With The Challenge: USA 2 bringing back several polarizing cast members onto the CBS spinoff show, fans are expressing their frustrations over some of the choices.
In particular, Monsters and Critics reported that many fans seem against seeing Tori Deal back on The Challenge because she has appeared in many consecutive seasons.
Another cast member with fans riled up is Faysal “Fessy” Shafaat, who appeared in two Challenge finals.
The former Big Brother houseguest will be amongst CBS reality TV stars in the second season of the USA spinoff.
He appears in a new promotional video, speaking about his accomplishments on the show and telling everyone what sort of cast member he is.
However, fans were riled up by his return to the show after continuing his sneaky gameplay on MTV’s Ride or Dies with his teammate and failing to win another season despite boasting about his athletic abilities.
The Challenge: USA 2 spinoff features Fessy among Big Brother stars
In a new promotional video released to build towards The Challenge: USA 2 premiere, Fessy refers to himself as “one of the nicest people” in the cast. He says some “big a**holes” live in The Challenge house that people don’t see when watching on their screens.
“I’m a pretty chill dude. I don’t really cause problems in the house,” the two-time finalist says at the start of the promotional clip before it shifts to a scene of him mocking a castmate.
A bit later in the video, Fessy is shown trash-talking castmate Johnny Bananas who is retorting with sarcastic remarks. Big Brother’s Tiffany Mitchell is in Fessy’s ear, trying to get him to calm down.
Fessy is also realistic when the BB cast members are revealing their biggest flaws as he says, “Definitely my ego.”
“I’m gonna bust my a**, but I’m gonna let you know,” he says of his attitude in the game.
In the clip, Fessy brings up potential beef with a few castmates he says “did [him] dirty” on Ride or Dies with Tori and Bananas. He says the latter is getting on his nerves.
Fessy has several of his former showmances and hookups with him for the season to make things interesting. Along with Tori, his castmates include Amanda Garcia and Michele Fitzgerald, who were linked to Fessy in the past.
Challenge fans react to Fessy’s appearance in USA 2 promo
As one might expect, fans fired away at Fessy in the comments for the latest promotional video featuring Big Brother stars. Many were upset to see him continue talking as if he were one of the show’s best competitors.
One of Fessy’s critics called it “comical” that he was saying he’s “the nicest person in the house,” bringing up that he’s “f***ed over every single friend he’s had in the house” except Kaycee Clark.
Another commented that the former BB star “wants to be the show so badly” and that even though production tries to make it happen, it never will.
“Fessy is one of the biggest jokes to ever be in the Challenge. Unlikeable, full of himself, and popcorn muscles,” another commenter said.
“He did not just say he doesn’t cause problems and that he’s a chill dude…..omg. He can’t be serious,” another individual commented.
Surprisingly, Fessy’s appearance in the promo video drew more critical comments than any other polarizing cast members, including Paulie Calafiore and Josh Martinez.
Fessy has yet to win a Challenge season
Fessy debuted on MTV’s competition series in the Total Madness season, where he quickly showed his competitive abilities by eliminating Jordan Wiseley from the show. He’d go one to reach the final with castmates, including Cory Wharton, Kyle Christie, and Bananas.
Bananas would win the season, his seventh, with Fessy seemingly wanting to win his first in a future season. He returned for the Double Agents season and reached a second-straight final, this time losing after teammate Kaycee suffered an early leg injury that hindered them.
In Spies, Lies & Allies, Fessy never got to the final due to getting kicked off the show for a heated altercation with his friend Josh. He seemed on the verge of his third final in Ride or Dies, only to get eliminated by Challenge great Bananas and his teammate Nany Gonzalez.
He’ll now have a group of newer Big Brother players on the USA 2 spinoff and some cast members he’s familiar with from MTV’s The Challenge. However, his biggest critics hope that Fessy flops again and remains unable to win a season of the competition series.
The Challenge: USA 2 premieres Thursday, August 10 at 10/9c on CBS.