Alexis Lete is setting the record straight on her showmance with Johnny Bananas.
Lete, 29, said ahead of the Season 42 finale that her relationship with Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio, 44, was edited to appear faster than it actually unfolded on “The Challenge: Cutthroat.”
“The showmance happening in the second episode… I was like, ‘I don’t think that happened until episode four or five,'” she said in the exclusive interview. “So this is interesting to see it so early on, especially after I said this is bulls–t.”
She continued: “Everyone’s like, ‘Wait, how did this happen?’ It didn’t happen like that, y’all. It was a slow burn.”
The “Deal or No Deal Island” alum traced the real beginning to a costume party for castmate Tori Deal’s birthday, when she borrowed Devenanzio’s clothes to dress as “Oliver Clothesoff.” A few days later, she left him a thank-you note with a teasing edge.
“I used his clothes, a few days later, I left a note and I was like, ‘Thank you for letting me use your douchey clothes.’ And then he wrote a little love letter back and he was like, ‘Wait, does this mean you like me?’ And I just put ‘maybe,'” Lete recalled.
That exchange led to their first intimate moment. “And that’s how I ended up in the bathtub because he was like, ‘Oh my gosh, put a bikini on come meet me here,'” she shared. “But that’s ultimately where it was starting to get a little spicier, I would say.”
Despite the manufactured timeline, Lete said she isn’t angry at producers. She understands they “want people to get interested and invested” early in the season.
Lete admitted she barely knew Devenanzio outside of watching him on television, and she characterized their connection as “a middle school crush relationship.” She also confirmed they attempted to date after filming ended, even though he had told her during production that “he wasn’t in a space to have a relationship or have a girlfriend.”
“So, I knew going out of the house that it wasn’t gonna lead to anything,” she explained. “And I think he tried to explore if it would, but ultimately, if someone tells you who they are, believe them the first time. So we’re just friends now.”
The showmance wasn’t even her first choice. Lete revealed that Devenanzio himself has acknowledged on his podcast that she pursued other castmates first.
“I was not interested in Johnny at all. Even on his podcast, he’s like, ‘You went for CT before me. You thought Josh was cute before you wanted me. So I was like option five,'” she shared.
“I just didn’t picture myself being interested in him,” Lete added. “I had heard a lot of stuff going into it. And I also noticed that he’s a pot stirrer, and I was like, ‘I don’t know if I want to be in all this drama.'”
The pair managed to avoid conflict with each other throughout the competition, which Lete found refreshing. Their relationship became “a nice escape from the game,” she said.
“The Challenge: Cutthroat” finale streams next Wednesday on Paramount+.