A contestant on Spain's Big Brother says she was sexually assaulted on the show, then forced to watch the footage for a reaction. The news surprised fans, as these types of reality shows typically have cameras everywhere, recording every moment.
Julie Chen Moonves is gearing up to host the 21st season Big Brother which airs on the CBS network. The series is a reality competition that has impressive challenges, juicy romances among the cast, and heartbreaking eliminations. The show blends the combination of a reality show with a game show, and fans watch as contestants battle each week to maintain their place in the house.
There have been some dark whispering regarding the Spanish version of Big Brother recently. Carlota Prado, who was a contestant on the show, was asked to go to the diary room where contestants discuss what had happened in a particular scene. Cameras are installed all over the house and watch contestants' every move - or so fans believed. According to The New York Times, Prado was called into the diary room to watch her own assault.
The night before, Prado was drinking with the other contestants at a party for her and her costars. During the party, she revealed that she was sexually abused by Jose Maria Lopez, who was a fellow contestant. The incident took place in 2017 and Prado was not aware she had even been attacked until she was forced to watch the abuse replay in front of her on the monitors. While watching the footage, producers caught her reaction as the reality star burst into tears. The reality star requested that the footage be turned off and asked for something to relax her as her heart was beating “quickly.” However, Prado revealed that she was then asked to not repeat any of the incidents to her fellow contestants.
At the time of the incident back in 2017, the footage was not used or aired on the show, but after two years, a Spanish news network, El Confidencial, obtained the disturbing footage. The show’s handling of the incident has now triggered outrage in the country. Even though the network has apologized, companies have pulled advertisements from the show. While the production company said that Lopez was removed from the show and that they reported the news to the police, fans do not feel that was enough. At the time of the incident, Prado did not originally press charges, but now has filed a grievance that is being investigated.
Source: The New York Times