Big Brother 25 contestant Luke Valentine has been expelled from the reality show’s US edition after he was caught using a racial slur on the show’s 24-hour live feed.
30-year-old illustrator Valentine who is white, dropped the N-word during a conversation with fellow contestants Jared Fields, Cory Wurtenberger and Hisam Goueli on Tuesday (8 August) night.
“We were in the f***ing cheese room, n****,” Valentine is heard saying before catching himself and saying: “I’m sorry.”
“Luke violated the Big Brother code of conduct and there is zero tolerance in the house for using a racial slur. He has been removed from the house,” CBS told Variety on Wednesday. “His departure will be addressed in Thursday night’s show.”
The Independent’s efforts to find a contact for Valentine were unsuccessful.
The reality show faced immediate backlash after a clip of the moment was shared on social media.
“Production should remove Luke. Set an example. Show current and future players that language like that will not be tolerated,” Andy Herren, who won the US show’s 15th season wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“Production loves hiding racism and homophobia and transphobia when straight white men are involved. Hoping they actually do the right thing and address Luke’s comment. The way it so casually came out of his mouth is really upsetting.”
Production should remove Luke. Set an example. Show current and future players that language like that will not be tolerated. #BB25
— Andy Herren (@AndyHerren) August 9, 2023
More to follow...