While many fans view Big Brother premiered more than two decades ago, in 2000. With both series having launched on the same network – CBS – it's likely that each show gained inspiration from the other, even if they are very different in concept.
And part of that is in competitions, the lifeblood of the series that has seen competitors do everything, including balance on a beam for hours and hours to get themselves wet, dirty, and even injured, all in the name of winning. Both shows have lots of creative competitions, but some of the ones that have appeared on Big Brother are similar to ones that were, and continue to be, on Survivor.
Three-Dimensional Puzzles
Big Brother has had challenges that include three-dimensional puzzles, including in season 20 when Kaitlyn, one of the most unpredictable players ever in the game, failed miserably at putting together a 3D puzzle. It was so memorable, in fact, that the competition returned in season 21 and was renamed Kaitlyn's Puzzle.
There have been plenty of 3D puzzles on Survivor over the years, shaped like towers, words, the Survivor logo, and all kinds of other shapes and objects. "Boston" Rob Mariano, a fan favorite player and one of the best ever to play the game, was known for being very good at solving such puzzles.
Endurance Competitions
Endurance competitions like Get a Grip, which appears frequently on Survivor, have been replicated in a variety of ways on Big Brother. In Survivor, the castaways are tasked with holding onto a pole for as long as they can. Typically, this is more difficult than it sounds since they are also exhausted, hungry, and hot while doing it.
In Big Brother, while the players have full bellies and are in a comfortable environment, endurance competitions are usually made more difficult with twists that include goo or water being thrown or sprayed at them or other obstacles designed to push them to their limits.
An Offer You Can't Refuse
While this competition isn't an exact replica of one that appeared on Survivor, the general concept is the same. The host tempts players with an enticing prize that, if they decide to take, will end up punishing their housemates.
On Survivor, the prize is usually food. A player deciding to step down from a competition to gorge on delicious PB&Js or pizza doesn't necessarily punish the others. But they are punished anyway in that they must watch longingly as the person eats a full meal while they are starving. Interestingly, the first time this competition appeared on the second season of Big Brother, the punishment was that everyone else in the house had to eat nothing but peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for four days.
Pull Some Strings
Big Brother's Pull Some Strings competition is very similar to other intricate ball-guiding competitions in Survivor that require players to maneuver a ball to a specific target.
On Big Brother, this competition was most notable in season 16 when houseguests were supposed to play in pairs. But, feeling betrayed by Frankie, Caleb sat on the sidelines leaving Frankie to compete on his own. The idea was to force a loss to send Frankie home. But in one of the most miraculous recoveries on the show, Frankie ended up winning anyway.
Reward Challenge
The general idea behind the reward challenge on Survivor, which gives a player or a team an advantage relating to food, fire, or comfort - or sometimes even something as simple as salt and pepper or a sewing kit -has been copied in Big Brother with the reward challenges.
Usually in Big Brother, houseguests compete in the occasional reward challenge that might give them an advantage in the game, a cash prize, a trip, or something else. One of the most popular ones is the Yankee Swap competition, which sees one unlucky person left with no reward and having to wear a unitard.
The Power Of Veto
The Power of Veto competition itself is effectively a version of the Immunity Idol, which was actually only introduced in later seasons of Survivor. The idea behind both is that if you win it, you are safe from being voted off that week, or can offer it to someone else to give them safety.
Big Brother adds a twist in that the Power of Veto can be used to remove someone who is up for eviction. Survivor's twist, meanwhile, is that players have to secretly find the Idol somewhere on the island and not everyone knows when someone has one.
The Black Box
There are some differences between the various interpretations of this competition on Big Brother and Blind Leading The Blind on Survivor. But the main theme of people competing while blindfolded or otherwise unable to see remains the same.
In Survivor, several team are blindfolded and must navigate an obstacle course while being directed by one teammate who acts as their eyes. In Big Brother, this competition usually involves players being in a pitch-black room indoors where they have to find objects and an exit without being able to see.
Spelling Search
In the recurring Survivor competition called Puzzle Dig, players race to dig up bags with puzzle pieces that they can then use to put together a puzzle once they have gotten all of them.
On Big Brother, this concept is found in the Spelling Search competition. Except players dig up cards with letters on them, organizing them to form as long a word as possible. This one isn't necessarily about the race to finish first like it is on Survivor but about having a word that's longer than others.
Bowlerina
It makes sense that reality competition series like Big Brother and Survivor would both have competitions that are based on bowling. Big Brother's Bowlerina adds a fun twist in that the contestants, wearing tights and tutus, must spin themselves in circles before grabbing a ball and trying to knock down the pins.
A bowling competition appeared twice on Survivor, first in Samoa and then in Heroes vs. Villains. Called Fauxconut Bowling, it involves the castaways getting two chances to knock down as many pins as they can. Like in Bowlerina, they compete head-to-head in different rounds until the final two players are left to determine the winner.
Quiz Competitions
Survivor is known mostly for physical and puzzle competitions. But the series has had a few quiz competitions in its day, like Survivor History, which appeared in All-Stars and Micronesia and had players answering questions pertaining to previous seasons of the show.
Usually, when appearing on Big Brother and involving the show itself, the questions relate to the specific season the houseguests are playing on, not previous ones. From OTEV competitions to True or False or Before or After quizzes where Julie asks players to recount when certain events happened during their season. The quiz competitions likely drew inspiration from Survivor.