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Chris Kattan Explains Why He Quit ‘Celebrity Big Brother’: ‘It Just Became Hard Not to Talk to Family’ (Exclusive)

In good spirits! Even though Chris Kattan voluntarily left the Celebrity Big Brother house, he has nothing but good things to say about his short stint on the long-running CBS series.

The former Saturday Night Live cast member, 51, caught up with Us Weekly a few days after he got home and opened up about his reasons for abruptly exiting.

Related: 'Big Brother' Villains Through the Years: Where Are They Now?

“It was a lot of fun, but it was hard,” Chris exclusively tells Us. “At some point, it just became hard not to talk to family. And for me, it became hard to be disconnected to the outside world. I don’t think I was so ready [or] realized what that felt like when you have cameras on you 24/7, except for when you’re going to use the bidet. That’s really it. I didn’t realize how much I missed my family and friends and my loved ones and girlfriend.”

Chris Kattan Explains Why He Quit Celebrity Big Brother
Screen Grab/CBS

He added that being watched all the time “really does get to you” and explained that “there were family issues going on” at home too. His stepfather is sick and the Night at the Roxbury star was worried something bad may happen while he was inside the house and not able to talk to loved ones.

“God forbid something happened while I was gone, even though it’s just for four weeks. God forbid, something could have happened, and I would just be kicking myself if something did happen, you know?” Chris says. “And, if something happened and they weren’t able to tell me, that would be terrible. So that was really the main reason why I needed to leave.”

Related: ‘Big Brother’ Winners: Where Are They Now?

As for how he’s feeling now, the comedian tells Us: “I’m feeling great and I’m doing great. And as much as I miss being outside with those guys, it feels was amazing to be on the outside.”

And even though he walked away from the show, Chris says, “I’m so grateful for the time that I had there, and I made such great friendships.”

He also has a new crop of fans on social media, which has left him “blown away.” Watch above or scroll down to read the rest of our interview with Chris!

Celebrity Big Brother airs on CBS Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8 p.m. ET and Mondays at 9 p.m. ET.

Chris Kattan Explains Why He Quit Celebrity Big Brother
Screen Grab/CBS

Us Weekly: First question on everyone’s mind is how are you? How are you doing?

Chris Kattan: I’m feeling great and I’m doing great. And as much as I miss being outside with those guys, it feels was amazing to be on the outside.

Us: What’s been the most surprising thing that you’ve learned now that you’re outside the house?

CK: That Lamar [Odom] is way taller than I ever thought.

Us: Have you caught clips of the show?

CK: I have! It is so fascinating to see how the experience of watching the show after you have been in the show amongst the same cast is very surreal. Not just because it’s a continuation of a story that you are no longer part of, but it’s also what is seen is a lot of … as the show goes on and progresses, there’s a lot of intense games – not just physical games, but also games within the house. Those were the games that I wasn’t really a huge fan of. I’m such a lighthearted, fun guy and that’s what I came in with. But it is really wild to watch them still do the show after I left. It’s surreal. And it’s always interesting to see what the show shows as opposed to what we’re also doing in the show.

There [are] a lot of moments that I remember, like Carson [Kressley] and I would riff on. For example, there was a bidet and we were all very excited about this bidet, and we just ripped on this bidet for 10 minutes. We’re like, “Oh, my God, that was so funny.” We had the best time, but none of the stuff about the bidet ended up on air. So we’re like, “Damn, the bidet stuff didn’t happen.” But, he doesn’t know that yet! He’ll find out when he comes out that none of the bidet stuff was ever included.

Us: Maybe they’ll air those clips at some point!

CK: Maybe they will. But yeah, so it is surreal to watch. I am such a die-hard fan now. I was a fan before, but now I’m a die-hard fan of the show.

Chris Kattan Explains Why He Quit Celebrity Big Brother
Screen Grab/CBS

Us: I’m assuming it was much harder than you thought it would be?

CK: Oh, for sure. I thought it would be a lot more lighthearted, fun, a lot of laughs, a blast of a good time. It was a lot of fun, but it was hard. At some point, it just became hard not to talk to family. And for me, it became hard to be disconnected to the outside world. I don’t think I was so ready [or] realized what that felt like when you have cameras on you 24/7, except for when you’re going to use the bidet. That’s really it. I didn’t realize how much I missed my family and friends and my loved ones and girlfriend. I was having a difficult time with that. You’re not allowed to communicate with the outside world. That’s one of the rules. As much as you think you can acknowledge that rule, at some point it really does get to you. There were family issues going on, so that was one of the main reasons why I left.

Us: That was my next question. Was this something you had been contemplating? Was there a breaking point?

CK: Yeah, it was the fact that I couldn’t communicate. Well, I could communicate with them, but I was not allowed to hear back from them. And that’s what was so frustrating. When I got out, even my mom and stepdad – who is 93 right now and he’s very sick – they weren’t able to talk to me. So, God forbid something happened while I was gone, even though it’s just for four weeks. God forbid, something could have happened, and I would just be kicking myself if something did happen, you know? And, if something happened and they weren’t able to tell me, that would be terrible. So that was really the main reason why I needed to leave. That was what was most important. And the pressure of being on there 24/7, as much fun as it was for a while, when it got dramatic, it was like, “Oh boy.” That combined with missing my family was, like, I needed to contact the outside world. It’s an interesting thing to experience, but I’m so grateful for the time that I had there, and I made such great friendships. That’s so important to me now. I can’t wait to see Todrick Hall]. Teddi [Mellencamp], I already talked to. [Mirai Nagasu] who had already left. I can’t wait to meet [with] Carson. Carson and I are like, “We gotta do a show together.” And we want to. We’re gonna do a show together. I don’t know what it is…

Us: About his cake? Maybe a cooking show?

CK: It’s gonna be about his cake. I’m sure he’ll be the one making the cake. I’ll be the one eating it at 4:00 a.m. Who knew that would become a thing? It just became like a thing. Me, the cake eater. I think it’s #cakethief. I think that’s what it is. I don’t know. It was all over the internet, and I’m the cake thief, I suppose. And I think I did it my sleep? I was watching the show, I got out of bed. First of all, you have to understand it’s infrared so I can’t see anything. I’m looking for the beds by patting them down. And finally … I almost got in the wrong bed, which was Carson’s bed. I’m like, “That’s not my bed.” Then I went over towards my bed and then I fell over and hit my head on a bed. And as much comedy as it is for the viewers, it wasn’t for me. I was struggling. I was just trying to find the front door. And then, of course, what was I trying to find the front door to? Or why was I trying to find the front door? To go find Carson’s cake to eat. And I didn’t even know it ‘cause I was half asleep.

Chris Kattan Explains Why He Quit Celebrity Big Brother
Screen Grab/CBS

Us: You’ve had such amazing fan support on social media. People really enjoyed you. Did you get to see any of that yet?

CK: I did. And I was blown away. I had no idea because you have no perception of that when you’re on the inside. You have absolutely no perception of how you’re coming across. You trust production and editing. I’ve seen the show before. I’m like, “Wow, they really do a lot of work time-wise, like SNL.” They’re under a lot of pressure to get footage out for their network airing. They just have to choose storylines that may not really be a storyline within the house. It was just so surreal to be there. I miss people so much. But yeah, the perception of watching is so different than being in there. It’s just wild. I mean, if I was still there, I still would not know who won the Super Bowl. We were dying to know who was gonna win the Super Bowl so much, or who was even playing. We had no idea. Nobody knew. I assumed the Rams were playing, that’s all I knew. That’s all I thought was happening. I ended up being right and they won yesterday. I could make a fortune right now off of the cast of Big Brother by telling them secretly, somehow, what’s going on in the outside world.

Us: What’s next for you? What’s coming up? Where can fans follow what you have in the works?

CK: Well, they could always check me out on my Instagram, which is @ChrisKattanOfficial. I have a new show called “Hey Kattan,” which is on YouTube right now. It just started. It’s comedy shorts and sketches so I’m going back to my roots of sketches. I’m writing and directing some, and they’re short films. I’m really excited about that. We’re getting a huge response from that. I’m also working on a one-man show, which should be really fun, and a couple other projects that will soon be in development. I’m very excited about it. This is the next phase of my life. You know, I’m not gonna be doing Mr. Peepers and Mango anymore. I think I hung up those racks [of] clothing, but it seems there’s a new wave of 20 year olds that love that by watching YouTube. YouTube has reintroduced SNL sketches from years ago.

And everybody wants to sequel to A Night at the Roxbury. I don’t know if that’ll ever happen. That could be fun. But, it’s great to be out. My family’s doing great. I’m so glad they are. It’s great to be with my girlfriend again. And I can’t wait to see those guys come out of the Big Brother house and we’re all gonna hang out together. There’s so much love in there. It’s just a tremendous amount of love that you have for those people there. I wanted to leave with integrity and I wanted to leave with love, and still loving those people. I’m glad I left when I did because they are arguing constantly. That is something I am glad I avoided. I had an absolute blast. I won’t miss Todd [Bridges]’ snoring though. Oh, my God. The worst.

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