“It Was Like a Freak Show in the House” – An Interview with Big Brother 8’s Zach

Zach went from hero to zero to hero again, but in the end couldn’t quite pull of what he needed to. His first hero moment was when he cofounded the Mrs. Robinson Alliance, which he says was part of his initial plan. What went wrong there? How did he keep himself together through the long weeks without any allies? And what was he plotting all along? Zach had plenty to say, so read on to find out what it is.

RealityNewsOnline: Hello, Zach, and thanks for taking the time to talk to RealityNewsOnline. Going back to the beginning, what was your strategy coming into the game?

Zach: My first strategy was really for me to align with two guys and a woman. I wanted to pick out guys I thought I could relate to based on social topics, and general meatheads because I knew it would be a great setup to have two guys backing me up physically. And a woman so if there was a gender role with men vs. women, [I would have an in]. I picked Kail specifically because she beat out all the guys in the first HOH competition. Little did I know I made a handshake with somebody who couldn’t be discrete in the game and within the first week and a half she gave everybody up.

I picked the wrong people, the alliance fell apart. I had to lay low for like a month and a half until a bunch of people could get out. Then I was building social relationships trying to figure out who I could lean on. I figured I could lean on Dick and Daniele because Nick had built a relationship with Daniele. When Nick left, Daniele kind of clung to me.

I guess I had an alliance with Dick and Daniele, but it was never official. We just had mutual goals, working together, that type of thing. In the end, I had to turn it up because when I went up on the block, I knew I had to really play the game. I cranked it up, won some HOHs, and threw Dick and Daniele on the block, I needed to get them out.

My biggest regret is I wish I had used the veto on Eric, but he was too shady. I knew there was no way to use it on him because he was pretty tight with Dick and had an understanding with Jameka. I knew I had to get rid of him. I really wish I could have used it on him, but Daniele was my strongest ally. I rode the coattails of Dick and Daniele and got to fight in the end, I just didn’t win.

RNO: Why did you nom Dick and Daniele when it didn’t matter who was nominated?

Zach: It was a strategic move to try to win favor with Jameka. Eric and Daniele had built this false façade of Jameka disliking me in the game and both told her [that I disliked] her. It worked. we could have worked together a long time ago had we explored the opportunity to relate socially, but we were in a social crossfire and thought the other didn’t like us.

I knew that by putting both of them on the block, it gave me a chance to get closer to Jameka as a person. It was a chance for me to get a vote. It was a better move to try to get a vote out of the people that were left. Jameka and myself had a pretty good team going into the veto competition, we just didn’t win. I knew I had her vote over Dick or Daniele. I was worried about that because I didn’t know who was going to vote for me on the jury if I made it to the final two.

RNO: How did you feel to hear you would have won against either of them?

Zach: (Sighing) I know. Knowing that it was a hands-down 6-1 vote, I’ve definitely beaten myself up about. I knew I’d built good relationships with people on the jury as friends. I didn’t know how good those bonds were built. I was like, well, if I take Dick to the end I’d probably lose because he had a different strategy that I respected as a game player. I didn’t think Daniele had much of a game. It’s disappointing. I just have to find that reward elsewhere now.

I played my heart out and I think honestly the greatest moment was standing in the bunny hop and watching Dick’s face, it was so weathered and cold and you could see that he threw everything at me and it didn’t work. Knowing that I broke Dick in the game was powerful. At that point I knew I was going to the final round. It just didn’t work. I’m disappointed but I’m anxious to see what opportunities I have now that the game is completed.

RNO: You mentioned that it would have been a 6-1 vote, but it likely would have been 5-2 due to America’s Player. Overall, what did you think of the America’s Player twist?

Zach: Eric is a funny character. His humor is definitely something that helped pass a lot of time in the house. I knew something wasn’t right with him, but couldn’t put my finger on it. I never would have guessed the America’s Player twist. It was an incredible twist on the game. I knew there was something shady but couldn’t figure out what it was. I couldn’t really resolve anything. I think it was a cool little twist. He prevailed pretty well, he did a good job.