The American model of the truth recreation present “The Traitors,” after the discharge of its first season on Peacock final yr, gained an Emmy Award for its casting.
The debut season of the whodunit-style competitors, through which contestants are eradicated by banishment or by being “murdered,” featured a solid of actuality stars and fewer well-known individuals like nurses and gross sales executives. For its second season, which led to March, the solid was reconfigured to incorporate principally individuals from actuality exhibits like “Survivor,” “Huge Brother,” “The Bachelor,” “Dancing With the Stars,” “The Actual Housewives,” “Beneath Deck,” “Shahs of Sundown,” “Bling Empire,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “The Problem.”
Within the days after Season 2 premiered in January, “The Traitors” turned probably the most seen unscripted sequence within the nation on streaming platforms, in response to Nielsen statistics. A 3rd season was greenlit in February.
As curiosity in “The Traitors” has intensified, former actuality stars — together with different individuals with a point of celeb — have been clamoring for an opportunity to look on the present set at a Scottish citadel, hosted by Alan Cumming and providing a prize of as much as $250,000. (The American model, like its British, Canadian, Greek and Australian counterparts, is a by-product of a present initially produced within the Netherlands.)
“I might assume that lots of people who’ve managers and brokers are sending out the emails to ‘Traitors’ casting and manufacturing making an attempt to get their foot within the door,” stated Jemmye Carroll, 35, who, after showing on “The Actual World: New Orleans” in 2010, went on to hitch the casts of a number of seasons of “The Problem.”
“I’m utilizing my one useful resource, which is Trishelle,” she continued, referring to Trishelle Cannatella, a winner of “The Traitors” Season 2 and one other solid member of the “Actual World” and “Problem” franchises. Each ladies reside in New Orleans and once they have run into one another round city, Ms. Carroll stated, she has inspired Ms. Cannatella to place in an excellent phrase for her with the manufacturing workers of “The Traitors.”
“I believe she’s the perfect useful resource as a result of she’s the reigning queen of the citadel,” Ms. Carroll stated.
Rob Cesternino, who was on two seasons of “Survivor” (“The Amazon” in 2003 and “All-Stars” in 2004), stated the excitement surrounding “The Traitors” has made the opportunity of showing on it alluring to many actuality stars — himself included — whom he described as “moths to a flame.”
“I might undoubtedly go on ‘The Traitors’ if I used to be requested,” stated Mr. Cesternino, who lives outdoors Raleigh, N.C., and hosts a podcast that focuses on actuality tv, referred to as “Rob Has a Podcast.”
“The primary rule of being a actuality TV star is maintain doing extra actuality TV exhibits,” Mr. Cesternino, 45, stated. “‘Traitors’ opens up a complete avenue to actuality stars,” he continued, describing the present as bringing collectively “the multiverse of actuality TV.” Stars from that style, he stated, see it as a strategy to lengthen or revive their careers.
“That’s a very large promoting level,” Mr. Cesternino stated.
Danny Roberts, 46, who appeared on “The Actual World: New Orleans” in 2000 and on its Paramount+ spinoff, “The Actual World Homecoming: New Orleans,” in 2022, has additionally just lately been “having some strategic conversations” about the way to get solid on “The Traitors,” he stated.
Mr. Roberts, now a recruitment advisor in Grafton, Vt., in contrast getting a name from the present’s producers to purchasing a profitable lottery ticket, including that he was not simply in being on TV, but additionally in enjoying the sport.
“I believe it will even be a cool piece of escapism,” Mr. Roberts stated, “with an interesting psychological element to it.”
His “Actual World” and “Actual World Homecoming” co-star Melissa Beck, 47, stated she would like to obtain a suggestion to hitch the solid, too — not least as a result of contestants, along with being eligible to win a six-figure money prize, are additionally paid to look on the present.
“It will revive your capability to get a examine, the time dedication is improbable, the prize pot is fairly cute, I guess the looks payment is cool,” Ms. Beck, who lives on Lengthy Island, stated. “And it doesn’t damage that it has an Emmy.”
Whereas most of the notable contestants on the American model of “The Traitors” have appeared on actuality TV, its casts have additionally included members who turned well-known for different causes. Ryan Lochte, the gold medalist Olympic swimmer, appeared on Season 1, and Deontay Wilder, an expert boxer, was on Season 2.
Because the present’s profile has risen, some well-known followers from outdoors the world of actuality TV, just like the comic Matt Rogers, have additionally made no secret of their aspirations to be observed by producers.
Mr. Rogers, on a 2023 episode of “Las Culturistas,” the pop-culture podcast he hosts with the “Saturday Evening Reside” star Bowen Yang, stated he would jokingly speak about eager to be on “Survivor,” however was genuinely keen on showing on “The Traitors.” “I actually need to be on,” he stated on the podcast. (Mr. Rogers, by a consultant, declined to remark for this text.)
Mike Cotton, an government producer of the present’s American and British variations, stated the American spinoff’s success largely hinged on the curation of its casts, a course of he described as having the precision and seriousness of a jury choice.
Mr. Cotton declined to touch upon particular particulars about casting the present’s third season, together with whether or not presents had been made, a timeline for such presents or how a lot solid members might be paid.
However he stated the final method to casting was about discovering a dynamic combine of individuals.
“You need individuals from all walks of life which can be going to carry their very own distinctive abilities to it,” he stated. “You need people who find themselves large rivals, you need people who find themselves cutthroat, you need people who find themselves grasp manipulators, people who find themselves deep thinkers, individuals who will sit again and watch and pay attention. And I believe the thought is that they’ll all carry their distinctive abilities, and I believe that’s why we have now such a mixture of individuals.”