As The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies season is just getting started, more details are arriving about the filming shut down and cast quarantine due to a positive COVID-19 test.
In addition, cast members Ashley Mitchell and Amanda Garcia recently revealed when and why their issues started with a particular rookie castmate.
Based on other comments and social media updates, those issues seem like they carried over into the rest of the season and beyond filming.
The Challenge’s Amanda explains dislike for rookie castmate
Season 37 of The Challenge introduced viewers to many new rookie cast members, some of whom quickly made names for themselves in the premiere episode. One rookie featured just briefly in the premiere was Berna Canbeldek, but it appears she may have much more on the way.
Based on recent comments from returning stars Ashley and Amanda, they shared a dislike for her. During an Instagram Live chat (below) with castmate Michele Fitzgerald, the two Lavender Ladies revealed their reasons for when they began disliking their rookie castmate.
“Well, I definitely didn’t like Berna because you guys both know I got into it with her in the f*****g hotel,” Amanda shared during the IG Live session.
“Remember I was yelling at her through the f*****g railing?” she added, with Michele saying she didn’t but remembered her getting into with Berna in the house.
“Yeah. I yelled at her in the house because she was all over Kaycee, all over Nelson. Like slop kebob. And then anyways, then we went to quarantine, and she had [COVID-19], and then she was like trying to spread it to everybody, and I was like, ‘Dude what the f**k is wrong with you?’ Remember that?” Amanda revealed.
She went on to say the cast had to quarantine for extra days due to Berna not following the protocol, and that’s why she yelled at her down to her hotel room.
“She doesn’t care about COVID-19 or spreading it to people,” Amanda added.
Several cast members had COVID-19, one was ‘deactivated’ from Season 37
Viewers learned in the Spies, Lies, & Allies Global Activation launch special that Amanda has been away from the show for a few years. During that time, she was raising her son and working as a nurse, where she’d been on the frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic before returning to The Challenge.
During Michele, Amanda, and Ashley’s IG conversation, the trio also touched on the COVID-19 situation that resulted in production shutting down filming in late April.
Based on their comments, Tula “Big T” Fazakerley had a positive test, as did Nam Vo, and several other castmates may have, including Berna, who revealed she did on her IG Story weeks ago.
Those positive tests forced filming to shut down and the cast to be put into quarantine until production could determine that filming could safely resume.
Based on how the season has started, Nam had to leave The Challenge in the first episode, possibly due to being too sick to return. However, Big T is still part of the season.
It’s possible that MTV didn’t reveal the reason for Nam’s departure from the show due to the HIPAA Privacy Rule and medical record disclosure policies.
Ashley says she didn’t ‘vibe too much with Bertha’
As viewers have seen in previous seasons, the Lavendar Ladies clique generally sticks together if they dislike a certain castmate. It seems Amanda’s friend Ashley shared her dislike of Berna, who they referred to as “Bertha,” during their Instagram Live session.
“I definitely did not vibe too much with Bertha because, well, she rubbed a lot of people the wrong way,” Ashley said.
Ashley told a story of the “very first night” the cast was there when the main producer came in and explained the rules and how things work with the show’s filming process. She said rookies were asking questions.
“And so Berna’s like, she raises her hand, and she’s like, ‘And what happens if we want to sleep and everyone’s not being quiet?’ I’m like, “B***h, welcome to the f*****g Challenge!” Ashley shared.
“Who asked that?” Amanda asked her castmate during their live chat.
“Bertha did,” Ashley responded.
“Oh, she did? Yeah, I don’t remember that. What a stupid question,” Amanda said.
The second episode of MTV’s Spies, Lies & Allies is actually titled Bertha, which could feature an early confrontation between Amanda and her rookie castmate. Fans may get to see what transpires between the two cast members on August 18.
The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on MTV.