Edmonton’s Joel Lefevre was voted out of the Big Brother Canada house on May 5. We spoke with Joel before he was sent off to the jury house to see what how he’d vote (he’s not a fan of Kelsey at all), Cassandra’s gameplay and how how he was able to go far in the game by revealing a softer side.
It was so sad to see you go. Were you ever serious about the self eviction?
There were times in the heat of the moment where I definitely didn’t know what the right thing to do was. I felt largely responsible for what had happened in that Power of Veto competition and I didn’t know how to make things right. So in that moment, it was the only thing that I thought of. But was I ever going to actually pull the trigger and walk out of that door? Probably not. But I do think that was the only way I could repair the damage that I felt I had made with Tim and Cassandra at that point.
You’ve trained as an actor, were there times in the house where you put on a show?
Yes, definitely! There were times where I had to, like when I was on the “Date Mission” with Cassandra. I had to play it off where it was how I was legitimately feeling. There were points where I was playing it off where I was really frustrated with myself in certain challenges so that other people could feel a bit of sympathy towards me. Also when I was on slop, I played it up a bit as to how down and depressed I was.
The plan was for you to win the veto and help your Threeakshow alliance but you may have helped the brothers too much and as a result of that, Tim took matters into his own hands. You must regret this play. Looking back, was there a different scenario you could have played?
Yes, there was definitely a different scenario that I could have done and it’s one of my biggest regrets in the game. The fact that at that point, I should have chosen a side and listened to Tim. Tim did great during that challenge and was able to find the pieces in the popcorn very quickly. I should have listened to Tim. I was very naive to think that Phil was going to legitimately help me through that competition. I should have gone with Tim and said “These are my cards and this is where I stand in the game. I didn’t do that and it proved to be my undoing.
Cassandra really managed to flip the votes this week. What was the last day in the house like? At what point did you decide to fight to stay?
I had decided to campaign the night before the eviction. I laid out all my cards and say “This is where I stand. These are the reasons why you should keep me.” I tried to think of all the different possible scenarios as to which way everyone was going to base their vote on and say the reasons why they should keep me in the house. Unfortunately at that point, I was just so deep in quicksand and everybody knew that I had made so many deals with people. It just got to a point where nobody could trust me. They made the right choice in getting me out.
You finally spoke up regarding the brothers and Kelsey’s game. Going into jury, would you consider voting for them?
Kelsey in any final two scenario, I would not vote for. I don’t feel like she played the game at all. I felt that she hid behind people and they did the work for her. Everybody made strong and strategic moves for their individual game. Kelsey didn’t really do that. She had Jared carry her all the way to this point. She was fortunate with the twist where she came back. She wasn’t necessarily liked by all the people in the case, but she was more so the less of two evils between her and Loveita. I don’t think Kelsey deserves to win because she didn’t play for herself in the game. She had other people play for her.
As for the brothers, I’d only consider voting for them in a scenario where they are up against Kelsey. They were very hypocritical. I told them in my eviction speech “Don’t be throwing shade at other people and think that you have your hands completely clean. It’s just not the case.”
Between Tim and Cassandra, how would you vote? Who would be the most deserving?
For me, it would be Cassandra. She was the most loyal to a fault. Yes, she did what she had to do to get in good with other people for her own individual game but Cassandra stuck her neck out — which I have a lot of respect for. It’s not something that I could have done in this game and gotten away with. She was always taking the bullets for our alliance and was able to make it this far. You have to give her credit for that. She knew her strengths and weaknesses and she used that to her advantage.
What was your biggest takeaway from the time spent in the house? And this overall experience?
I think the biggest takeaway that I have is that yes it’s a strategic game, but it’s okay to be emotional in there. It’s okay to show your vulnerability and show who you really as a person. People appreciated that and I think it helped carry me a very long way. You can play emotionally to a certain point in this game where it can benefit you. It’s okay to share a softer side of yourself.
Big Brother Canada will continue to air this Sunday at 7pm and Wednesday at 8pm. The 2-hour season finale will be held on Thursday from 7-9pm.
