UP FOR THE CHALLENGE Big Brother fan-favorite secretly signs on to The Challenge’s new season and is already filming on set in Thailand
Plus, what the reality star has said about joining another franchise
A BELOVED Big Brother star has joined the cast of The Challenge and has already begun filming the new season in Thailand, The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal.
Just months after ending his run on Big Brother Season 27, Keanu Soto is taking his strategy and alliance-building skills to another popular competition series, The Challenge.
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Keanu, who didn’t get a live eviction after some unexpected twists shortly before the September 2025 finale, is gunning for the win on Season 42 of the long-running MTV series.
A source exclusively revealed that Keanu and his former Big Brother co-star and third-place finalist, Morgan Pope, both vied for a spot in the show’s upcoming season, but only Keanu sealed the deal.
“Keanu and Morgan both expressed interest in going on [the] next season of The Challenge after their Big Brother run,” the insider shared.
“Morgan would’ve been a strong addition to the cast as she’s a challenge beast, but for whatever reason, Morgan wasn’t able to close the deal with the show.
“So, they ended up going with Keanu. He’s already signed on, and production is already underway.”
The source added, “They left over the weekend to start filming season 42 in Thailand, so the season is filming over there now.
“There’s no bad blood between Morgan and the producers. So, she can absolutely come on future seasons. But for now, it’s just Keanu.”
Season 27 Big Brother winner, Ashley Hollis, recently predicted that Keanu would pivot to The Challenge next after saying on a live stream that he wasn’t “good at Big Brother” and therefore wouldn’t be asked back for the All-Stars spin-off.
Keanu responded on his own live, saying, “If I don’t get called back for [Big Brother] All-Stars, it’s because I’m killing it on another show.”
However, in a separate post, Rachel Reilly, who also didn’t get a live eviction on the latest season, threw shade at Keanu after he bad-mouthed her during the online chat.
“Drop him, I’ll go – after his disrespectful rant, I’d love to prove who the has been is,” the Big Brother veteran wrote.
Keanu had called out Rachel and Ashley on his live stream, saying he didn’t “mess with” them outside of the Big Brother house.
He also called them “irrelevant” and claimed that they put others down to “try to elevate their stardom.”
Although many fans rooted for Keanu to win his season, Morgan and Ashley decided to evict him at the final 5, believing he was a physical threat due to his size and strength.
Physicality is certainly an advantage in The Challenge, which brings competitors together to face grueling mental and physical challenges.
The series initially featured alumni from MTV’s The Real World and Road Rules, but it has since branched out to include stars from other reality TV shows, such as Survivor, The Amazing Race, and The Bachelor.
Season 42 of The Challenge is slated to premiere in late summer 2026, following a seven-week filming schedule.
The host hasn’t been officially announced, but it’s assumed that longtime host T.J. Lavin will return to the role.
Others in the cast have yet to be announced, but some The Challenge vets are rumored to be returning, including Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio, Chris “C.T.” Tamburello, and Mark Long.
