‘Big Brother’ star America Lopez says emotional exit ‘broken me’

America Lopez knew her days were numbered after her showmance partner Cory Wurtenberger unexpectedly dropped out Big Brother house, but that still didn’t make her own departure any easier.

America was the second victim on Thursday’s live double eviction episode after Bowie Jane won the Head of Household title and put her on the block, and then Matt Klotz failed to remove her after he vetoed the contest had won. After a tearful appeal to the other houseguests, she was unanimously voted out.

Why was America so emotional about his exit? Who would she want to be with until the end if she had stayed? And what does her future with Cory look like? We asked the 27-year-old medical receptionist all this and more on the way to the jury house. You can watch the interview above or read it below.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: This was the most emotional exit we’ve seen all season. What was going through your mind when your time at home ended?

AMERICA LOPEZ: The last few weeks have been the hardest here in the house. I really haven’t been that emotional all season. I just broke down for the first time when me and Cory were blind, and then just last night I didn’t really realize how much that meant to me. I’m obviously a big fan of the show. On a whim, I went to a casting and made it to the house. I didn’t think it meant that much to me until I looked at Jag and said, “I heard I’m the next one to go, please tell me that’s not true.”

And I could just see it in his eyes. It broke me. It was so hard. I thought about the last 86 days, how much fun I had, how much I enjoyed every single moment of it, and it was just uncontrollable. It all just came flooding back – all these feelings that I had been holding back.

There is constant pressure and tension in this house. You are constantly under surveillance and don’t realize how overwhelming it all is. I didn’t realize how overwhelming it all was until I realized I didn’t have Matt and Jag and was leaving. It was hard and it’s so terrible. I thought, “Oh, it sucks without Cory. I hate this house!” But at the same time I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to keep playing. I wanted to wake up to those fluorescent lights for another week and compete in those silly competitions again. I wasn’t ready to see that ending. It was hard.

If you had stayed, who would you have wanted to go to the end with?

I wanted to go to the end with Bowie Jane. I miss Bowie Jane! I love her. What a character. But she doesn’t notice anything happening around her, does she? She literally needs to be told what to do, how to vote, and what is going on. She was the ultimate floater the entire game, so I would have liked to have taken her to the last two games. Obviously I thought I had the best chance of winning against them. I tried to get closer to her this week, tried to be her best friend, tried to be her buddy, but I’m not Matt and Jag. I wouldn’t separate her from them.

How disappointed and frustrated were you with your competitive performances this season?

Pooh! I suck. The only thing I really wanted this season was to win HOH, get my basket, get my wine, get my music, and I just couldn’t do it. These competitions were so tough. Oh my god, so much harder than they look. You have to be able to keep a cool head under pressure, and I’ve just never been able to do that. In a competition I would panic, or when you’re competing against 16 other people in the beginning it was so hard.

Everyone there was smart and capable, and when I got into it, I thought I’d be some kind of comp beast, because I’m a super fan, and clearly, womp, womp! Here I am: Zero competition wins. I’m so crazy! I say, “Let me in and let me pressure cook again!” I can manage it. I can beat Cam. I know it.” The only thing I really regret is making this deal. If I had known it was early in the game – Pressure Cooker was week 4 – if I had known I would have done so poorly in competitions, I wouldn’t have let go of that button.

If you could go back and change one thing about your game that might have resulted in a different result, what would it be?

Okay, so if I could change anything on the fly, I wouldn’t have talked to Blue last week about her being the target. If I hadn’t spoken to Blue, I don’t think Matt and Jag would have had any reason to nominate me and Cory to take us by surprise. I really think they might have stuck with the final four we had – the Jagman and the Three-Way Rats might have had a chance and made it to the final four.

I think that was a mistake so late in the game. I should have known better. I haven’t worked with Blue all season. Why did I think I could trust her now? I was just sloppy and tried to stop her from targeting Cory and that was so stupid. I think Matt and Jag were just looking for an excuse to come after us, and I handed it to them on a silver platter when I told Blue all this.

What future do you hope for with Cory beyond the jury?

I know that Cory and I will continue our relationship. I really went into that thought and thought, “Okay, yeah, I’m going to get on a show, but I’m going to act.” I’ll play her. I don’t care about boys. I do.” not because of a relationship here. Showmance? Secure. But anything beyond that, anything serious? No way.”

Here I am at the end with a full-fledged boyfriend. I’m so excited to see what happens next. I’m going to visit his family for the holidays. He will come to visit me. I’m really looking forward to spending time with him in the jury house. It’s so stressful in the BB house. This will be a time for us to relax and treat it like a mini vacation. I think it’s going to be great. I’m excited. I’m excited.

Sign up for Weekly entertainmentis the free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive previews, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars and more.

Related content: