Ahead of the launch of this year’s I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! On Network 10, B&T sat down with hosts Julia Morris and Chris Brown to talk about all things jungle.
They say shared pain brings people together, so it’s natural the contestants on I’m A Celebrity want to stay in touch with each other once the show ends.
However, whilst the contestants like to stay in touch, hosts Morris and Brown often find themselves without an invitation.
“There’s such an odd separation between host and contestants,” Morris said.
“Not from us, but we are the people going in there telling them they’re about to do something revolting. And I think that there is definitely a sense when they are in that jungle experience that we are just chilling out in max luxury.”
“There’s definitely a sense of separation between us because I believe they’re under the impression that we are not going through the same experience. On lots of levels, we’re not, but on lots of levels we are”, she added.
Determined to not be left out, Brown says this is something they have raised with the guests.
“We made a point last year of telling the celebrities that in eight seasons we’ve never been invited to their reunion and so we got the token invitation so we will keep on with that”.
Worryingly, Brown added that the contestant’s nasal power becomes so strong after time in the jungle that Morris and Brown are unable to hide their ‘luxury’ lifestyle choices.
“They can smell us coming. They can genuinely smell what we’ve eaten for dinner or breakfast. Their sense of smell is so finely tuned to food they can smell what’s coming out of our pores,” he said.
The three weeks in the jungle is notoriously challenging, with many celebrities crumbling under the pressure.
When asked which celebrities are most able to survive the deal, Morris is clear.
“If someone’s already dealt with their [mental] demons, they’re going to have a great time. If they haven’t dealt with their demons, and they’re put in this really odd situation where they’re quite restricted. I think it can make you go a little nutty”.
For Brown, its team players that are most likely to survive in the jungle.
“I think that those people who always put the group ahead of themselves always do well, that anyone who’s too self serving inevitably finds it very, very difficult”.
When asked if he had a favourite contestant, Brown admitted that he was thrilled when Shane Warne entered the jungle, however he said it was often the contestants that “came out of nowhere” that did well.
“Your favourites over time are almost always the ones that come out of nowhere where you don’t know too much about them and they just surprise you and you feel joy every time you see them”.
Season 9 of I’m A Celebrity kicks off Sunday, April 2, 2023 on 10 and 10 play.
