INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

‘Big Brother 18’ Spoilers: Is The ‘Jatalie’ Showmance Doomed, And Has Natalie Been Using James While Playing America?

By Cia Young
Published on: 11:16 PST, Sep 8, 2016

This season of Big Brother has seen its fair share of showmances, and the relationship between James Huling and Natalie Negrotti, or “Jatalie,” has been featured on the show as a sweet, innocent pairing between an unlikely couple.

There never seemed to be any question that James has fallen head-over-heels for Natalie, however, some have argued that Jatalie was never a true showmance and was doomed to fall apart as Big Brother 18 heads toward its end. But, there are also those who have seen the pairing as a true relationship due to Natalie’s musings in the Diary Room regarding her adoration for James. Others, however, find her statements less-than-convincing.

Over the past few days, Big Brother 18 live feeds have shown James and Natalie bickering about the game and their relationship, prompted by the fact that both are sitting on the chopping block this week. They were nominated for eviction by current Head of Household (HOH) Victor Arroyo and failed to win the Power of Veto (POV) (Corey Brooks was the challenge winner) in order to garner safety.

The couple, unlike other showmances in the Big Brother 18 house, has not been very affectionate, which has appeared to be somewhat discouraging to James, causing some to label “Jatalie” a “flirtmance.”

Natalie’s intentions may have been in question due to her initial showmance with Victor the first week of Big Brother 18 prior to feeds going live. The only hint of that relationship has been gained through discussions Natalie has had with other houseguests, including James. She has explained that Victor hurt her badly and wanted out of the pairing, thus he shut the whole thing down early on.

Also problematic is that Corey, as previously reported by the Inquisitr, has told Nicole Franzel, his showmance partner, that Natalie has flirted with him and outwardly stated she does not really like James at all.

James’ and Natalie’s most recent interactions have not been encouraging either, as on Wednesday, September 7, at around 2:45 p.m. Big Brother 18 house time, they were enmeshed in a conflict that seemed to stem from Natalie learning she is the likely target to get sent to jury this week, which greatly upset her.

Natalie even referenced the message shouted over the wall by a fan the evening before, as reported prior by the Inquistr, which indicated James made a pregame deal with Nicole. Despite James denying any deal, Natalie does not seem to believe him.

At approximately 4:10 p.m. James and Natalie discussed the state of their Big Brother 18 showmance, with Natalie saying she was in two of them this season and dumped by both men, according to Joker’s Updates. James insisted whatever takes place is mutual.

As the argument continued, at around 4:16 p.m., James asked Natalie if they are together or not, and Natalie stated she didn’t know. According to Joker’s Updates, he wasn’t afraid to question her about using him to get further in the game, but she replied she wouldn’t play with someone’s emotions like that.

On Wednesday night’s Big Brother 18 episode, the show featured Natalie telling James that if she leaves and he aligns with Nicole and Corey, she will never speak to him again. James seemed stunned and told her what she said was quite mean, however, she reiterated it was the truth.

Apparently Natalie apologized later, but that was not seen on the episode.

On Thursday, at around 2:30 p.m., the two continued bickering about the game as Natalie emphasized she will be happy to leave such a “toxic negative” environment created by “all these toxic humans,” according to Big Brother Updates. She added that certain things James said to her this season have made her “not want to be in a relationship” with him.

Some have asserted that Natalie is perceptive and simply latched on to veteran player James because he was chosen America’s Favorite Player (AFP) by the viewing audience in Big Brother 17, and she is hoping to garner the same designation this season. Thus, it could be surmised Natalie was always planning an “out” regarding their showmance, as her game careens to an end.

Rob Cesternino, the host of Rob Has a Podcast, and his live feed correspondents discussed the matter Wednesday evening, noting that Natalie may be trying to dupe America with her Big Brother 18 Diary Room sessions. This is because the Diary Room is considered that sacred spot in the house where cast members can reveal their true feelings about other houseguests, as well as game strategy.

Rob aptly stated the following.

“My big issue with Natalie is… I think that she is a better game player than we gave her credit for initially. My issue is always when people lie in the Diary Room. I think she’s a big phony-baloney in the Diary Room, and I think she’s lying to us about her feelings for James… She sort of leads us on, and leads James on, but I don’t have an issue with her leading James on if she’d be honest with us in the Diary Room and state, ‘James is a nice guy, good friend, but that’s it…'”

Rob further added that when referring to James in the Diary Room, Natalie says things like she kissed his picture, and he’s her soul mate, but later says to James, “‘I was going to date you, but then if you didn’t do X, Y, Z now we can’t date. It’s your fault that this happened, otherwise I was totally willing to do it.’ She’s just not honest with us.”

Ultimately, only time will tell if “Jatalie” stays intact outside the Big Brother 18 house, and if Natalie is trying to pull a fast one on America to garner favor and win AFP. All in all, however, it appears, at best, James and Natalie have a friendship that may endure, but a romance seems unlikely.

In the meantime, Big Brother 18 airs on CBS Wednesday and Sunday nights at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, and Thursday nights at 9 p.m. Eastern Time. Big Brother After Dark airs on Pop on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights at midnight Eastern Time, Tuesday at 11 p.m. Eastern Time, and Thursday at 1 a.m. Eastern Time. Live feeds are broadcast from inside the Big Brother 18 house 24-hours a day, seven days a week and are available from CBS All Access.

[Image via CBS]

Share this article: ‘Big Brother 18’ Spoilers: Is The ‘Jatalie’ Showmance Doomed, And Has Natalie Been Using James While Playing America?
big brother
More from Inquisitr