Big Brother: Jeff Schroeder Apologizes For Homophobic Comments On BB13
Jeff Schroeder has now apologized for the homophobic remarks that he made during the Big Brother 13 live feeds. The viewers were introduced to Jeff Schroeder back in 2009, when he competed on Big Brother 11. At the time, Jeff went into the competition as a 31-year-old advertising salesman from Norridge, Illinois. During his time on BB11, Jeff won one Head of Household competition and two Power of Veto competitions. He started a showmance with Jordan Lloyd while on the show and won the title of America's Favorite Houseguest at the grand finale.
Two years later, Jeff Schroeder came back to compete alongside Jordan Lloyd on Big Brother 13. Jeff once again had a much worse track record on the show than Jordan, but aside from his performance on BB13, Jeff got majorly called out by live feed viewers who heard him saying certain homophobic remarks during his conversations with other houseguests. In the live feeds, Kalia Booker had a conversation with Jeff about how Dumbledore, the Harry Potter character, was revealed to be gay. Jeff had a very problematic reaction to hearing that, saying: "He's in a school with little kids! You don't want to make that guy gay!"
Jeff Schroeder has addressed these remarks in the past and has claimed that he's apologized a few times for them. During a new interview with Heavy, however, Jeff once again touched on the subject. "I've apologized and again, I am sorry, and I'll continue to apologize and I don't ever want to make excuses for what I said," Jeff told the publication. "I want to take full responsibility for what I said and have it as a learning experience." Then, Jeff remarked on how much guilt he seemingly carries as a result: "[This is] one of the big failures of my life that I'm embarrassed about and I regret."
Now that his Big Brother days are long gone, Jeff Schroeder is co-hosting a syndicated talk show called Daily Blast Live. The BB11 and BB13 star is still married to Jordan Lloyd, and the couple lives in Denver, Colorado with their two children. More than 10 years have passed since Jeff first appeared on Big Brother, so it is fortunate that he has taken the time to reflect back on what he said and take full accountability for his wrongdoings. At the time, many viewers were upset by what he said in the live feeds, and most of it was not featured in the episodes airing on CBS.
It is never too late for someone to try to make amends with a minority community that felt hurt by certain statements and actions. With that said, it will be hard for certain longtime fans of Big Brother to forget how upsetting it felt to hear what Jeff said at the time and still watch him win the title of America's Favorite Houseguest on both BB11 and BB13.
Big Brother 23 premieres on Wednesday, July 7, 2021 at 8pm ET on CBS.
Sources: Heavy