By Lauren Morris

Published: Wednesday, 04 May 2022 at 12:00 am

---

The new season of The Circle just arrived on Netflix, with a brand new line-up of contestants hoping to win around their fellow players.

Whilst based in The Circle apartments, the players will be using their social media skills to gain popularity among the other contestants, either by playing as themselves or being a catfish.

With a whole load of fresh faces to get to know – and a few celebrity guests – here’s everything you need to know about the contestants on The Circle.

Alyssa Ljubicich

Age: 27

From: New York

Job: Sex and relationship coach

Playing as: Herself

Instagram: @alyssaljub

Alyssa is an assistant to a sex coach in New York, with the 27-year-old saying she loves “helping people have amazing sex”.

Going into The Circle as herself, saying that if she can get the other players to open up about their sex lives, she can “absolutely get people to tell me about their strategies”.

Josh ‘Bru’ Brubaker

Age: 24

From: West Hollywood, California

Job: Radio presenter

Playing as: Himself

Instagram: @bruontheradio

Radio host and TikTok star Bru is a 25-year-old living in West Hollywood who describes himself as a “golden retriever”.

With 3.5 million followers on social media, Bru thinks he can be popular in The Circle as well and says he’s being himself as he knows who he is and is “paid to talk” during his day job.

Frank Grimsley

Age: 28

From: Maryland

Job: School social worker

Playing as: Himself

Instagram: @franknthecity

Frank is a 28-year-old school social worker from Maryland who describes himself as “the big boy with a big personality”.

Confident, fun and with a love for partying, Frank says he’s a body-positive person who decided to go into The Circle as himself to “bring a little bit of Southern charm” to the competition.

Yu Ling Wu

Age: 25

From: San Francisco

Job: Brand marketing consultant

Playing as: Herself

Instagram: @yulingwu

Yu Ling Wu is a 25-year-old brand marketing consultant from San Francisco.

She is a Chinese-American woman who says she was raised culturally by MTV and VH1, while on the digital front, she “lives and breathes social media”.

As for her game -playing strategy, Yu Ling says she’s planning on being “relatable” and “hilarious” in The Circle in the hopes of winning around her fellow players.

John Franklin

Age: 24

From: New Jersey

Job: Comedian and musician

Playing as: Carol (his mother)

Instagram: @_johnfranklin_

Comedian and musician John is a 24-year-old from New Jersey and The Circle’s first catfish.

The Italian-American has entered the show as his mother Carol, explaining that she’s “an incredibly smart, strong, independent woman” and he knows her inside out.

Crissa Jackson

Age: 31

From: Pennsylvania

Job: Former basketball player and social media influencer

Playing as: Herself

Instagram: @crissa_ace

Pennsylvania-based Crissa Jackson is a former basketball player turned social media influencer who is using her digital skills to go far on The Circle.

The 13th woman to play for the Harlem Globetrotters, Crissa is used to facing competition and says that she “likes to think that I’m going to play this game like that, having that full court vision”.

As for her strategy, Crissa says: “I’m a lesbian, I’m a female athlete, I’m a mum, I’m a wife – so I’m able to relate to so many different people.”

Parker Abbott

Age: 21

From: Miami

Job: Student

Playing as: Paul (her father)

Instagram: @parkerabbott

Miami-based student Parker says her only two personality traits are “being in a sorority and going out and partying” and so she’s decided to enter The Circle as her father, Paul.

She explains that The Circle is all about trust and if she saw “a 21-year-old sorority girl”, she definitely wouldn’t put trust in them. “Especially with my pictures,” she adds.

Emma Bunton and Mel B

Age: Both 46

From: The UK

Job: Members of The Spice Girls

Playing as: Jared

Instagrams: @emmaleebunton, @officialmelb

Spice Girl icons Emma Bunton and Mel B were two last-minute additions to The Circle line-up, with the singers taking part in the show as a catfish.

The pair entered The Circle in episode 2 as Jared – a 28-year-old children’s author, but it was up to them to decide what Jared’s personality would be like.

The Circle is streaming now on Netflix. Check out our streaming hub for more recommendations on what to watch, or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight. 

---