Heading into the Week 9 eviction episode of Big Brother 27, Morgan Pope had just used the veto to remove herself from the block, providing second-time Head of Household Lauren Domingue with the perfect opportunity to execute her plan of nominating Keanu Soto as the replacement via the back door. Lauren won her spot as the decision-maker during the controversial “White Locust” elimination twist immediately following the Week 8 eviction. In a hamster-wheel maze competition, self-proclaimed BB Queen Rachel Reilly failed to complete the task in the time allotted, sending her straight to jury. Two of her closest allies, Ashley Hollis and Will Williams, are now on the block next to Keanu, and one of the three will join Rachel in the jury house.

Read on for our recap of Big Brother Season 27, Episode 31, which aired Thursday, Sep. 11 on CBS. This season’s theme is the “Summer of Mystery” and the house has been transformed into the Hotel Mystère, where secrets lurk behind every corner. The players still in the running to win the $750,000 grand prize are:

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  • Ashley Hollis (25): Attorney from Chicago

  • Ava Pearl (24): Aura painter from Long Island, N.Y.

  • Keanu Soto (33): Dungeon Master from Miami

  • Kelley Jorgensen (29): Web designer from Burbank, S.D.

  • Lauren Domingue (22): Bridal consultant from Lafayette, La.

  • Morgan Pope (33): Gamer from Palm Springs, Calif.

  • Vince Panaro (34): Unemployed from West Hills, Calif.

  • Will Williams (50): College sports podcaster from Wallace, S.C.

Morgan wins Veto, 'Big Brother 27'

Morgan wins Veto, ‘Big Brother 27’CBS

We begin where Wednesday’s Veto episode left off, with Morgan safe for the remainder of the week and Keanu reeling from Lauren’s unexpected backdoor attempt. In Week 8, Keanu was HOH and did not nominate Lauren for eviction despite many houseguests urging him to. He was hoping to cash in on that fact this week, but Lauren didn’t reciprocate the same kindness. Now, Keanu is relying on a Block Buster win to save his game. Ashley sits next to him on the block now for the second time in a row while Will is vulnerable to eviction again for the first time since Week 3. So, who will be going home tonight?

#ButFirst Vince in the Middle

After prioritizing Lauren over Morgan during the “White Locust” twist this week, Vince was caught in the middle between the two players he promised to go to the end of the game with. Because Lauren is HOH, Vince spent a lot of time with her this week, influencing her decision-making as much as he could. In recent weeks, Vince and Morgan have gotten increasingly close on a personal level, feeding the betrayal Morgan felt by Vince’s actions this week.

Feeling alienated from Vince, Morgan told him that the time he’s spending with Lauren is “extremely hurtful” because Lauren is so fiercely targeting her and as Morgan’s friend he should be doing more to protect her. Morgan was noticing that Vince was playing in the middle between the two of them and needed to see going forward that his “words match his actions” when it comes to being committed to their pact in the game.

Finding Votes

For the players voting in the eviction this week, the consensus was that if Keanu remains on the block after the BB Block Buster that he’d be the one to go. Their conundrum would come only if Keanu saves himself, leaving Ashley and Will as the only two options. Keanu remaining in the house was Lauren’s worst nightmare because he made it clear to her that putting him at risk this week leaves him no option but to go after her, Vince and Morgan next week.

Despite Will and Ashley being strong allies and friends in the game, both understood the likelihood that Keanu would win the Block Buster and they’d be pitted against each other. Ashley pitched for Keanu’s vote by bonding over their shared loss of Rachel and the fact that Will can easily “skate through” to the end of the game as someone that will never be voted out. Ashley was interested in working with Keanu in future weeks because he’d replace Rachel as the perfect shield to ever sit next to on eviction night.

Welcome Back, Rachel!

No, not back into the game, but into the studio to sit down with Julie Chen-Moonves for her official elimination interview. In their chat, Rachel admitted that had she “approached Ava differently” then she may have been able to influence Ava’s decision to choose her over Vince for the first hamster wheel competitively and she also acknowledged that she hoped the relationship they built over the course of the season would have meant more to Ava in that moment. Rachel accepted responsibility for stepping up to compete in the wheel in the first place and says that she saw her Big Brother history flash before her eyes in that moment and she panicked.

On the subject of Keanu, Rachel said she respects his game because he plays hard as a comp beast, but still called him a “messy” player that she wishes she could put a target on still. In her final thoughts, Rachel expressed gratitude for “everything” that the show has given her over the years, including her family, and she remains a “huge fan” of her “favorite show.”

BB Block Buster

For this week’s final chance at safety, Will, Keanu and Ashley competed in “Key to Safety,” a race to untangle themselves from a luggage cart woven through with the rope they’re attached to. Despite his leg injury, Will was present to compete and despite his larger stature, Keanu seemed to be moving quicker than either of his competitors. As predicted by the houseguests throughout the week, Keanu came out on top in the comp and won his safety from the vote.

Live Eviction

In the moments after Keanu’s win was announced to the voting houseguests, there was no whispering to strategize about the vote and instead just quit hugs around the room. A tearful Ashley had nothing negative to say about anyone, especially not her “best friend in the house” that she was sitting next to. Will also had a tough time speaking because of the emotional weight of the situation, admitting that if he leaves the house it must be because he’s “lovable.”

In the live vote, Keanu, Morgan and Vince voted as the majority to evict Will. Ava and Kelley voted in the minority to evict Ashley. No one seemed more torn up by the result than Ava, but all the houseguests gave their love and hugs to Will on his way out of the house.

More to come…

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