Six years ago, The Challenge embarked on its “trilogy” — a 3-season saga including Dirty Thirty, Vendettas, and Final Reckoning. MTV built these seasons around rivalries, Challenge history, and betrayal, but some new faces were in the mix. One of the most random newbies was Britni Thornton, but she managed to get cast in all three seasons.
If MTV was looking for drama, Britni delivered. She found herself in fights, with her ex, and with a new beau. Then, she disappeared from the Challenge scene and she hasn’t been on our screens in five years.
The Debut: Dirty Thirty
Dirty Thirty had very few rookies on the cast, so it seems like Britni was lucky to get one of those spots. And, as far as dirty players go, she didn’t really fit the bill. Prior to the season, she was noted for hooking up with Chuck on Are You the One? 3 after he had a relationship with a girl named Hannah. Britni kind of got an intrusive edit, but Chuck and Hannah weren’t a “perfect match,” and that was the name of the game on AYTO.
Hooking up wasn’t really her thing on Dirty Thirty (but maybe it was after). To be honest, she was one of the least controversial cast members that season, but she was a solid underdog. She won two eliminations and talked a moderate amount of shit, but ultimately lost in the Presidio to Camila. Perhaps her most memorable moment was burning a vote on Leroy, which allowed Veronica to manipulate the votes.
The Return: Vendettas
Britni found herself in a unique spot this season because she wasn’t a seasoned veteran, but there was such an influx of rookies (thanks to AYTO?5, Big Brother, and UK kids), that she was a semi-vet. She quickly connected with Brad, and the pair became a couple almost immediately. However, Britni appeared to be stronger and a bit more confident this season. She won her heat in Who’s Got Balls, and avoided elimination for a long time. We also saw a messier side this season, most notably when she threw Kayleigh’s luggage over the balcony with Jemmye and Kailah, and when she was involved in a pizza-related sex debacle.
However, her time was cut short when the mercenaries came in and Laurel took her out.
The Explosion: Final Reckoning
To say Final Reckoning was a disaster for Britni would be an understatement. She was purged out during the opening challenge, and she’d never get a chance at redemption because of the double cross twist.
Despite the poor performance, she got a lot of attention during earlier episodes, and this was because she was paired with her ex-boyfriend Chuck. These two were crazy and argued constantly, but some people speculated there was sexual tension. Once Paulie came into the Redemption House, he weaponized that alleged tension and used it as mental warfare on Brad’s game. This rattled Brad, to the point that Britni made a cameo later in the season over Facetime to address the rumors.
Is There a Future?
Since Final Reckoning, Brad and Britni broke up. This isn’t a shocker, but it is surprising that neither of them appeared on another main series Challenge. They were messy, fairly good at the game, and had unfinished business.
Of course, Brad appeared on All Stars seasons, but the most Britni did was appear in sexy photos with Turbo (and others) She also got engaged last year, so her life is moving in a good direction without the show.
However, I get the impression that she hasn’t fully put the show in the past. If they ever had another Exes or Final Reckoning-style season, it would be very interesting to see her compete with Brad. But, it seems like she was someone whom MTV was willing to dispose of. They let her leave Final Reckoning without much of a fighting chance, and seasons like War of the Worlds and War of the Worlds 2 called for smaller veteran rosters. So, she wasn’t getting called.
With each passing year, it feels like we’re not going to see Britni again. So, unless that changes, she will forever be known as a competitor whose career was born and died in the trilogy.
Stop Being Polite 