Diving Into Alan Cumming's First "Secret Traitor" Twist and How It Changes the Game
A massive new twist is changing up how The Traitors is played in Season 4.
SPOILER WARNING: This story reveals major plot points from Episodes 1-3 of The Traitors Season 4.
What would a season of The Traitors be without an unknown twist suddenly coming into play?
In Season 2, the devilishly clever host Alan Cumming brought back Season 1 player Kate Chastain to shakeup the game. In Season 3, Alan surprise revealed Boston Rob Mariano as a potential player who could be woven into the cast, at a cost. Instead, he was exiled until Alan put him into the game an episode later as Traitor alongside Faithful new additions Wes Bergmann and Derrick Levasseur.
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And in the very first episode of The Traitors Season 4, Alan presents a brand-new concept: a Secret Traitor. It's a true game-changer, so read below how it impacts the players and who it is!
What is a Traitor?
Going back to the first season of The Traitors, the game rules dictate that the contestants be split into two camps: Faithful and Traitors. A Traitor is typically hand-selected during the very first Roundtable by host Alan Cumming after all of the contestants are blindfolded. A slight touch by Alan on a player's shoulder or back signifies that they will now play the game as a Traitor. They are not to tell anyone that they were selected, and their designation is only revealed to their fellow Traitors during their first visit to the Traitor's turret after all the Faithful players have gone to bed.
In general, a Traitor's goal is two-fold: eliminate the Faithfuls and eventually make it to the last round of the game so they can steal the prize pot away from the Faithfuls. They can eliminate Faithfuls based on whom they decide to "murder" and permanently take out of the game after each Roundtable vote. Also, during the challenges, Traitors are often subtly causing problems for their fellow Faithful, or they're strategizing how to help the Faithful players they know are not a threat to them at the Roundtable votes.
What is a Secret Traitor and how are they chosen?
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In the very first episode of Season 4, "Let the Cards Fall as They May," Cumming changes the entire rhythm of the show by revealing a surprising twist: The introduction of a Secret Traitor!
Before the 23 contestants have even entered the castle for the first time, he collects the players in the garden and tells them that there are 23 chests — one for each star — and that he will summon each individually to look inside. If a player sees a Traitor card inside their chest, they are the secret Traitor, chosen in plain sight.
How does a Secret Traitor play the game?
The Secret Traitor's identity is not shared with their Roundtable chosen Traitors, nor will the home audience be shown who they are. They will play the game as an individual and visit with Alan off camera in the castle dungeon after the Roundtable votes. At that unseen meeting, they will shortlist four players to be put up for "murder," and the other Traitors will make their "murder" selection only from that list.
Essentially, the Secret Traitor is the most powerful player in the game. They have sole discretion to target any players of their choosing, and they limit the power of their fellow Traitors by requiring them to "murder" players only from their curated list. Specifically, that means Candiace, Lisa and Rob R. have to "murder" according to the strategy of the Secret Traitor without any group discussion. It's takes away a lot of the gameplay choices for the turret Traitors, and all of the fun of choosing their preferred "murder" victims.
Watch new episodes of The Traitors Season 4 every Thursday exclusively on Peacock.
