BIG Brother's new villain Rylie Jeffries has broken his silence on fans' claims he mistreated his housemate Katherine Woodman.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, pro bull rider Rylie, 27, said he feels "misunderstood" by viewers of the CBS hit reality show.
Speaking for the first time outside of the house after his shock eviction on August 21, the Big Brother star said: "I understand how things may have come across, but I speak with passion.
"I love with my whole heart, and maybe that intensity was misunderstood.
"I would never intentionally disrespect anyone, especially Katherine. I respect her deeply, and she’s her own person, makes her own choices.
"I think some moments just don’t reflect who I truly am. My intentions have always come from a place of care and loyalty, not control."
He said he feels "heartbroken" by fans' furious reaction to his behavior, which was called "controlling" and even "downright scary."
"It’s heartbreaking to be misunderstood," he continued.
"People online don’t know me, but my friends, family, fellow Houseguests, and Katherine do, and that’s what’s important.
"I spent every day in that house with people who truly know me, who see the real me: someone who’s loving, funny, and full of heart.
"It hurts to be painted as aggressive when all I’ve ever done is lead with passion and care."
Fans spotted multiple incidents of Rylie seemingly attempting to control Katherine on the show live feeds.
Just days before his eviction, Rylie could be seen talking to Katherine and staring at her, saying: “You don’t get to leave me.”
Katherine responded: “I’m not doing that. I wouldn’t do that, you know?”
“You don’t need to. You’re stuck with me," he said.
In another instance, Rylie became furious at Katherine for talking to the other houseguests.
"It is your tone - that f***ing voice - I've been waiting up here for two hours.
"I've been wondering where the f*** you are and all these f***ing little rat motherf****** are running around here," he fumed.
Viewers quickly begged producers to step in and put a stop to Rylie's behavior, but a source told The U.S. Sun that the contestant hadn't broken any rules.
“As of right now, there are no talks to remove Rylie from the Big Brother house yet, but he is being closely monitored," the source said on August 19.
“Perhaps more so than any other contestant, he’s having a close eye kept on him."
Rylie was ultimately evicted a few days later, though his removal was not related to how he treated Katherine.
An insider told The U.S. Sun that Rylie's family thought the scandal was blown out of proportion.
Unlike most evicted houseguests, Rylie did not stay in Los Angeles and instead flew home to Oklahoma.
