more improved and smarter game.