’Claim to Fame’s Naomi Is Related to a Member of the 1980s Brat Pack (EXCLUSIVE)

If there's someone running the house in Season 3 of Claim to Fame, it's Naomi. That is, until her elimination in the July 31 episode. In just a few episodes, she managed to gain allies, trick other contestants, and fly under the radar. Those are all pretty solid accomplishments, but they didn't stop viewers from wondering who Naomi is related to on Claim to Fame.

Before Naomi was sent home, there were few clues about who she is related to, though in hindsight, they all pointed to one specific person. And, following her elimination, Naomi spoke exclusively with Distractify about competing on the show and what advice her famous cousin gave her before she left home to film.

Although Naomi played her game close to her chest, we had some clues to go on, all of which pointed to who her famous relative is. Like the wine bottle clue, that told us her relative is part of the 80's Brat Pack, not unlike Gracie Lou's own relative, her uncle, Jon Cryer. Fortunately for Naomi, though, Gracie Lou didn't make that connection before she was sent packing.

Still, Naomi couldn't hide from the other players forever. And in the end, her former ally, Adam, who Naomi made the decision to cut off from all of her hand holding, was the person who did her in. With the help of Hud, Adam correctly guessed that Naomi is related to actor Molly Ringwald. And prior to this, the first clues were pretty telling:

• Celebrity relative: Cousin
• Celebrity relative is best known for being a: Singer
• Biggest award celebrity relative has won: Young Artist Award

After Naomi was eliminated, Distractify caught up with her for an exclusive Q&A about her time on the show and what it was like growing up with a famous cousin. Spoiler alert — it took Naomi a while to figure out just how famous cousin Molly is.

Read on for our Q&A with Naomi!

(Editor's note: This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.)

Q: Before this episode, it seemed like you would make it to the end of the season and potentially even win. Where do you think things went wrong?

A: Honestly, I think things went wrong by joining an alliance too quickly. Nothing against Adam and Hud — we are all friends — but game-wise, I should have been patient and more observant. I had so much anxiety being at the house the first few days, I just wanted to feel like I had a friend in someone, anyone.

Q: How do you feel things would have been different if you hadn't started denying Adam help?

A: I don’t know if anything would have been different. I went home because Hud was afraid I’d use his clue to get rid of him eventually and I would have. I always told the boys, if it was a ‘you or me’ situation, obviously we would pick ourselves. Adam didn’t know who my cousin was, and denying him help wasn’t going to change anything. Hud was the one who stepped in and decided to keep Adam in [the game] instead of me.

Q: Why do you think Hud helped Adam and told him his guess about your relative?

A: It was a miscommunication. I thought I knew Hud’s relative and, embarrassingly enough, I was wrong and he just assumed I did. If he’d known I hadn’t figured out his clue he’d have let Adam go, but I can’t blame him for it now. It was self-preservation.

Q: What advice did your cousin, Molly Ringwald, give you about competing on Claim to Fame?

A: My cousin only had one piece of advice for me — enjoy the experience as much as I possibly could.

Q: What was it like to grow up with her as your relative?

A: It was completely normal growing up with Molly as a cousin until I was a freshman in high school. I didn’t realize she was famous. No one ever believes me though. But honestly, I didn’t. I knew she was an actress [and] I knew she was my cousin. But it didn’t seem like a big deal. When I moved in with her parents and suddenly kids at school talked about her and knew her family lived in town I started asking more questions and the realization was jarring.

Q: Gracie Lou's relative is also from Pretty in Pink. What did you think when you found out your clue might work for her too?

A: I was so excited to see the connection. I wish there was a way to keep Gracie in the competition longer. I would have loved to work with her. We are friends now. We call each other “cousin” because we have an inside joke that we are pop culture cousins.

Q: What was the most challenging part about leaving home to film the show without your little ones around?

A: The most challenging part about leaving my kids was the no phone thing. I fully understand why we couldn’t have our phones but as a mom, not hearing your child's voice, or being able to say goodnight for that long was so hard. It also was good for me because I’m their main care provider. I’m with them every single day, so I had to force myself to let go of the reins and trust they were in good hands.

Q: There were times when other players, like Mackenzie, were close to guessing who you're related to. Was there ever a time before this episode that you thought you could be eliminated?

A: Honestly, no. I knew Shane knew me or was at least the closest to figuring me out and I was trying to work with Shane at the end so I knew I’d be safe for a minute. But clues got leaked and it sparked ideas for other players.

Watch Claim to Fame on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. EST on ABC.