If there is one thing that CBS fans are getting used to, it’s that the network is becoming known for axing some of our favorite shows.
CBS handed out some of the most shocking cancellations of the last two seasons, axing hit shows with loyal followings and strong viewership. The list includes NCIS: Hawaii, So Help Me Todd, SWAT, Blue Bloods, FBI: Most Wanted, FBI: International, and The Equalizer, all of which met untimely ends due to the competitive nature of CBS’s schedule.
Now, it seems we can add two more shows to the running list of beloved CBS shows to be cast aside.
Celebrity Big Brother and Big Brother Reindeer Games canceled at CBS
Big Brother fans hoping to get new seasons of the show’s two hit spinoffs, Celebrity Big Brother and Big Brother Reindeer Games, aren’t going to like this update. Both spinoffs have effectively been canceled by CBS with no new seasons in the works for either show.
As reported by Entertainment Weekly, CBS is not planning a new season of Celebrity Big Brother to air in February 2026 opposite NBC’s Winter Olympics coverage, nor is it planning a season of Big Brother Reindeer Games to air this December. It’s a disappointing development for Big Brother fans, but one that isn’t exactly shocking.
Big Brother Reindeer Games debuted in December 2023 as a special limited event for the holiday season. Fans couldn’t get enough of the show and loved getting to see some of their favorite houseguests back in action for the holiday-themed event. However, despite the positive reception from the fans, CBS opted not to bring the show back in 2024.
Celebrity Big Brother, meanwhile, first aired in 2018 opposite NBC’s Winter Olympics coverage. A second season then aired in 2019 before the show went on a multi-year break which kept it off-air until 2022 when it returned to air opposite the Winter Olympics once again. Fans were hopeful that a fourth season could finally happen timed to the 2026 Winter Olympics; however, that’s not in the cards.
While the shows are unofficially canceled with no new seasons planned, the show’s longtime producer Rich Meehan remains optimistic that CBS could dust the spinoffs off the shelf down the line, or at least Reindeer Games.
“I think ultimately just it comes down to schedule availability. CBS has a successful scripted business and ultimately, it's like, ‘When do they need stuff?’ But we love it, we're always asking about it, and from talking to them, it's not like it's gone forever. It's just when is the right time, and when do they have the airtime for it? Everybody at CBS loves it.”
So while everyone might love the show, it seems there is no urgency to bring it back into the mix, and CBS’s successful schedule is to blame for the most part. It’s a great problem for CBS to have, but it’s a problem that continues to impact the shows left out in the cold due to the limited number of spaces on the schedule.