Celebrity Big Brother viewers have hit out at the show for seemingly fuelling a particular narrative involving JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes after they shared a moment in the hot tub.
The 21-year-old TikTok star and 32-year-old Love Island alum have been a huge talking point of this year’s series thanks to their playful friendship.
Outside the house, audiences have been speculating whether there’s more to it, though, insisting that both JoJo and Chris have been ‘flirting’ and expressing sympathy for the singer’s real-life partner.
However, this notion has been heavily criticised, especially by LGBTQ+ viewers, since JoJo is proudly gay.
During last night’s live feed, JoJo and Chris were seen in the hot tub sharing a sweet moment as she appeared to rub his leg under the water.
They were alone in the hot tub, sitting across from one another as they chatted and enjoyed drinks.
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Viewers couldn’t help but notice what producers were keen to focus on, as the camera zoomed in on JoJo’s hand resting on Chris’s thigh.
Clips of the moment soon surfaced on social media, with X user @slinehan1 branding the programme ‘messy’, writing: ‘The live feed operators are MESSY tonight!!’
Later on, the roles reversed as Chris gave JoJo a foot rub.
Some viewers noted there was clearly ‘chemistry’ between them, and the tension was ‘on fire’ during the intimate moment.
Others even believe Chris could be ‘playing a game’, purposely getting close to JoJo as she has a large online following.
However, many others have shut down speculation that there could be an ulterior motive behind their close bond.
‘Jojo Siwa and Chris are clearly people who are just comfortable with physical touch in friendships, stop making it into a thing I beg’, wrote X user @Bumbl_333.
@j7ngwon said they have found ‘comfort’ in each other, while @fieranculkin claimed it is ‘weird’ to assume anything deeper is going on.
‘The way people are reacting to Chris and Jojo just proves men and women can’t have close friendships without people being weird about it. Chris is well aware Jojo is a lesbian and has a partner and I think insinuating he is trying to flirt with her is so weird sorry’, they wrote.
‘I’ll never understand why people are looking too into JoJo and Chris how they acting they said this about Andrew and Courtney Act friendship people was dead set on saying Andrew must be gay’, added @MisTintehotbabe.
It comes after Chris shocked viewers by confessing he would ‘probably kiss’ JoJo during a chat while tucking her into bed.
The two have had a very tactile relationship from pretty much the moment they entered the house, frequently giving one another back rubs and cuddling in bed.
Metro senior entertainment reporter Emily Bashforth on JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes’s friendship
Men and women can be platonic without wanting to rip one another’s clothes off. They can hug and sleep beside one another without considering there might be more to it, and I highly doubt either JoJo or Chris has given it a second thought.
But when I scroll through the CBBUK hashtag, I’m served a painful reminder of just how far we have to go until women-loving-women are free to be themselves without the shadow of heteronormativity hanging over them.
I’m tired of viewers tarnishing the show by making me uncomfortable, pushing the insidious narrative that JoJo is only one male relationship away from being ‘turned’, and creating an echo chamber for Mickey’s vile comments about being able to change her.
Just the other night, Chris, who is known to be straight, kissed JoJo’s forehead, then put his finger on her lips, before telling her: ‘It’s my finger, don’t worry… would I ever?’
‘Probably would, actually, yeah,’ he added, to which JoJo laughed.
‘Sucks to be you,’ she quipped back, with Chris adding: ‘It’s a compliment, that’s all.’
JoJo and Chris are undoubtedly the main duo of the series, having provided hours of entertainment with their antics—not to mention the rule breaking.
They have also melted hearts after Chris displayed a masterclass in allyship by jumping to defend JoJo from Mickey Rourke’s homophobic jibes, which seemed to really cement their closeness.
The Karma hitmaker came out publicly in 2021 and has since been branded a positive role model for queer youth.
During her CBB stint, JoJo has spoken openly about her sexuality and gender, plus her relationship with Australian star Kath Ebbs.
Sadly, as rumours continue to fly regarding JoJo and Chris’s blossoming friendship, JoJo’s other half, who is non-binary, has been forced to turn off their social media comments, having been inundated with messages from trolls about JoJo ‘cheating’.
After months of dating rumours, Kath and JoJo went public with their relationship in January 2025.
Celebrity Big Brother continues tonight on ITV1 and ITVX.
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