Getty 'Big Brother' star Jeff Schroeder at the Sundance Film Festival
Popular “Big Brother” contestant Jeff Schroeder told Heavy that what he learned from the homophobic comment incident has made him a better father to his two sons. Read on to find out how he worked through it, what he learned from the incident, and how it all made him a better person.
During ‘Big Brother 13,’ Schroeder Made Some Comments That Upset Fans
During “Big Brother 13,” one day on the live feeds, Schroeder and fellow houseguest Kalia Booker were talking about the “Harry Potter” book series and it came up that the Dumbledore character might be gay, something that author JK Rowling has confirmed.
Schroeder commented that he didn’t think it was “right” for the headmaster of a school in a kid’s book to be gay.
“He’s in a school with little kids! You don’t want to make that guy gay!” said Schroeder at the time.
After his season, he did address the comments in an interview with “Entertainment Weekly,” but he mostly focused on how the world of “Harry Potter” is a “magical land” that isn’t real rather than the actual comments he made that many fans felt indicated that gay men shouldn’t be around children.
Fans are still wondering about it all these years later, so we asked Schroeder if he has reflected on those comments in the years since “Big Brother 13” filmed and aired.
Schroeder Said He Is ‘Sorry’ About the Comments and He Learned A Lot From The Whole Incident
When asked if he had changed his mind at all or if he has reflected on that time, Schroeder said he has and he has no excuses for what he said.
“I’ve apologized and again, I am sorry, and I’ll continue to apologize and I don’t ever want to make excuses for what I said. I want to take full responsibility for what I said and have it as a learning experience,” said Schroeder.
He went on to say that after it all happened, he spoke with a lot of personal friends of his and they helped him grow as a person “because of that incident.”
“You have to fail sometimes to learn a big lesson,” said Schroeder. “[This is] one of the big failures of my life that I’m embarrassed about and I regret. At the same time, I’ve also grown as a person because of that. I think I’m a better father because of it. I’m just a better all-around person for having that happen, even though it was a bad experience and some people just aren’t going to like me, but as a person I’ve definitely grown and I’m definitely apologetic about it.”
Schroeder now lives in Denver, Colorado, with his wife Jordan Lloyd, whom he met on “Big Brother 11.” They married in 2016 and have two sons, Lawson and Layton. He recently told Heavy that he would love to have more children, but he thinks Lloyd is done. Currently, Schroeder is a co-host of the nationally syndicated talk show “Daily Blast Live,” which airs Monday through Friday online or check your local listings to see if it airs in your area.
“Big Brother” season 23 premieres Wednesday, July 7 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.