Australia was first introduced to Jessica Brody on Bachelor In Paradise, and then, they fell in love with her on The Challenge.
The reality star entered The Challenge mansion with guns blazing, determined to take home the crown.
Sadly, though, she was eliminated last night, an outcome no one had hoped for.
“It’s devastating to leave so early because I went in hellbent on getting to the finals. I was adamant that I was going to win,” Jessica told POPSUGAR Australia.
“I’m a huge fan of The Challenge US, so I was just really excited to be there, and I really wanted to last longer. So it was disappointing, but at the same time, I’m really proud of myself for playing with integrity.”
The competition, which pits 22 reality TV stars against each other to win $200,000, is chaotic and jam-packed full of drama, but according to Jess, viewers didn’t even get to see half of it.
“There was a lot of drama that wasn’t shown,” she said.
“Me and Cyrell had a couple of yelling matches, me and Emily didn’t get along — she was putting her fingers in the communal Nutella and I had a go at her — and then we were just never the same again.”
However, despite clashing with many of her fellow contestants (she said, “Billy Dib was horrible to everyone”), it was her reunion with Ciarran Stott that brought about the most emotion.
To recap, Ciarran and Jessica dated during their season of Bachelor In Paradise, but he quickly dumped her for another contestant Kiki — who is also competing on The Challenge.
“When you get into that environment, and you’re competing against one another, it brings back a lot of old wounds. I found myself getting really snappy with Kiki, and that was just a reflection of my ego and situations in the past coming to the forefront,” admitted Jess.
The three of them appeared on Bachelor In Paradise three years ago, however, it seems Ciarran still hasn’t learnt his lesson.
In the very first episode of The Challenge, Ciarran hooked up with now-eliminated contestant Audrey Kanongara in the shower, despite having a girlfriend back home.
“Seeing Ciarran and what he did in there to his current girlfriend brought back a lot of pain from my past as well,” she said.
“There was a lot that wasn’t shown; I spent a lot of time talking to Ciarran letting him know how he made me feel on Bachelor In Paradise. Sort of guiding him on how to navigate forward with his current partner, going off my experience with him.
“I told him you need to be there to answer any questions for her because I never got that, and that’s what caused me to internalise a lot of the pain.”
As for Kiki, Jess says there’s no bad blood between the two, but it was unfortunate that she lost a challenge to her, forcing her to pack her bags and head home.
“It sucks to go home against an elimination with Kiki, because I feel like we had already been pitted against each other so much that I didn’t want to continue that.”
The Challenge Australia airs at 7.30pm on Network Ten on Mondays and Tuesdays. Catch up on 10 Play.
Want more The Challenge Australia goss? Check out the stories below:
- “He’s the Liar”: The Challenge’s Audrey on the Cheating Scandal, Her Boyfriend and Ciarran Stott
- Everyone Who Has Gotten the Boot So Far from The Challenge Australia
- Get to Know The Challenge Host Brihony Dawson — Australia’s First Non-Binary TV Presenter
- Konrad Bień-Stephen Opens Up About Facing Brooke Blurton on The Challenge
- “I Didn’t Know ANYONE!”: Big Brother Winner Marley on Meeting His Fellow Challenge Contestants
- “They’re Pretty Conniving, That Bachelor Lot”: Australian Survivor’s Johnny Spills on The Challenge
- Australian Survivor’s Brooke Jowett Was “Not Prepared At All” for the Drama of The Challenge
- These are the Famous Faces That Will Compete on Channel 10’s Newest Show, The Challenge
