[Warning: The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for The Challenge: All Stars‘ latest episode.]
It’d been 10 years since Brandon Nelson last competed on The Challenge, and a lot of things changed in his personal life — and his gameplay strategy, for that matter — when he returned for All Stars Season 4.
Though he and Cara Maria Sorbello were two of the few Challenge-first players (having both joined the show for Fresh Meat II) — and she was cast in every season he’d been on (specifically, Cutthroat, Rivals, Battle of the Seasons, and Free Agents) — he didn’t feel compelled to stay loyal to her when it came to choosing a pair for elimination in last week’s episode against Rachel Robinson. Though she came back with her star intact, Cara Maria was still stung by Brandon’s decision to turn against her, and he knew he’d have to pay for that decision sooner or later. He justified the move by noting that she’d been out of contact for a slew of his recent life experiences — including marriage, kids, separation, the loss of his father, and two near-fatal accidents — but he still knew the clock was ticking ’til she exacted revenge.
In this week’s episode, all of the contestants competed in a lively game of Bobblehead racing — a throwback to The Duel 2 — and as funny as it was to see each of them scramble down in tiny carts with massive lampshade-style hats, Brandon wasn’t laughing when he found his team in last place. Worse, Cara Maria was in the middle group, and she didn’t hesitate to send him into elimination against his ally Leroy Garrett.
Brandon, who had a good showing in the previous challenges and even earned one of the season’s earliest stars, went in confident that he could win back his star. However, in the elimination, titled “Mission: Improbable,” Leroy managed to complete the suspension puzzle before Brandon could get his last ball into place, and he had to go home.
TV Insider caught up with Brandon Nelson to talk about his choice to start beef with Cara Maria, how he felt about facing off with Leroy, and how he came up with that adorable excuse for going away he used with his child.
You came into this season saying you wanted to kind of shed some of your good guy image. How is that going?
Brandon Nelson: So far, so good. I’ve played the game pretty much the same for the five previous seasons that I’ve been on. And then with this 10-year gap, I’m like, “Okay, maybe I did something wrong. Maybe I should switch it up the next time.” So I was always saying if I ever got another opportunity, I would definitely come in with a different mindset, and everything that happened between Free Agents and All Stars 4 in real life definitely changed me a little bit.
You’ve never been a big drama person, so how did you feel when you kind of got slipped into that stuff with Janelle and Ayanna and Leroy and Kam?
It was more of a real-life kind of thing because usually when I’m filming, I’m like in game mode. I really don’t get too much into the politics, and there’s not really a lot of drama surrounding me. But I heard what I heard, and I was like, “Well, let me go and see what I can do with this information.” And I did, and I didn’t know it was gonna turn into what it turned into. I mean, a lot was left on the cutting room floor. But you know, I feel like I’m actually a part of it now —maybe not in the most positive light, but I mean, we’re playing a game, so I feel like I’m actually getting my feet wet for real.
Speaking of drama, if you and Cara Maria had not gotten into the argument that you did, do you think she would have protected you from elimination?
Oh, yeah, I’m pretty sure she would have. I mean, that was kind of a given. And I think she thought the same thing about me as well. I mean, either way, on her end, I felt like she still would have protected me and things would have been the same or different.
Were you surprised at all that it was so easy for her to flip that switch and go into revenge mode against you?
Well, from what I know about Cara, I wasn’t surprised at all. I mean, I was expecting it — but because she wouldn’t expect that from me. But then again, we haven’t talked, and then even in the house, of course we were talking, we were just talking about real-life stuff outside of the game. We never really talked about the game, and then with the distraction of Laurel and Nicole and then Cara’s kind of in that a little bit as well — not directly — there was never really any game talk. So yeah, for her… I know, I know. And I felt bad about it, but I know she was hurt, and then she goes from being hurt to being like, “Okay, I’m gonna kill everybody.” And I’m like, “Yeah, well, I expect that.”
Jonne Roriz/Paramount+
You mentioned all the life changes that you’ve had, and she’s had them, too. Did you guys ever get a chance to kind of reconnect on those things during the game, or did that happen afterward?
Afterward, yes, we definitely, definitely talked. And one of the biggest hang-ups that I was having was that some very significant things that happened — not that she was supposed to know, but she wouldn’t have known because we don’t talk. She would have known if we did, and I know people will say, “Well, the phone works both ways.” I did send text messages. Sometimes they would get answered. Sometimes they wouldn’t. And I know she’s super busy because as I haven’t been on the show, she’s becoming the face of the show — if not already the face of the show. So I get that, and I’m super happy for her, especially with everything she’s going through to get to this point. So, she’s busy, but it was just a disconnect. We definitely figured it out. I know how she is and what she expects and [she knows] how I am and what I expect, so we’re fine.
There was such a cute moment where you had convinced your daughter that you were working in Wakanda. Can you talk about how you came up with that idea? And what did she say when you came back?
Because, like I said, I’ve been removed for like a decade, and you’d never know where you’re going until you get there, this was one of the few times where it kind of leaked where we were going prior. So before I was leaving, I was like, “I have to go work. I’m gonna be gone for a little while.” She was like, “Where are you going?” And Black Panther is one of our favorite movies, so I was like, “I’m going to Wakanda to do some work.” And she goes, “Wakanda forever.” She’s cute. So when I got back… she was like, “When are we going to go?” And I was like, “Well, I didn’t pay for it this time. So I gotta save some money to go back to Africa.” But we’ll go one day.
Speaking of the location, what was it like for you to go there? I mean, it seems like a lot of cast had a really strong connection to the area.
It was amazing. I don’t know what it is about the African air, but it’s like as soon — because we landed in Johannesburg and then we flew to Cape Town from there — but like even when we’re going through customs in Johannesburg, a couple of the people that were working at the airport, they came up to me and they were asking if I was Zulu. So I need to look into that because they’re like, “No, you look like you’re Zulu. You need to look into that you might be royalty and not even know it!” But for the most part, man, the entire cast was just like, “It was one of the [best].” Usually, when you’re in a house, you’re just anxiety-ridden. You don’t have your phone. You can’t just walk down the street. You can’t go anywhere. You can’t even read a book if you want to. But just something about being there was cool. It was relaxed. We felt like we were kind of just chilling at the house until it was time to compete, but there wasn’t a lot of stress or anxiety. And for the first time, I felt comfortable.
When you were up for elimination, there was a moment when it looked like Derek would have the opportunity to go against you or Leroy. Were you surprised at all that he wouldn’t go against you to make it a rematch?
Oh, I mean, it’s still pretty early in the game. So I don’t think anybody’s going to be taking that chance to run down there. But I mean, the great thing about this season is that you get to see the elimination, and then you can choose if you want to go down. But no, I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t come on down … I mean, you might have had a shot, so you never know.
When you found out that you were going against Leroy, was that like worst-case scenario for you?
It was definitely worst-case scenario going in against my boy. We used to live together in Vegas. We’re like brothers outside. We talk on the phone like, “Hey boy.” It’s like my brother for real. I knew it was coming though because of the relationship that Kam, Leroy, and Cara have had on previous Challenges that I hadn’t been on and then with just me and Cara’s relationship — or on-and-off relationship, I should say — so I knew as soon as she got the chance, she was gonna go for me and Leroy. And I was like, “Why did it have to be [Leroy]?” It’d been better if we were on the same team because she would have to pick one of us or if I just wasn’t in the field to be voted for. I don’t know, there’s so many different scenarios — or it’s like the previous episode, “Don’t vote Cara in, maybe do it later.” But you can’t pass up that opportunity to put Rachel and Cara against each other.
In her confessional, Cara said she was rooting for you because she thought if you came back and Leroy was gone, then maybe you guys could work together. Do you think that was true?
Absolutely. I mean, even as we went in, I was just second-guessing my decision, but then I was like, “No,” and held true to what I said I was gonna do before I even got there. So I didn’t feel bad about the decision. I just felt bad for our situation, our relationship. … Because her and Rachel are probably in the top five of people who could win this whole thing as I’m looking at it, and I was just like, “Yeah, I’ll come back. I got a lot of explaining to do, and I’ll ask forgiveness.” But it was nothing that I didn’t think we couldn’t patch up, so I was looking forward to hopefully getting back in the house and then going back and crawling to her and saying, “Oh, I’m sorry, it was just something I had to do,” and then we would have been fine.
Whose star would you have taken if you had won?
I don’t know. I mean, I would have had to make a strategic decision. I know that Steve took mine — if he still has one right now [in the game], I’d probably go back and take it from him.
How might your strategy change for your next appearance on The Challenge?
So if I have the luxury and the blessing and opportunity to appear on another Challenge, I would definitely still take the same mindset. My biggest thing was just to have fun, relax, but also, do you. You’ve got to have some tunnel vision in this thing, and you have to be a little selfish. Ultimately, you want to win. Don’t go into it thinking that anybody else has your best interests in mind. You can’t think like that. You might not want to pull the trigger too fast, but if you have the opportunity, you have to take it because you never know when you’re gonna have another opportunity. So if I’m gonna go into another Challenge, I’m definitely gonna keep that same mindset. And you know, maybe shoot a little differently. I’m not gonna go too far off the bull’s eye because I gotta let these people know I am here to play.
The Challenge: All Stars, Wednesdays, Paramount+