Top 10 Times Contestants Clapped Back at Reality Show Hosts

Although Jeff Probst is really skilled at getting good TV from contestants, on occasion, the “Survivor” host does show a bias toward certain contestants. During this Tribal Council from the “Heroes vs. Villains” season, Probst lays into the Villains tribe for voting out legendary player Boston Rob Mariano in the previous round instead of a physically weak player like the feisty Courtney Yates. But Courtney is not the one. Even when Probst counters with a classic, “no disrespect,” Courtney isn’t having it. As Rob was one of her own allies, she lets Jeff know that neither she nor her alleged uselessness in the challenges is the reason he’s gone. It’s rare that a castaway butts heads with Jeff Probst, but sometimes it’s deserved.

Bad behavior is generally reality TV gold, but this “Bachelor in Paradise” contestant took things too far on the Season 3 premiere. After continued belligerent, alcohol-fueled antics during the first week, former “Bachelorette” contestant Chad Johnson is expelled by host Chris Harrison. Refusing to go quietly, Johnson unleashes a tirade on the host that accuses him of knowing nothing about what goes on during the show, as he does nothing but sit in a hotel room miles away and drink mimosas. Although drama is often necessary for a reality show to fly, it’s a truly unhinged and uncomfortably funny moment.

Category is: face-off in the workroom. RuPaul had already lost his temper during the seventh season’s “ShakesQueer” acting challenge, but this confrontation between the Emmy-winning host and eventual finalist Pearl is probably the tensest moment of the season. During Ru’s standard pre-challenge walkthrough with the queens, Pearl takes issue with the judges’ critiques about her lowkey personality. When Ru doubles-down on the comments and engages the queen in an uncomfortable staring contest, Pearl very casually lets her know she’s not interested. It takes a lot of nerve to talk that way to the host of the show. The moment still inspires conversation all these years later.

Things aren’t going well for “X Factor” hopeful Zoe Alexander from the start. She starts her audition by telling the judges she isn’t interested in being a Pink tribute act anymore, and then performs a Pink song. The confused judges predictably pass. But then, she comes at them with a whopper of an accusation. Zoe says she was told to audition with a Pink song. Things devolve quickly, and her father soon joins the obscenity-spewing contestant on the stage. Zoe eventually storms off, pushing a cameraman out of her way, to the shock of everyone in the auditorium. Between the accusation that she was set up to fail and her volatile behavior afterward, it remains one of the series’ most explosive confrontations.

Ryan Seacrest gets to see the best and worst talent America has to offer as host of “American Idol,” but few left as much of an impression as Ian Benardo when he is escorted out of the audition room by security. Right after the contestant demands to see Simon Cowell’s work visa, Seacrest asks him, rather sarcastically, how the audition went. The New Yorker insists that he can buy his own ticket to Hollywood. He continues taking potshots at everything from Cowell’s nationality to Paula Abdul’s not defending him to Hollywood itself, calling it “New Jersey with celebrities.” Never a more stylish exit has been seen on “Idol.”

The eccentric Coach Wade ruffled more than a few feathers during his three season arc on “Survivor.” When Jeff Probst asks Wade’s fellow “South Pacific” contestant Stacey Powell why she refuses to call him “Coach,” she launches into a tirade against her former tribemate that is almost Shakespearean in its epicness. Not only does Stacey use it as an opportunity to humiliate Coach, who is not even present, but she also takes the opportunity to call out her entire tribe’s dishonesty. In a franchise full of great moments, Powell’s legitimate frustration and various malapropisms—we’re still wondering what a “Halloween joke” is—make this clapback an unforgettable moment.

One of the many unspoken rules of “Hell’s Kitchen” is that Chef Gordon Ramsay can say pretty much whatever he wants to his contestants. That rule does not go both ways. Ex-Marine Joseph Tinnelly clearly did not get the message. When Tinnelly is asked to name his team’s nominees during the second elimination ceremony, he needlessly gets aggressive with Ramsay and his fellow contestants. His lack of cooperation almost leads to an actual physical altercation and security steps in. Still, his middle school taunts are more embarrassing than threatening. We can understand the impulse to yell back at Chef Ramsay, but the saddest thing about it is Joseph wasn’t even in the running to go home until this outburst.

In the fourth episode of “Project Runway”s 18th Season, the show tasks its designers with designing a look for model and show host Karlie Kloss. The judges heavily critique contestant Tyler Neasloney’s look, with Kloss saying she would never wear it. Neasloney counters, “Not even to dinner with the Kushners?” alluding to Kloss’ in-laws, known associates of the Trump Administration. Kloss is notably shocked by the comment. Even when Neasloney tries to playfully bat away any implied insult, she is still tongue-tied. But that she manages to keep things professional is a testament to her level-headedness in the face of custom-made designer shade.

Tammie Brown is one of the most eccentric and utterly bizarre contestants ever to appear on “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” And that’s really saying something. The legendary queen placed eighth on the first season of the show, but it wasn’t until the finale that she cemented her place in “Drag Race” herstory forever with the kookiest clapback on this list. Taking RuPaul and the judges to task for their harsh judging during the season, Tammie counters their superior attitudes with an immortal line about not seeing them walking children in nature. Ru is noticeably heated and begins to swear, but Tammie keeps it cool and irreverent, telling her to excuse her mouth (xref).

No list of reality TV clapbacks would be complete without Tiffany “New York” Pollard. Having the distinction of being the same man’s second choice not once, but twice, the “Flavor of Love” contestant’s fury upon being passed over in the second season finale is a sight to behold. As it dawns on her that she’s lost again, she decides she won’t go quietly. Heartbroken, she asks host Flavor Flav why he brought her back, only to open up the same wound he gave her last season. Then, she proceeds to tell him exactly where he can go and what he can do once he gets there. She even flashes her rear end to emphasize the point. If that doesn’t get the point across, nothing will.