Pinoy Big Brother: Celebrity Collab Edition


Pinoy Big Brother: Celebrity Collab Edition is the third celebrity season and the eighteenth overall season of the Philippine reality show Pinoy Big Brother. The season premiered on March 9, 2025, on GMA Network. The cast featured celebrities from the talent agencies Star Magic and Sparkle GMA Artist Center competing as duos, a first in the series.
As part of a collaboration between ABS-CBN Studios, the franchise holder, and GMA Network, the season was the first to air on the latter channel. The show was presented by a roster of hosts led by Bianca Gonzalez, including new hosts Gabbi Garcia and Mavy Legaspi.
The season ended on July 5, after 119 days and having featured 20 housemates along with several houseguests. Brent Manalo and Mika Salamanca were named the winners at the finale held at the New Frontier Theater, with Ralph De Leon and Will Ashley as first runners-up. Celebrity Collab Edition is the longest non-regular season of the franchise, surpassing Teen Edition 4 by 28 days.

Development

On January 27, 2025, during a broadcast of the newscast 24 Oras, actress-presenter Iya Villania announced that the new season of Pinoy Big Brother would air on GMA Network, marking the franchise's debut broadcast on the network. As series' third celebrity edition, subtitled Celebrity Collab Edition, the season's cast would be composed of artists from the talent agencies Star Magic and Sparkle GMA Artist Center. The following day, a contract signing between the executives from ABS-CBN Studios and GMA Network was held in Quezon City. Principal photography commenced on March 9, 2025.
Hosts from the previous seasons—Bianca Gonzalez, Robi Domingo, Kim Chiu, Melai Cantiveros, Enchong Dee and Alexa Ilacad—all reprised their roles. Two talents from GMA—Gabbi Garcia and Mavy Legaspi—joined the roster of hosts on February 9 and 21, respectively.

Broadcast

The season premiered on March 9, 2025, on GMA's Sunday night lineup. The program aired on GMA Network's Prime lineup during weeknights and on weekend nights. The show aired worldwide via GMA Pinoy TV and The Filipino Channel. Aside from its television broadcast, the season also airs online through Kapuso Stream, Kapamilya Online Live, iWant, and ABS-CBN Entertainment YouTube channel. Two companions show support the series. Updates, hosted by Garcia, airs twice on weekdays on GMA, while The OnlineVerse, hosted by Ilacad and Legaspi, streaming every Saturdays on Kapuso Stream and Kapamilya Online Live.

Theme songs

The season used a new version of "Sikat Ang Pinoy" as its main theme, with Darren Espanto and Julie Anne San Jose providing vocals for the track. Jonathan Manalo composed and produced the season's eviction theme, "Paalam Muna Sandali", which was recorded and released by Espanto as a single off his upcoming album Ikaw Pa Rin.

Broadcast coverage in other programs

During the season, the Big Brother House welcomed prominent news personalities for special interviews. Veteran broadcast journalist Rico Hizon conducted an exclusive interview with Kuya in late June 2025 as part of his program, Beyond the Exchange with Rico Hizon, which aired on the ABS-CBN News Channel. His interview delved into various aspects of the show, including the selection criteria for prospective housemates and the intent behind the house tasks.
Meanwhile, days before the Big Night, GMA Network journalist Jessica Soho visited the house to interview the season's finalists. Her interview covered the housemates' experiences inside the house, and was broadcast a day after the Big Night on her weekly magazine program, Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho. During her visit, Soho immersed herself in the landmark aspects of the show, including meeting Kuya in the confession room, learning about the house rules, and touring the house. She also cooked for the housemates, and they shared lessons learned about being true to oneself and the importance of community.

Format

''Collab'' format

The season's subtitle, Collab, alludes to its cast, which is composed of celebrities signed to the talent agencies Star Magic and Sparkle GMA Artist Center, a first in Pinoy Big Brother history. Deviating from the show's usual format, the housemates competed in duos, each consisting of a Star Magic and Sparkle housemate. These duos were shuffled periodically through tasks and challenges until Day 91, when the final duos were determined. In each nomination round, each duo nominates two other duos for eviction, with the first receiving three points and the second receiving one point. The top three duos with the most nomination points will be put forward for public vote. Housemates are nominated and evicted as duos, with a duo being declared as the winner in the season finale. For the first time since the show's inaugural season in 2005, nominations and evictions were conducted every two weeks.

Maya partnership

Digital payment app Maya retained its partnership with Pinoy Big Brother, as its official finance and voting partner. Through the app, viewers may vote to save a nominee from eviction, being provided 30 chances to vote per voting day. Starting from the fourth nomination round, viewers have the additional option to give 300 or 500 save votes to a nominated housemate of their choice.
For The Big Night, viewers can vote to save and evict. Furthermore, viewers can vote unlimited times.
As part of their sponsorship, housemates can manage their weekly budget by depositing their funds in the app. If they succeed in their weekly task, they will receive ₱50,000; otherwise, they will receive the interest that their amount have which is 15%. Housemates have two options: they can spend a portion of their weekly budget for the week or save it and allow it to grow with an interest rate of up to 15%.

Twists

Immunity Shield: First unveiled on Day 9, the Immunity Shield necklace grants the wearer immunity for the following nomination round.The Big Comeback: On Day 64, the hosts announced that there will be a Wild Card Round for the evicted housemates, with an exception to Michael and Emilio due to their prior commitments, using Maya, where viewers will have the power to vote to bring back one Sparkle housemate and one Star Magic housemate who deserve to continue his/her journey inside the house. The results were announced on Day 71. The voting process was conducted individually and daily voting limit will also apply.Big Intensity Challenges: On Day 72, Big Brother announced that the housemates would determine the final duo through a series of challenges, aside from immunity at stake. The Sparkle housemates faced off against fellow Sparkle housemates, while the Star Magic housemates faced off against fellow Star Magic housemates. The nominees for the fifth nomination round were determined through this challenge, with one Sparkle and Star Magic housemate being evicted at the end of the week.Secret Room: On Day 79, Big Brother surprised the other housemates by isolating the four Big Intensity Challenge winners, AZ, Esnyr, Shuvee, and Ralph, in a secret room. After a set amount of time, these four housemates switched rooms with the nominated housemates. During their stay in the Secret Room, they were able to communicate with a morphed voice of Big Brother via a "Secret Confession Room." The housemates were given a limited budget of, which was later increased by the Money Roll task done outside the Secret Room. To free the nominated housemates from the Secret Room, the saved housemates must work together on a task with the assistance of houseguest Jane de Leon.House Challenges: The housemates and duo challengers faced a series of challenges that may or may not have an impact on who stays and who leaves the house, and those housemates who faced the challenges risked losing their housemate status to them. The duo challengers entered the house on Day 99, stayed in the task room, and observed the housemates secretly. One by one, evicted duos faced the housemates, putting them in situations that would reveal their true colors. In the end, the duo challengers voted on which final duo deserves to be in the Big 4. Unbeknownst to the final duos, they were also given a chance to vote. The final duo that receives the most votes will claim the first spot in the Big 4. A challenge will be held to break the tie, if any.Big Jump to the Big Four: Last used on Connect as Big 4 Karapatdapat Challenges, on Day 107, shortly after Charlie and Esnyr were declared as the first duo to enter the Big 4, Big Brother announced that the remaining four duos would undergo three distinct Big Jump challenges to determine the remaining three slots in the Big 4.One Million Votes Challenge: Similar to the Ten Million Diamonds Challenge used in Kumunity 10, the four remaining duos will face a series of challenges to earn a portion of the one million votes at stake, which will be combined with the public's votes in the finale.

Housemates

On Day 1, fifteen celebrity housemates entered the house alongside houseguest Ivana Alawi. The first seven to enter were artists from Sparkle, followed by seven artists from Star Magic. Sparkle artist Michael Sager was the last one to enter that night. On Day 10, Star Magic artist Bianca de Vera entered the house following Alawi's exit.
On Day 22, Emilio Daez of Star Magic and Vince Maristela of Sparkle entered the house, followed by Xyriel Manabat of Star Magic and Shuvee Etrata of Sparkle on Day 36, who became the final entrants for the season.
A total of twenty people entered the house, ten each from two agencies, the largest number of housemates in a celebrity edition of Pinoy Big Brother.
NameAge on
entry
HometownAgencyOccupationDay
entered
Day
exited
StatusRef.
27TarlacActorDay 1Day 119
24PampangaActress and influencerDay 1Day 119
24CaviteActor and judokaDay 71Day 119
24CaviteActor and judokaDay 1Day 63
22CaviteActorDay 1Day 119
16ActressDay 71Day 119
16ActressDay 1Day 35
Esnyr23Davao del SurActor and influencerDay 1Day 119
22CebuDay 1Day 119
26MuntinlupaActor and businessmanDay 1Day 119
23TaguigActress and influencerDay 10Day 112
23Quezon CityActor and businessmanDay 1Day 112
33RizalSingerDay 1Day 98
23CebuActressDay 36Day 98
21RizalActressDay 36Day 84
25RizalActorDay 22Day 84
21ActorDay 1Day 63
25PasigActorDay 22Day 49
22MarinduqueActorDay 1Day 49
24CaviteActressDay 1Day 35
22CanadaActress and dancerDay 1Day 21
26San JuanActress and figure skaterDay 1Day 21

Houseguests

Within the framework of Pinoy Big Brother, the term "houseguest" designates an individual invited to enter the Big Brother house. Some of these houseguests are introduced with the explicit purpose of residing for an extended duration and deliberately chosen to influence the dynamics among the official housemates—thereby affecting relationships or altering the competition's trajectory. Conversely, other houseguests serve primarily as visitors; their stay within the house is typically brief, often entailing specific tasks assigned by Big Brother, or their presence fulfills a particular purpose. This can include, for instance, introducing a new game twist, presenting a unique challenge to the housemates, providing gifts to the housemates, or engaging them in conversation.
For this season, the following individuals entered as houseguests:

Tasks

Weekly tasks

; Notes

Other tasks

; Notes

Challenges

Duo battles

Introduced before the second nomination round, these are tasks to be performed by all eligible duos. The best-performing duo wins immunity from being nominated for that nomination round.
Date givenChallenge title and descriptionParticipantWinner-
1April 4
Each duo must bring a mini-sized PBB House from one end of the table to the other while passing it between the pillars standing on top of the table. If any of the pillars fall, the duo must return to the starting point to repeat the process. The duo that accomplished this task the fastest received immunity from being nominated during the second nomination round.

Group challenges

As in previous seasons, the housemates were divided into multiple teams to compete for immunity or reward on various occasions.
Date givenChallenge title and descriptionWinnerLoser--
1May 13
Golden Seats
On Day 66, the housemates were divided into three groups for the Golden Seats challenges. These groups are based on their circus acts in The Big Carnival Concert weekly task. The winning team at the end of the challenges would have a chance to see their loved ones as part of the golden seats audience for "The Big Carnival Concert."
Teams:Team Juggling – Dustin, Mika, River, and XyrielTeam Spin Disc – AZ, Brent, Klarisse, and VinceTeam Flower Stick – Bianca, Esnyr, Shuvee, and Will
; Note
  1. Big Brother had a proposal to the winners of the Golden Seats Challenge to give a slot to the losing housemates. Only Brent gave up his slot to Mika.

Big Intensity Challenges

On Day 72, Big Brother announced the two Big Intensity Challenges, which would decide the housemates' final pairings. Housemates from both agencies would compete against each other. In each challenge, one Sparkle and one Star Magic housemate would win, earning immunity for the next nomination round and the power to choose their final duo. All other housemates who failed to win in either challenge were automatically nominated for the fifth nomination round.

Big Jump challenges

Shortly after Charlie & Esnyr claimed the first spot in the Big Four, Big Brother announced that the remaining spots would be determined via three Big Jump challenges. The winners of each challenge secured a spot in the Big Four, while the losers of the third Big Jump challenge became the last evictees for this edition.
Date givenChallenge title and descriptionParticipantWinner
1June 24
First Big Jump Challenge
Duos had to transfer wooden puzzle blocks across a narrow platform using a block holder. Each housemate had to pull one end of the rope attached to the holder. If the block fell at any point after a "save point," the duo may restart from the previous save point. After transferring twenty puzzle blocks, they had to solve the puzzle at the building area. Each duo was given a freeze power that freezes all other duos for 10 minutes. When the duo thought they are done with the puzzle, they had to raise their hand, signaling a ninja to check, who then relayed his verdict to Big Brother privately. The first duo that solved the puzzle secured the second spot in the Big Four.
AZ & River
Brent & Mika
Ralph & Will
Ralph & Will
2June 25
Second Big Jump Challenge
Each duo was presented seven letter blocks: B, I, G, F, O, U, and R. They had to squeeze the 'B' block in between them using any body part of their choice. After some time, duos were given thirty seconds to squeeze the next letter block in between them while still retaining the previous blocks. The process continued until they formed the word "BIGFOUR." They were not required to stay in one spot while completing the challenge. Furthermore, each duo could rest for 100 seconds. If any of the blocks fell, the duo was eliminated from the challenge. The last duo standing secured the third spot in the Big Four.

One Million Vote Challenges

The four remaining duos will face a series of challenges to earn a portion of the one million votes to save at stake, which will be combined with the public's votes in the finale. The challenge is divided into two parts, with 400,000 votes at stake in the first part and 600,000 votes in the second and final part. The duo will receive the votes only if they finish the challenge, which they may choose to quit at any point.

Other challenges

;Note
  1. Emilio and Vince did not participate in this challenge as they had just entered the house for that week.
  2. AZ and River receive for the Cancer Treatment and Support Foundation, Inc. as their chosen charity.

Duo formation history

Throughout the season, the housemates were periodically paired into duos through tasks and other challenges. The six final duos were determined on Days 89 to 91.
;Legend and color key:
;Notes
  1. On Day 3, the housemates were tasked to play a game which is similar to The Boat is Sinking game; they were instructed to group themselves into sets of eight, six, and finally two. Each group had to contain an equal number of Sparkle and Star Magic housemates. After the final round, Big Brother revealed that the pairs formed during the game would serve as the official duos for their first cycle.
  2. On Day 9, housemates chose rope ends—blue for Sparkle, red for Star Magic—to form new pairs by matching ropes. Charlie didn't join because she had immunity, and Bianca entered after pairs were set. In the second nomination round, Bianca and Charlie were treated as a pair since both had immunity.
  3. On Day 22, housemates had five minutes to move balls using three pedestals worth 1, 2, or 3 points each. They were ranked by total points, and the highest-ranked unpaired housemate chose a partner, but no one could pick someone they’d paired with before. Josh and Michael tied with 19 points; Josh picked Esnyr first, then Michael chose River. Dustin picked Brent, Kira chose Charlie, Ralph picked AZ, Will chose Klarisse, and Mika picked Bianca. Emilio and Vince, new housemates, were paired automatically.
  4. On Day 36, the housemates completed a task where they had to scoop balls containing correct answers from a press conference with new housemates Shuvee and Xyriel. The fastest housemate to scoop both correct balls could choose a new partner, but no one could choose someone they’d already been paired with. Klarisse finished first and picked Mika; Josh followed, choosing River. Michael selected Emilio, Vince picked Brent, Bianca chose AZ, Dustin picked Ralph, and Will chose Esnyr. Shuvee and Xyriel, as new housemates, were automatically paired.
  5. On Day 50, housemates had five minutes to do kendama tricks and earn points. They got 1 point for the big cup, 5 points for the small cup, and 10 points for the base cup. The highest-ranked unpaired housemate got to pick a partner, but no one could pick someone they had already paired with. Ralph scored 80 points and picked Josh. Vince also scored 80 points and chose River. Josh, with 80 points too, could not pick. Dustin scored 78 points and picked Xyriel. Klarisse got 76 points and chose AZ. Mika scored 74 points and picked Esnyr. Will scored 70 points and chose Brent. Shuvee scored 45 points and picked Bianca. The rest either were already picked or couldn't choose.
  6. On Day 64, each housemate had to pull five cups with a ball on top across the finish line. If the ball fell, they had to place it back and start again on that lane. Housemates were ranked by how fast they finished, and the highest-ranked unpaired housemate could pick a new partner. No one could pick someone they had already been paired with. Esnyr was fastest, finishing in 1 minute 51 seconds, and chose Shuvee as partner. Shuvee finished next but could not pick. Will finished third and picked Bianca. Dustin was fourth and chose River. AZ came fifth and picked Brent. Klarisse finished ninth and chose Vince. Xyriel finished eleventh and picked Mika. Others either were already paired or did not get to pick.
  7. On Day 85, the housemates participated in a self-ranking exercise to determine pairings for an upcoming duo task. Housemates from Star Magic and Sparkle talent agencies independently ranked members of the opposing agency based on perceived efficiency. Tied ranks between the agencies were resolved through a vote. Additionally, Big Brother privately solicited individual preferences of the housemates for their respective desired and least desired duo partners. The composite results established the final ranking from first to twelfth place: Ralph, Shuvee, Klarisse, Will, Brent, Mika, Esnyr, AZ, Bianca, Dustin, River, and Charlie. This final order dictated the sequence for initiating the final duo formation task.
  8. For the final duo formation task on Day 87, each of the first eleven housemates had a 20-second headstart over the housemate ranked behind them. Additionally, the four victors of the "Big Intensity Challenge" received a significant advantage: the ability to "freeze" all other housemates for one minute at any point during the task. For the task, the housemates had to memorize their loved ones and then place the wooden poles bearing their pictures on a handheld panel in the correct order and carry the panel to a podium. They must restart if any of the wooden poles fall or if they get the order incorrect. The final rankings, from first to twelfth, were recorded as: Ralph, Shuvee, Klarisse, Dustin, Will, Mika, AZ, Bianca, Charlie, River, Brent, and Esnyr.
  9. On Days 89 to 91 for the final duo formation, housemates can choose someone they have been paired up with in the past. However, the chosen housemate may choose to reject. They may only do this once. For being the first to choose, Ralph cannot be rejected by whoever he chooses.

Nomination history

In each nomination, duos assign three points to one duo and one point to another, with the nomination table reflecting this by listing the duo receiving three points first. Underlined names denote the intended target for that specific point, if any. Otherwise, no target was identified.
;Legend and color key


;Notes
  1. The housemates from Star Magic, except Bianca, successfully completed a designated task. Big Brother granted them the privilege of selecting one Sparkle housemate to receive immunity from the initial nominations. The housemates unanimously chose Charlie.
  2. Bianca, a newly introduced Star Magic housemate, was automatically granted immunity due to her late entry into the house on Day 10, five days before the first nomination round. She was subsequently paired with Charlie, who had earlier received immunity through the collective decision of the Star Magic housemates following a successful challenge.
  3. Emilio and Vince, who entered the house as new housemates on Day 22, were exempted from the second nomination round. For the subsequent nomination round, the two were automatically paired.
  4. Shuvee and Xyriel, new housemates who entered on Day 36, were exempted from the third nomination round. They were also automatically paired for the ongoing nomination round.
  5. Shuvee received an automatic nomination for violating house rules by using a lapel microphone in the swimming pool. Adhering to the duos format, her partner, Bianca, was also automatically nominated.
  6. The "Big Comeback" twist allowed previously evicted Sparkle and Star Magic housemates to re-enter the house. The voting process for this segment was conducted independently for Sparkle and Star Magic housemates. Evicted housemates Emilio and Michael opted not to participate in The Big Comeback due to personal commitments.
  7. Public voting for the "Big Comeback" twist, conducted via Maya, concluded on Day 70. The results, announced on Day 71, declared Ralph and Charlie the winners.
  8. AZ, Esnyr, Ralph, and Shuvee secured immunity for the fifth nomination round after winning in two Big Intensity Challenges. All housemates who did not win these challenges were automatically nominated for the eviction round.
  9. Public voting for this particular eviction round was individual; however, one Sparkle housemate and one Star Magic housemate were still slated for eviction.
  10. For the face-to-face nomination, housemates publicly gave their nominations through hanging a black medal containing the number "1" or "3" around the necks of the duos of their choice.
  11. On the seventh and final nomination round, the five duo housemates cast their votes through positive nominations. The challengers also voted for positive nominations individually. The duo with the highest combined number of votes was directly qualified for the Big Night. The remaining duos then competed in three "Big Jump" challenges to determine the remaining finalists.
  12. For the Big Night, unlimited voting and the vote to save-evict system were implemented to determine the winners of this edition.

''Big Tapatan'' voting

On Days 102 and 107, the house challengers and housemates respectively voted for a duo to become the first members of the Big 4.
Had there been a tie, the duos would have competed in a head-to-head in a Big Jump Challenge. The remaining four duos will compete in three Big Jump challenges to complete the season's Big Four.

The Big Night

The season finale, titled The Big Night, was held on July 5, 2025, at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City. The event included performances of former housemates, houseguests Bianca Umali, Michelle Dee, Donny Pangilinan, and contestants of Tawag ng Tanghalan: All-Star Grand Resbak and The Clash. The Big Four faced the public vote, with the public allowed to cast unlimited votes and the save-to-evict voting enabled for the round. The winning duo, referred to as the "Big Winner Duo" received each, while the second, third, and fourth runners-up, referred to as the "Big Placer Duos", each received,, and respectively from the sponsor BingoPlus.
This was the first Big Night to be held outside ABS-CBN's network-owned production facilities since Otso in 2019.

Notable events

In an episode aired on April 2, 2025, Klarisse De Guzman publicly came out as bisexual. During a task where housemates had to share personal stories, De Guzman revealed that she had been in a same-sex relationship with her partner, Trina, for four years. She expressed her pride and relief, stating, "I’m so happy and I’m so proud of myself that I’m finally out." Although her family had been aware of her sexuality, this marked the first time De Guzman shared her truth publicly. She acknowledged her previous fear of judgment and the potential impact on her career but emphasized the freedom she now felt. The revelation was met with widespread support from her fellow housemates and viewers.

Reception

According to AGB Nielsen Philippines' Nationwide Urban Television Audience Measurement People in television homes, the pilot episode of Pinoy Big Brother: Celebrity Collab Edition earned an 8.6% rating. The final episode scored a 10.5% rating.

Fancon and future season

During the Big Night held on July 5, 2025, it was announced that the collaboration between GMA Network and ABS-CBN for the duo format of Pinoy Big Brother is slated for a second season. Host Bianca Gonzalez announced the next season following the presentation of awards to the season's winners. Furthermore, the housemates from this season are scheduled to participate in a fancon event. Titled, "The Big ColLOVE," the event was held on August 10, 2025, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Ticket selling commenced on July 8, 2025, and sold out on August 3, 2025.