The Tense Relationship Big Brother's Dani Briones Has With Her Dad
It's no secret that Big Brother: All-Stars frontrunners Dani Briones and dad Evel Dick have had a troubled relationship over the years. The two first appeared on Big Brother Season 8 in 2007, when producers introduced a twist that took a number of houseguests by surprise. Big Brother integrated 'rivals' into the game, so Dani, who had not spoken to her estranged father in years, was shocked to see Dick walk through the door. Even so, the pair seemed to patch things up and made it to the final two, with Dick eventually taking home the grand prize.
In 2011, the tumultuous duo returned for Season 13, which featured a "Veterans" twist, but Dick abruptly left the show due to "an urgent personal matter" on Day 6. People later revealed that Dick's sudden departure came after he learned he had tested positive for HIV. Dani stayed behind and was voted out on Day 55, but not before finding love with Dominic Briones. Dani and Dominic got married in 2013 and welcomed daughter Tennessee Autumn in 2018.
But did Dick walk Dani down the aisle? And has Tennessee been growing up with grandpa Dick in her life? Let's take a closer look at what the father and daughter's tense relationship is like today.
'Big Brother' only reunited Dani Briones and Evel Dick for a short time
Things seemed amicable when Dani Briones and Evel Dick showed up inside the Big Brother house for Season 13, but appearances can be deceiving. Soon after Dani and Dominic said "I do" in 2013, her father decided to air some dirty laundry on his blog in a post titled, "My relationship with Daniele: A quick summary." Dick explained that he was writing because, "in BB13, [Dani] talked all kinds of s*** about me." Dick then revealed that their relationship was "nonexistent and I like it that way."
"We don't talk and there is good reason for it," he continued, adding that they "don't like each other" and that Dani "is a headache, pain in the a** and has proved time and time again that she will do nothing but her best to complicate my life."
Calling her "selfish and self-centered," Dick proclaimed that "all Daniele cares about is Daniele" and noted that their problems began when she was 11 years old. Detailing numerous tense encounters, the Big Brother winner told fans that he bought his daughter a car and took her on numerous trips with his winnings, but said she was ungrateful and shut him out. "She is a brat and does nothing but take from me, never willing to give anything and I am sick and tired of being used by her," he wrote. Dick also noted that Dani supposedly does not talk to her "step-grandfather who was there for her for 20 years," brother, mother, or step-siblings.
Did Dani Briones' wedding kill her relationship with Evel Dick?
In Evel Dick's rambling "My relationship with Daniele: A quick summary" post, the Big Brother alum held nothing back, putting the blame for the failed relationship entirely on daughter Dani Briones. "I have gone way out of my way over and over to try and make things good with her, but she doesn't appreciate anything I do or have done and I am over it," Dick declared. Revealing that "the last and final kicker for me was when she got married," he told fans that, not only was he not invited to the nuptials — "I probably wouldn't have gone anyhow" — but Dani also never bothered to thank him for the gifts he sent.
"I found out where her and Dominic were registered for their wedding gifts from my Mom, so I went onto both sites [...] and bought everything on each site for them," he revealed, saying it was meant to "show a good will gesture and to wish them a happy life together." Dick supposedly spent "between $3,500-$4,000" on the presents and "didn't even get a thank you card from them." Nor did he get the gifts back. "If she really had any integrity whatsoever and really didn't want anything to do with me or from me, she should have not accepted the gifts from me," he added, concluding that "SHE IS JUST NOT WORTH IT" and proclaiming, "To me, she is dead."
Evel Dick won't be rooting for Dani Briones anytime soon
When Dani Briones returned to the Big Brother house in 2020 to compete on the show's All-Stars season, she was an early favorite, but a number of major mistakes got her evicted. In addition to poor gameplay, she seemingly attempted to follow in her dad's notorious footsteps. Fans soon called her out for questionable comments, like when she mocked Ian's autism and made a "wrong" joke about Davonne's weave. Despite emulating Evel Dick's evil streak, he himself was not impressed and tweeted up a storm.
In August 2020, he proclaimed that he's "finding it very hard to root for Dani this season" because "she's become one of the type of girls I have always hated watching on BB. She'll be mad when they turn on her and treat her like she's treating these people," he criticized. He later tweeted that "she's lying constantly for no reason" and noted that targeting Janelle, "who has said she would never put Dani up or vote her out, so that alone is really bad game play." In September 2020, Dick added that he was "very disappointed" in Dani because of her "pregaming," which he described as "her lack of trust in her own game" and her penchant for "having to ask permission what to do, who to put up, who to vote out." He did throw in an unexpected compliment, however, calling her a "fantastic strategist" and "a legit comp beast," so maybe not all hope is lost.