‘The Circle’s Jordan Exposes This Nasty Truth About Us All

Jordan Staff looks like a douche. His words. But he decided, with perception being reality on The Circle, he would play as an older version of himself. One when he was 300 lbs. He calls himself Big J. When he was that weight, he believed he was just the best friend and shoulder to cry on. He wants to use this to his advantage in this game in order to play the middle and get to the end. Well, that is after he uses the information he gains to destroy others in the process. And his mission seemed to have legs. Brandon Baker, not Olivia, can relate to the bigger guy that is Big J. Jordan knows a jock like Kyle Fuller wouldn’t be friends with him in real life and questions his authenticity in the game. By putting body image in the forefront, Jordan is displaying how society treats people based on their looks and not who they are as humans.

The game within The Circle is all about establishing relationships that reflect a positive perception that will allow the players to be rated at the top to ultimately win the game. Oh, and you have to do that while never meeting another human in real life. Using a profile and accompanying photos, each individual puts on a facade, some are real, some are catfish. And then there are some players who blend the two into a unique hybrid. Whether it is hiding a fact from the other players or borrowing a persona from their past, making a choice to not fully present themselves is a reflection of societal perception. That’s what makes The Circle such a wonderfully unique series. Throughout it’s multi-season run, The Circle has watched a number of individuals tackle some sort of iteration of this concept. Season 6 proves why this is so important, not only within the game but as a way to hold up a mirror to society.

The Circle

Participants enter a unique competition where they communicate only through a social media platform, isolated from each other. They must choose to either present their true selves or create a persona, as they vie to be voted the most popular by their peers and win a substantial cash prize.

Release Date

January 1, 2020

Main Genre

Reality

Distributor

Netflix

Number of Episodes

51

Streaming Service(s)

Netflix

Franchise(s)

The Circle

Jordan Is Using “Big J” to Reflect Societal Perception

Entering The Circle Season 6 during Episode 6, Jordan Staff is a 24-year-old photographer from Austin, Texas. With a passion for photography and a keen eye for capturing moments, Jordan comes into the game as himself, but with a strategic twist. Borrowing photos from his past, Jordan has decided to play as Big J. Knowing how he might be perceived in his current body type, Jordan believed that being this other version of himself would allow him to be more approachable and friendly. In this social game, Jordan is using society’s bias to his advantage.

In his debut episode, Jordan disclosed that people would consider him a “friendly giant” before he lost weight. In a society where body image can dictate popularity on social media, Jordan was in tune with how his fellow players could judge him without physically meeting him. The person that Jordan is may not have changed, but his physical image has. By opting to play as Big J, he knows that he’ll be treated differently. His main mission is to play the middle ground while using the information to his advantage. Jordan believed that his Big J persona would allow for more success in that department. He feared that his current physicality might cause others to think of him as a “douche.” And based on how the other “fit” men in the game have been seen by others, Jordan was certainly onto something.

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It’s Brandon, Not Olivia, Who Relates to Big J in ‘The Circle’ Season 6

Since entering the game, Jordan has very much fulfilled his wish to play the middle. He has attempted to make bonds with anyone he can, but he has shown trepidation with some. When it came to Myles Reed, Jordan wanted to play into being his bestie and learn information about the other players through his perspective. As with most new players in the game, the first batch of players are always keen to swing the newbies onto their side. When it came to Kyle Fuller, Jordan was quite skeptical about why a person who looked like Kyle would want to bond with a person who looked like Big J. Jordan was uncertain about Kyle’s motives because, in the real world, those two wouldn’t mesh. Jordan wasn’t even sure if he — not as Big J, but as Jordan — would gel with Kyle. Ultimately, this would result in Kyle’s downfall following the third ratings.

When it came to Olivia aka Brandon, once again, Jordan wasn’t sure if the beautiful blonde girl would be a good ally, but little did he know, the person behind the facade believed he could relate to the friendly giant. Viewers watched Brandon’s monologue about how he could relate to Big J because of their similar body types and experiences. He felt like he could relate to a person like him because of how society has treated him. At the moment, neither individual knows the truth about the other, but they’re both bringing up a conversation for viewers to have that, hopefully, the pair can have once they meet each other in person. Brandon is playing as Olivia because he wanted to be hot for once. His insecurities played into his decision-making because he felt that Olivia would fare better in the game than he would. Meanwhile, Jordan is the opposite. He thought in his “hotter” state, he would not be as well-liked, choosing to portray a version of himself that was seen as just a friend and a shoulder friends could cry on. The brilliant thing about The Circle is Brandon and Jordan are proving a theory about how people are treated by the way they look. There are advantages (and disadvantages) of looking a certain kind of way in the world, especially through the guise of social media.

At the moment, the Ride or Die twist looks like it may be taking two casualties unless Kyle or Paul aka Caress Russell decide to sacrifice themselves for the other. This means Jordan playing in the middle will keep him safe for now. As Jordan finds his footing playing as his former self, there’s a chance that his exploration of body image will continue to be explored. Casting players like Brandon and Jordan is quite genius as they allow the viewers to have a conversation about perception. Things can’t change unless they’re addressed first. Kudos to you, Jordan, for opening up our eyes!

New episodes of The Circle Season 6 stream every Wednesday on Netflix.

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