“Temptation is the fire that brings up the scum of the heart.”

-William Shakespeare

Depressed that Big Brother Canada was cancelled after airing its best season yet?

Disgusted by the chaotic and over-the-line mess that is BB U.K. this year?

Never fear, CBS will be tempting you with a proper Big BrotherU.S. season, which debuts tonight at 8 p.m. ET airing on Global. (Other instalments air on Thursdays at 9 p.m. and Sundays at 8 p.m.)

Sixteen new houseguests and possibly a surprise last-minute entry might give the creatively embattled reality TV show the boost it so desperately needs. (Season 18’s Paul Abrahamian is rumoured to be the mysterious houseguest but nothing has been confirmed.)

“I’m ready to attack a normal Big Brother,” says a very upbeat Julie Chen during an exclusive chat with 24 Hours.

Last year, along with her co-hosting duties on The Talk, Chen hosted two back-to-back BB versions: Season 18 and a couple of weeks later, CBS All Access’ Big Brother: Over the Top (OTT), which drew mixed reaction from fans and critics.

Chen realizes the CBS All Access experiment wasn’t perfect. She says, “OTT was a brand new learning experience for all of us. It was a very different format than the broadcast version. I preferred some elements of it because each week was so unpredictable.”

Despite all of that, OTT still might return for a second season this fall.

“They haven’t announced anything yet,” relays Chen. “My feeling is it will return more than it won’t come back. But if it does, I doubt it’ll be the same format. We need time, take a beat, figure out how to do it better and promote it better. A lot of fans couldn’t find it last year. We need a better strategy. I mean, I couldn’t even find it! I made a list of suggestions for next season.”

The BB overload didn’t tire the 47-year-old journalist. “I’ve been hosting for 19 seasons and I can’t imagine going through summer without a house full of hopeful strangers who will end up loving, fighting, backstabbing and crying,” she enthuses. “I love it. It’s the best drama on TV because it’s real – and it’s not one of those fake reality shows that producers manufacture. On the Real Housewives, I always feel like those table flips are scripted and not in the moment. On Big Brother, it’s the opposite – we’re a social experiment.”

So far, she doesn’t have any favourite houseguests. But she has done her homework. She says, “I like to form my opinion and yes, I’m usually very wrong! A lot of these people talk a big game during the interviewing process before realizing they’re not the big fish in the small pond coming from the small town they’re from! Some rise to the occasion and others realize they’re an extra and not a star.”

BB fans enjoyed and appreciated the fact that Big Brother Canada season 5 eschewed major twists in order to allow the houseguests to just play the game old school-style and it led to a fascinating season. And it sounds like this year’s twist might inspire the same!

“The twist is all about temptation,” Chen reveals. “We’ve done one-off temptations before like with Pandora’s Box but it’s our theme this season: every week, there will be a version of temptation. The twist isn’t going to interfere with just pure strategy -- the entire game will become a lot more difficult. Most – if not all – houseguests consider themselves experts in the game. They know which week is the OTEV challenge, for example … so we had to do something different. There will be three levels of temptations: money, safety and power. All of which are tempting. People sign up to win the money but when they face a deal, there will be consequences.”

It’s a much more organic twist, much more in the vein of Survivor, acknowledges the People’s Choice Award winner. The temptations promises “to show character – or lack of character. Or someone might just be thinking of their family outside,” points out Chen.

The house décor this year won’t let the lab rats, er, houseguests forget they might have signed up for Temptation Island instead of Big Brother. “In the living room, the words money, power, safety and lust are staring right back at ‘em! One bedroom feels very Gordon Gekko from the film Wall Street. There’s even framed money. Hopefully, as the houseguests strategize in the rooms, their eyes will remain on the prize – literally.”

Which leads me to ask: what’s the Chenbot’s biggest temptation? That’s easy: “I don’t have that much discipline with food! I don’t know what happens to me after 7 p.m.! I’m great during the day but in the evening … I make the worst choices!”

Also piquing interest that BB19 could be a standout season is if the houseguests bring the political discourse enveloping the world into the house.

And Chen is all for it.

“I hope they do talk politics,” Chen says, perking up. “How could they not? There are 16 people in there – there has to be at least one person who will make a divisive comment.”

NBranco@postmedia.com

Twitter: @nelliebranco

CHEN: SOAP DIVA?!

In between Chen’s myriad hosting gigs, this past May, Julie Chen managed to cameo on daytime’s number-one soap opera, The Young and the Restless, where she played herself. It was a career highlight as Chen’s mother learned English by watching the soap, which Chen used to watch as well. Can we expect another appearance in Genoa City? “I don’t like watching myself hosting – let alone watching myself acting! I was cringing! Having said that, I would do it again in a heartbeat.”

THE TALK: Who Will Replace Aisha Tyler?

Renewed for another season, hit Emmy-winning daytime talk show The Talk will be adding a new co-host next season now that Aisha Tyler has announced she’s leaving due to her other professional commitments. What’s CBS’s plan? Chen says they’ll take their time finding a replacement and rotate guest hosts until they find their perfect match. She says, “The phones have been ringing off the hook and the emails are pouring in …. It depends who is the right fit. It just can’t be a huge name with a big following. You have to consider: do they like the talk show schedule? Do they like what we do? They have to try us on and vice versa to see if it works. I bet there will be a little bit of a bake-off. You have to test onscreen chemistry and, let’s face it, anyone can have one good show. I think we’ll do what you saw when Regis Philbin left Live and they tested out a bunch of hosts with Kelly Ripa before landing on Michael Strahan.” That sound you hear? Former BB stars sending in their resumes!

THE HOUSEGUESTS

Christmas Abbott (35)

Occupation: Fitness Superstar

Three adjectives that describe you: Committed, happy and influential

Matthew Clines (33)

Occupation: Renovation Consultant

Three adjectives that describe you: Fun, competitive and silly

Dominique Cooper (30)

Occupation: Government Engineer

Three adjectives that describe you: Uber-optimistic, energetic and determined

Elena Davies (26)

Occupation: Radio Personality

Three adjectives that describe you: Funny, abrasive and charming

Jason Dent (37)

Occupation: Rodeo Clown

Three adjectives that describe you: Charismatic, ambitious and athletic

Jessica Graf (26)

Occupation: VIP Concierge

Three adjectives that describe you: Honest, loud and loyal

Cameron Heard (24)

Occupation: Microbiologist

Three adjectives that describe you: Persistent, driven and smart

Mark Jansen (25)

Occupation: Personal Trainer

Three adjectives that describe you: Fun, strong and thoughtful

Megan Lowder (28)

Occupation: Dog Walker

Three adjectives that describe you: Cunning, smart and beautiful

Josh Martinez (23)

Occupation: Hair Care Sales

Three adjectives that describe you: Ambitious, courageous and passionate

Cody Nickson (32)

Occupation: Construction Sales Rep

Three adjectives that describe you: Confident, charming and sweet

Alex Ow (28)

Occupation: Eco-Friendly Marketing Rep

Three adjectives that describe you: Centre of attention, hyper and adorable

Jillian Parker (24)

Occupation: Timeshare Sales Rep

Three adjectives that describe you: Bubbly, funny and truthful

Kevin Schlehuber (55)

Occupation: Stay at home dad

Three adjectives that describe you: Caring, humorous and charismatic

Ramses Soto (21)

Occupation: Cosplay Artist

Three adjectives that describe you: Friendly, quirky and energetic

Raven Walton (23)

Occupation: Dance Teacher

Three adjectives that describe you: Quirky, bubbly, and outgoing

— profiles courtesy of Corus Entertainment/CBS