‘Big Brother’ Houseguest Jack Matthews Speaks out After Racist Comments Controversy: ‘I Do Apologize’

Jack Matthews’ apology tour for racist comments made during his time on Big Brother is officially underway. The controversial houseguest was taken out of the competition Thursday in a 6-2 vote. During his exit interview, host Julie Chen took him to task on some of the comments he made that were captured on the live feeds about Kemi Fakunle and Isabella Wang.

The show first revisited the moment in which Jack said he would like to “stomp a mud hole” on Kemi, calling her other names after she made comments about Jackson Michie’s cooking.

“In recap you called her a b—, dog poop — you didn’t use the word ‘poop’ — and we just heard you say you wanted to stomp a mud hole through her chest. Watching that now, what are your thoughts?” Chen asked after playing footage of the conversation for Matthews and viewers.

“I will say that the ‘stump the mud hole’ comment is based on something that (BB20 houseguest) Sam said last season when she was frustrated,” Matthews started. “I don’t think there was any personal vendetta behind saying that. My statements were playful in a group of people. I do apologize for what I said, and that’s very sincere.”

“I think Kemi was, and is, a great person,” he continued. “I think this game, and being in 24-hour view of people. You say things. And, I wouldn’t say that I fully support the things that I said and the way that I said them and if I could take them back, I would. And I wish that I could articulate it in some other way possible.”

“It doesn’t take away the fact that I don’t think that Kemi is a wonderful person, inside and outside of the house.”

The Big Brother host also asked Matthews about a comment he made in the live feeds about Isabella Wang, in which he said the proof was in “the rice pudding.” The comment raised many eyebrows with Big Brother fans at the time.

“Because Bella is Asian-American and you made the pudding comment, ‘rice pudding,’ some people thought that was a derogatory statement about her ethnicity,” Chen said. “What is your response to that?”

“I appreciate you letting me be able to voice my opinion about that,” he said. He then explained that Tommy Bracco and Christie Murphy had been making slop recipes, and they had spoken about rice pudding earlier and that’s what made him think about that in the moment caught on camera.

“It had nothing. Absolutely nothing to do with her ethnicity whatsoever. I appreciate that I get to voice, me saying that,” he said.

What do you think about Jack’s explanations? Big Brother will next air Sunday at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.