So far, Big Brother 24 has been a series of blindsides, betrayals, and dramatic moments, but one of the most surprising elements of the season has been houseguest Matthew "Turner" Turner's complete turnaround in popularity since the first week. At 23-years-old, Turner is the youngest player on the season. He is a thrift store owner from North Attleboro, Massachussetts and is an environmentally conscious former member of the "van life" lifestyle.Turner got off to a rocky start with the very vocal Big Brother fanbase. When his participation on season 24 was announced by CBS, his sister, Holly, made troubling accusations about him on Twitter, and his past conflicts with famous YouTuber MrBeast came to light. Turner had at one point made allegations that MrBeast fostered a toxic and abusive work environment during Turner's tenure as a MrBeast employee, allegations many believed to be untrue. The combination of Holly's assertions that Turner himself was toxic and used racist language, coupled with the MrBeast controversy, led Turner to being the least popular houseguest entering BB24, according to many online polls.However, Turner has turned around the public perception of him and is now one of the most popular contestants on Big Brother 24. His likable behavior has caused fans to rethink their initial impressions about him and the complex issues at play within the controversies related to his sister and MrBeast. The beginning of the turnaround for Turner occurred when, as Head of Household, he refused to nominate Taylor Hale after several of the houseguests had ostracized her and belittled her. When he was expected to nominate and target Taylor for eviction during the Veto ceremony in his HOH week, Turner shocked many of his competitors by refusing to nominate Taylor and calling out the "bullying" she experienced in the house. The move helped solidify the then-popular Leftovers alliance, and because of Taylor's immense popularity with the fans and the moral backbone Turner displayed to admonish the bullying, Turner shot up in the popularity rankings.
Turner's approval rating with the fanbase has continued skyrocketing in recent weeks. He has gone from being reviled to being a bona fide fan favorite. He even eclipsed Taylor in several online polls following a dip in popularity for her during her messy HOH week. Turner's surge has been largely due to his feud with Jasmine Davis in "Muffin-gate," a soon-to-be legendary Big Brother event in which Turner secretly ate half of Jasmine's muffin, leading Jasmine to go into full detective mode to figure out the culprit. Turner has a contentious relationship with Jasmine, often questioning her exaggerated Southern accent and attention-seeking behaviors while giving knowing glances to the camera in a manner some fans have described as Jim Halpert-esque, in reference to the character from The Office. Jasmine is a houseguest many fans love to hate, so Turner's light-hearted antagonism toward her has further solidified his appeal to fans.
Turner's rebound is testament to the fickle nature of the Big Brother fandom. Turner went from being ridiculed online by fans for things like his appearance and hygiene habits to being one of the most popular contestants of the season. The turnaround once again proves the Big Brother motto: "Expect the unexpected."
Big Brother airs Sundays and Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EDT and Thursdays at 9 p.m. EDT on CBS.
Source: Big Brother Daily/Twitter