Since we continue to see a lot of confusion and questions about how the Halting Hex works on Big Brother 19 I thought it’d be worthwhile to do a refresher for those still uncertain about its affect on the game, especially as it seems likely to make an appearance this week.
Jessica Graf received the final Den of Temptation reward during Episode 11 this season back on 7/20, though the power was actually awarded to her the day before. This is important to remember for the timeline since there is an expiration date. So how does the Halting Hex work? Here’s everything we know.
The purpose of the Hex is to stop the entire live eviction, vote and all, on any of four specific evictions. There have been two evictions since the power arrived which leaves this Thursday (8/3) and next Thursday (8/10) as the last chances for Jessica to put the power in to play. Jessica does not have to use the power. It can simply expire if unused.
When/if Jessica decides to use the power she must announce it before the voting begins on eviction night. Jessica can not wait until after the the voting has begun or Julie Chen has revealed the vote. It is too late at that point. This is so Jessica can’t wait to find out which person is going before deciding to activate the Halting Hex.
If the Halting Hex is activated then the eviction is simply skipped that week. Read again: there is no eviction the round in which Jessica uses the Hex. It does not protect one specific player. She can not cherry pick who is safe and who goes. It simply prevents any voting outcome at all. If there are three HGs on the Block that week then no one goes home. Doesn’t matter who is up or who many are up. There is no eviction. No renom, no nom-swap, no flying monkeys, or anything. No eviction. The end.
TL;DR – Halting Hex
- Hex stops entire eviction for all nominees
- Jessica can use it this Thursday or next (8/10)
- Hex must be used before voting begins
- One-time use, but does not have to be used
- Game carries on as if eviction occurred, though no one goes home
Executive Producer Allison Grodner has confirmed that in the case of the Temptation being used then the outgoing HoH is not eligible to compete in the next Head of Household competition. So it’s not a reset or rewind week, it’s just a week without an eviction.
Make sense? Hopefully that helps clear things up. If you’d like to read more of the official details of the Big Brother Halting Hex then here are all the details straight from CBS:
Here is the original description of the Halting Hex from CBS’s website:
The winning houseguest will be tempted with the Halting Hex! Whether on the block or not, they can halt any one of the next four evictions during the live show, making it a non-eviction night. But remember, every temptation comes with a consequence.
When Jessica was revealed as the winner of the vote she read this description:
Accept this Temptation and the Halting Hex will allow you to halt any one of the next four evictions. If you or any ally is in danger of going home you have the power to stop the live eviction by unleashing the Halting Hex before the voting process begins. You may use the Halting Hex at any one of the next four evictions, but it may only be used once then it is gone forever.
As for the “curse” portion of this reward, it was the “Temptation Competition” being added to the game for the next few weeks. That’s rather ridiculous.
Production was obviously always going to change the twist to be this competition series for the next three weeks after the Den was the Temptation for the first three weeks. It was leaked early on that the Den only had 3 rounds. It would have made far more sense for production to say that accepting the Hex would send one evicted player back in to the game with the Battle Back since those events were just a day apart. And don’t forget, the Phoenix was on the pedestal in the Den for the Hex just like the toads were when the Ve-Toads were that week’s curse. Seems more likely they changed their minds, but it really doesn’t matter.
As for if the Halting power will be used, I think there’s a good chance we’ll see it in play this week despite Paul’s best efforts to convince Jessica to keep the Hex in her pocket and let her closest ally get evicted. I don’t believe she’d let that happen, or at least I’d like to think she won’t waste this incredibly powerful opportunity. What do you think of this powerful weapon in Jessica’s hands?