When it came to competitions throughout the season on Big Brother, almost no one held a candle to Makensy Manbeck. At the start of the season, she felt that she was in a bit of a bind after getting into a “showmance” with Matt Hardeman and being targeted as a result. However, thanks to her sheer strength on the playing field, she kept herself safe again and again and again. All told, she managed to win three Head of Household competitions (including, most importantly, the last one) and five Power of Vetos, and she saved herself three times with wins in the AI Arena.
After narrowly winning the final Head of Household challenge against fellow finalist Chelsie Baham, Makensy had a choice whether to bring Chelsie to the final two for the jury’s vote or Cam Sullivan-Brown. Because Chelsie had four HoH wins and an arena victory, some fans might’ve expected Makensy to choose Cam, who only had one Power of Veto win on his record. However, she boldly announced that she wasn’t afraid of competition and chose to go up against Chelsie, who ultimately won.
So was it a strategic mistake on her part to choose Chelsie over Cam? How did she feel about those results? TV Insider caught up with Makensy to talk about the Big Brother finale.
Related‘Big Brother’ Winner Interview: Chelsie Baham Reveals Why She Beat Makensy Manbeck
(Also, be sure to check out our previous exit interviews with Matt Hardeman, Lisa Weintraub, Kenney Kelley, Cedric Hodges, Brooklyn Rivera, Tucker Des Lauriers, Joseph Rodriguez, Quinn Martin, T’kor Clottey, Leah Peters, Angela Murray, Kimo Apaka, Rubina Bernabe, and Chelsie Baham!)
What does it mean to you to be the competition queen this season?
Makensy Manbeck: Oh, the world. I came into Big Brother wanting to win, and maybe I didn’t win first place but you know what? I did win a heck of a lot of comps, and … now I’m tied with Jag [Bains, Season 25 winner] for the most comp wins out of everybody. I mean, hey, talk about some female empowerment.
Speaking of that, with how good you were with the physical stuff, have you thought about like going on to some more physically-oriented competition shows?
If given the opportunity, I definitely would consider it. I do enjoy that. I love competition. I love going against people. I love beating people. So if that was an opportunity for me, I definitely, definitely think that it would be a hard thing to pass up.
So going to tonight, given the results, do you think you’ll ever regret bringing Chelsie to the finale?
No, I have been asked this question a million times. I was asked before I made the decision if I would regret it if she won and my answer will be no, always because that was a testament to the game I played. I came into this house wanting to be a loyal, respectable player, play with grace, play with kindness, and play with my heart because a lot of people come into Big Brother, and they don’t do that and they get booted because of that. And the thing is that I didn’t — I made it all the way to the end, and I could have made a decision that would have probably allowed me to win first place. But I wasn’t scared of getting second, and I wasn’t scared of having a harder competition to possibly get first because it was a loyal decision and it was one that I would be proud of watching back. And yes, I got second, but her getting first place is a win for me. Anyways, she’s an incredible woman. Very deserving. She played an incredible game.
Was there anyone whose vote surprised you though?
I would say, I at least thought I would get Leah. But I get it. I will say Chelsie knows how to articulate her game very, very well. I didn’t have a lot to articulate. My game was shown. My game spoke for itself. I had to win and it was a lot like Taylor [Hale]’s season. And so it’s been shown, it’s been seen before. It’s been done before. Nothing new to anybody. It was a lot less complex than Chelsie’s was. And even though I love Chelsie, she definitely dragged me a bit in those answers — and, you know, respect, that’s what you’re supposed to do, I guess, but it’s not in my nature to do that. I don’t want to do that ever to anybody. I wanted my game to speak for itself, and if people can’t realize how amazing of a game I played then, so be it because at least I do.
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So what are you looking forward to seeing when you go home and you can watch the show over?
I don’t know if I’m gonna look forward to any of it. Except watching me win because I have a feeling a lot of people talked about me wanting to go home. I definitely know that I had the whole house against me for quite some time. I’m sure that Chelsie even talked about me. Maybe. I don’t know. I’m not unaware of the fact that I was in the Big Brother house. Probably being lied to, deceived, and everything. So am I looking forward to that? No, because I don’t want to be seen as a naive 22-year-old. But I can only take what I’m given. I’m gonna take it wholeheartedly and just trust and believe and allow myself to just enjoy my process through Big Brother. And that’s exactly what I did and I’ll probably watch it back in a couple of weeks. I need a break. I need a break for sure. I’ll probably watch it back and be like, “Dang good on them,” and I’ll watch back and be like, “Dang, you really held your weight Makensy. Good job.” And I’ll be proud of myself, and I’ll commend other people’s games as well.
Who are you looking forward to spending time outside of the house the most?
I am looking forward definitely to seeing Leah again…. I know I got her out, but she was somebody that I connected with day one, night one, and she was an incredible person to me and we have a lot of similarities, funny enough. But she was a great friend to me, and I just can’t wait to explore that friendship outside of this house.
Ultimately, what do you think the vote came down to?
Honestly, I think the vote came down to the complexity of the game and being able to articulate it in a way that allowed the jury to understand why the moves they did and how they played was a winning one. And Chelsie is a great speaker. That’s what she does for a living. So I was scared about choosing her knowing that. But again, there’s only so much I can say about winning, but I was just hoping that my game spoke for itself. It didn’t, and that’s okay because what it did do is get me in second place and make myself proud.
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