Cedric Hodges spent the The Challenge: Cutthroat premiere hearing his own teammates call him a snake. Then T.J. Lavin sent him home with a very different verdict, telling him he might be the nicest human who’s ever been on the show.
Cedric became the first player eliminated from Season 42 after losing “Burn Out” to Johnny “Bananas” DeVenanzio, capping a week in which he was the first pick handed to the Blue Team, watched his captain get boxed out in the draft, and got named to the arena before anyone else. It’s a sharp turn from his rookie run, when he dodged elimination almost entirely and finished third in the final.
He’s not bitter about the guy who beat him. If anything, going out first gave him a new appreciation for what Bananas has pulled off across nearly two decades of this show.
Below, Cedric talks about the contradiction between how the house and T.J. perceived him, why he panicked in the arena, and why he’ll take a loss to Bananas over a loss to anybody else. Plus — the Big Brother 26 alum gives his thoughts on Season 28 and if how his former castmate Angela Murray is doing.
Gold Derby: T.J. said you might be the nicest human who’s ever been on this show. That’s a hell of a compliment from a guy who’s seen every kind of person come through The Challenge. What did that mean to hear from him?
Cedric Hodges: It meant so much, especially with the emotions and everything that were going on. I was just glad that I’m able to impact other people around me in a nice, positive way and that it’s noticed by T.J. Especially because it was so contradictory to what everybody in the house was saying. So it was a little reinforcement like, Cedric, keep doing what you’re doing. Keep being a nice person. I was very, very appreciative.
What do you think caused that contradiction? Throughout the whole episode we see various people calling you a snake, and then at the end T.J. says you’re the nicest person he’s ever met here.
I have no idea. I’m still trying to figure it out. I encourage all of the people who have this opinion of me to go look at my season and actually watch it. I never went against my allies. I never voted anybody into elimination that I said I was working with. My main alliance at the end was Justin [Hinsley] and Will [Gagnon]. Unfortunately we both ended up in elimination together, but I did everything I could to help them get out of every situation they were in. So I don’t understand why I got this narrative. The only thing I could think of maybe would be the whole thing with Yeremi [Hykel], but at the end of the season when we were talking about it, I told them the truth. I literally can’t be more honest. I’ve learned in the Challenge house that it’s easier to manipulate people around me to target me than it is to manipulate me.
You made it all the way to the finale your rookie season and finished third. Going out first this time had to hurt. Was that part of why it was so emotional?
I think the reason it gets so emotional for me is that I actually care about the people that I play with. Some of these people are genuinely my friends and it’s almost like I have to leave them. And it’s not willingly. When you say goodbyes and it’s willing, it’s like, “Oh, I’ll see you again.” I may never have an opportunity to do another season. Some of these people that I played with may never have an opportunity to do another season. So I’m literally leaving these people, and that hurts for me.
You were on Anna Leigh Wilson’s team from the jump, and they were clearly targeting her during the draft. Did you know that in the moment?
During the team selection, I was the first pick sent in by Justin, which is a whole other issue. And as we got to round two I was like, Anna Leigh, they’re ganging up on you. And I’m not going to lie, a little part of me got frustrated with Anna Leigh, because Anna Leigh was giving them good players. I’m like, what is going on? How did the Orange team get so stacked and you know the whole time they’re ganging up on you? So that was kind of unique for me. But we knew it. I knew it. So it’s just the way the cookie crumbles, I guess.
Why do you think you were the first person selected to go into the arena?
A series of unfortunate events. You heard it first from Justin — Justin had a little vendetta against me. He was a captain. Sydney [Segal] doesn’t trust me, I don’t know why. She was a captain. I got into a little scuffle with Chris [Underwood] during team selection about the same thing we just talked about, about how they’re ganging up on Anna Leigh. And then Chris asked for a favor and I was like, you’re not going to ask for a favor after you just spent the last four rounds trying to diminish our team. So then Chris ended up being a captain, Sydney ended up being a captain, Justin ended up having some power.
I’ve learned a lot of the shows have an element of luck to it, just like everything in life. Sometimes you can do everything right and get unlucky, and the opposite — you can do everything wrong and get lucky.
Even though you went home, you did get to go into the arena with Bananas. That’s always an iconic moment, going in with someone of that status. How was that experience for you?
I haven’t played enough seasons with Johnny to understand why some people dislike him. I think he kind of gets the same shakedown every season that I got this season, of everyone just assuming he’s a snake. I actually have so much love and respect for Johnny. I think he’s, especially after this season, probably one of the greatest, if not the greatest. I’m going to say it — I think he’s the greatest to ever do it, because Johnny comes into every season with people that already hate him. And then he has to work extra hard to get to a point to be neutral, let alone to go far in a season. Me experiencing that this season and going home first just gives me a whole new perspective on how good he is. So it was cool. It was an honor. And I always want people who I care about to do well. At least I lost to Johnny and not someone else.
He’s getting up there in age, and you’re young, you’re a track star, and he kind of smoked you out there. What happened?
Not even kind of. It was honestly a little bit embarrassing for me. But going home first this season, I’ve learned a lot of lessons in my short time there, and a lot of lessons I’m glad I got all in one run instead of getting one in another and then another.
What happened honestly was I was emotional. My friends, or people who I thought were my friends, just sent me into elimination — the very first elimination of the season, which I felt was unnecessary. I panicked. I wasn’t thinking straight. I’m normally a calm and calculated person, so I don’t really ever let myself get into a panic mind state, which made me panic more. My strategy was broken too because I was panicked. I was hitting all the buttons and then Johnny was chasing me, and the right play would’ve been to just keep running laps and be like, who could do more laps? I was like, this is whack. So then I turned around and ran back into the same ones that he just hit and started to chase him. But I was already down 10, 15 lights. So it was just over.
You come in with experience in Big Brother. Does that game prepare you at all for this, or is it a completely different ball game? And can you feel the division between Big Brother, Survivor, and the old Challenge vets?
Big Brother naturally gets a negative rap, which I guess I kind of understand from some of the players, but I don’t get it for me personally. If you watch my Big Brother season, I literally went home because I was too honest. So I don’t understand how I get this supposed snake personality.
But Big Brother definitely helps you prepare for The Challenge in the sense that you don’t really understand these types of environments until you’re in there. All the best, even for Johnny — he’s done more seasons than I’ve been alive, which is so much experience and so much knowledge, and it comes into effect when you see challenges that are similar or the same. For this elimination, if I ever see it again, I know exactly what to do. It’s like doing a puzzle. When you do a puzzle for the first time it’s super hard. When you run it, it becomes super easy.
You competed on Season 26 of Big Brother with Angela Murray. Are you keeping up with her this season, and do you have thoughts on how she’s changed her game?
Angela’s always going to be Angela, but I think she’s doing really well. I think she’s in a good spot this season. I’m excited to see where the game takes her. I truly want all of my friends to do the best, so I’m excited for her, and I’m glad she was afforded the opportunity.
Do you have a favorite this season that you think is playing the best game or has a good shot to win it all?
It trips me out because Dee [Valladares] is always so good at all of these games. I’m like, what? So Dee has a really good shot. I’ve never met [Rick] Devens. Angela I think has a really good shot. Drew [Campbell], I hope he can bring it back home for the young folks. Melody [Morris] even. I don’t know, I’m excited. It’s a good season so far.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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