Many of The Challenge fans consider Johnny Bananas the greatest of all time due to winning seven seasons of the competition series.
However, his championships haven’t always come without some controversies.
He was part of an infamous moment during his Rivals III win alongside Sarah Rice when he received an option to split the first-place prize money or keep it all to himself.
The rest is history, and villainous words and actions by Bananas on the show qualified him for newer reality shows like E!’s House of Villains and Peacock’s The Traitors 2.
While not all his castmates are his biggest fans or supporters, he has plenty of allies when he plays The Challenge.
His castmate, Ace Amerson, recently appeared on the Death, Taxes, and Bananas podcast and discussed Bananas’ portrayal as a villain.
Ace praises Bananas and CT for what they’ve done
Ace is among the MTV OGs of The Challenge, having appeared on seasons with many of the show’s earliest legends, including Chris “CT” Tamburello, Coral Smith, Brad Fiorenza, Rachel Robinson, Abram Boise, and Veronica Portillo.
He appeared on four seasons of MTV’s The Challenge and reached the final in his fourth, The Inferno 3. That was also Bananas’ first season and the only season that Ace was his castmate.
During Bananas’ podcast, Ace spoke about being “proud” of Johnny Bananas for his accomplishments.
“Like everything you do. I’m so in awe of it. You and CT, man, I’m so proud of you guys,” Ace said.
“And it’s crazy to me how they’ve made you seem like a villain. But, you know, you’ve played that role but it’s crazy because you’re not that at all,” he said, adding, “You in real life are farthest from a villain.”
Bananas recalled their season, during which the production divided the cast members into two teams. Ace and Bananas, along with other castmates, were on the “Good Guys” team against a team of “Bad A**es.”
“I’m so proud, and you’ve done so good, man. I know there’s a thing between you and CT being the GOAT, but if it wasn’t for you guys, none of these spinoff shows would be on there. This thing would have not made it 40 seasons without you, and I’m so glad that the rest of the world caught onto your magic,” Ace gushed.
Bananas told his castmate he appreciated the kind words but always felt more “comfortable when people are talking s**t and being mean” to him.
Bananas and CT to appear in epic Season 40 cast
Ace is coming off his second appearance in the final, lasting until the final four of Paramount+’s All Stars 4 spin-off. Castmate Laurel Stucky won the event ahead of Cara Maria Sorbello and Steve Meinke.
A week after the All Stars 4 finale arrived, The Challenge revealed Season 40, Battle of the Eras, which features 40 cast members from the MTV franchise’s 39 seasons.
Four teams of 10 cast members represent the various eras they appeared in for the competition series.
Ace didn’t get into the cast, but his former The Real World: Paris castmate, CT, will be part of the Era 1 team. The group features the earliest OGs and legends from MTV’s The Challenge.
Bananas is in the second group, Era 2, which includes Cara Maria, Laurel, KellyAnne Judd, Ryan Kehoe, Brandon Nelson, Emily Schromm, Derek Chavez, Nehemiah Clark, and Aviv Melmed.
Season 40 will feature MTV’s largest cast for The Challenge, with a prize purse of $1 million on the line. The rules are currently unknown, but it’s believed finalists who finish the final will each receive part of that prize money.
Bananas is attempting to win his eighth championship, while CT will look to win his fifth. Viewers look forward to seeing these two greats battle with each other and the rest of the legends and rising stars.
The Challenge: Battle of the Eras premieres Wednesday, August 14 at 8/7c on MTV.
Episodes of The Challenge are now streaming on Paramount+. Try it FREE!
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