I'm A Celebrity Australia fans call out casting choices: 'Where are the celebrities?'

I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! Australia returned last night from the South African jungle, but fans quickly asked: “Where are the celebrities?”

After the Season 12 premiere, social media buzzed with confusion over how ‘celebrity’ the contestants actually are.

While long-time fans of the franchise were ready for chaos, camp, and a few genuinely recognisable faces, many were left scratching their heads as the cast was revealed. In fact, the biggest shock of the night wasn’t the jungle, the first challenges, or even Mia Fevola using toilet paper to light the campfire; it was realising just how unfamiliar the lineup felt.

While some viewers acknowledged a few genuinely recognisable names, like The Brady Bunch icon Barry Williams and international model Rachel Hunter, even their presence wasn’t enough to stop fans from calling out the rest of the lineup.

I’m A Celebrity fans took to social media to voice their opinions

Within minutes of the episode airing, X and Facebook were flooded with confused (and brutally honest) reactions.

“Watched an hour of it, hoping to recognise someone. Think I’m giving this season a miss. Grabbing 20 random people off the street would be more interesting than this lot of …… whoever’s,” one person wrote.

“Channel 10. It’s time. It’s way past time. Make this year the last year for this dreadful show. None of the people are celebrities, not one,” another wrote.

Social media was lit up with viewers confused about the show’s casting choices.

“Don’t even know who one of them is,” wrote one viewer on Facebook. “A literal who’s who… as in who are they?” said another.

Some viewers in a Facebook group were also questioning what Mia Fevola is actually famous for.

“Just because you don’t know her, doesn’t mean others don’t,” one person responded, with another adding: “She was also on Dancing With The Stars.”

“Model, Brendon Fevola’s daughter. Not sure if she was on The Amazing Race with her dad, or one of his other daughters,” another wrote.

However, even though there have been some negative reviews of the casting, some viewers were still excited and familiar with the faces that appear in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here 2026.

Fans took to social media to express their excitement, with one writing on a Facebook post, “I can’t believe you have Greg from The Brady Bunch and Deni Hynes, and Gary Sweet. This is going to be such a great watch!”

As the saying goes, you can’t please everyone — now, can you!

Concetta can’t hide her fangirl moment over Luke Bateman

While fans were busy questioning the lineup, some were clearly not in doubt about who was worth the hype.

Radio host Concetta Caristo couldn’t contain her excitement over former Canberra Raiders NRL star Luke Bateman, better known these days as the ‘hot BookTok heartthrob,’ repeatedly gushing about him during the premiere.

“This is the moment I was waiting for!” Concetta exclaimed in the hut during the episode.

“But one I couldn’t believe was here… that, like, hot Booktok guy. And I want to say it’s Callum. It’s not, it’s like a hot white guy name,” she added, clearly starstruck.

During the episode, Concetta introduced herself to Luke, mentioning she hosts The Breakfast Show on Triple J.

“I’ve literally talked about you,” she said, before the pair launched into a discussion about their shared love of reading. Luke even encouraged her to start reading again, sparking one of the season’s cutest moments so far.

Social media quickly picked up on her enthusiasm, with many viewers joining in on the fangirling, joking that Concetta might be the season’s biggest fan rather than a competitor.

Whether the rest of the cast will win over audiences remains to be seen, but if the premiere is anything to go by, Season 12 has already given fans plenty to talk about. From celebrity confusion to fangirl moments, it looks like this jungle might be as chaotic and entertaining as ever.