The Challenge star Josh Martinez recently opened up to castmate Johnny Bananas about his career on the show, including the Spies, Lies & Allies season.
During their chat, Josh revealed what he called “the worst side of filming the show,” which he didn’t experience quite as much with Big Brother.
That relates to the “hate” he gets from fans, which even Bananas said he’s perplexed by to this day when it comes to Josh being on The Challenge.
Josh comments on the ‘worst side of filming’ The Challenge
With Josh Martinez’s return for MTV’s The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies, the season opened, showing him in an unlikely alliance with Devin Walker, a castmate who previously feuded with him and started a “Big Brother Sucks” campaign.
Many fans jumped right on that slogan during the Double Agents season, especially those who weren’t fans of Josh being on The Challenge. Even though he’s now buried the hatchet and said he’s friends with Devin, that still hasn’t seemed to help him become popular with more fans.
During a recent Death, Taxes and Bananas podcast episode, Johnny Bananas asked Josh how he would say the fans are different with The Challenge compared to Big Brother. Bananas brought up that many fans seem to have “visceral” opinions towards Josh on MTV’s show.
“If I’m being honest, that’s the worst side of filming the show, is the hate, and just like sometimes it becomes really overwhelming,” Josh told his castmate.
He went on to say that there are conversations he had with Bananas in the past that have stuck with him and helped him handle it at times.
“We probably had conversations three years ago that you don’t even remember, that till this day, I repeat in my mind. It’s like I’ve made peace with the fact that I don’t go on this show to be loved [or] to be accepted for a fanbase. I’m grateful for the ones that do support me. I don’t go on this show to be understood,” Josh told Bananas.
“I had to make peace with the fact that some people are gonna love me. Some people are gonna hate me, but that’s not why I signed up for The Challenge,” he added, saying he’s there to try to win money.
Producer previously said Josh is a favorite
This past June, The Challenge producer and casting lead Skye Topic appeared on the Watch With Us: Challenge Edition podcast and spoke about Josh as a casting favorite. She brought up that he “gets a lot of hate” online but explained why he continues to return each season.
“I personally am obsessed with Josh. I love him for so, so many reasons, but he’s not a well-liked cast member,” Skye told Emily Longeretta of US Magazine. “I feel like he really brings something to the show, and so I don’t think maybe he’s getting the kind of love on socials, but I think it could turn around for him in a season or two,” she said during the podcast.
That was ahead of the premiere of Spies, Lies & Allies, Josh’s fifth season of The Challenge. Several former Challenge finalists recently reacted to Josh’s performance during the season from a competitive standpoint, with one suggesting the former Big Brother star needs to “retire now.”
It doesn’t appear that Josh will let any of the hate stop him from returning either. He told Johnny he loves appearing on The Challenge, and while he used to be scared about being on there, he’s become like other vets who get excited to return each season.
The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on MTV.
Episodes of The Challenge are now streaming on Paramount+. Try it FREE!
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