Traitors drops divisive twist, teases "clever" changes
Traitors bosses have confirmed the fifth series of the show will "probably not" feature a Secret Traitor.
The next series of The Traitors will "probably not" feature a Secret Traitor.
The BBC show introduced the role, where the player - who was later revealed to be Fiona Hughes - knew the identity of the other Traitors and provided a list of potential murder victims for them to choose from while they remained in the dark as to who had chosen it, in season 4 but after a divided response from viewers, the twist is being ditched.
Instead, show bosses have promised there will be a "clever" amendment to the game show format when it returns.
Stephen Lambert, CEO of production company Studio Lambert, told Radio Times: "We’re always trying to find clever ways to make the show even fresher and more interesting. So yeah, obviously, there will be new things in the next season, but probably not the Secret Traitor.
"It's something we like doing, but I think a lot of the pleasure of the show is the audience knowing who the Traitors are. I think if you take that away, it gets a bit frustrating."
Host Claudia Winkleman previously admitted she was shocked when told about the Secret Traitor twist.
She said: “I think lots of people who’ve watched, endlessly go, ‘How do they not know? It’s just there’.
“Like my dad was constantly, like, ‘It’s just there’, — so I like the idea. It’s like, OK, you have a go.
“When the bosses told me, I was, like, gasp.”
The former Strictly Come Dancing host found it easy to choose the Secret Traitor.
She said: "You had to pick somebody who wanted it. I mean, in the celebrity version, lots of them asked to be Faithful. I think in this cast, they all want it.
“So it was somebody who sits with me in front of the fire and goes, ‘I absolutely need to be a Traitor’. There is somebody who is so convincing and just goes, ‘It absolutely has to be me’. So the Secret Traitor is that person.”
Producers hoped the idea of the Secret Traitor would give viewers a taste of how it feels to be a Faithful.
Executive producer Mike Cotton said: “Lots of people are saying, how can the Faithful never know?
“So viewers have a chance to see what it’s like. Including the viewers — the viewers are kind of Faithful here, too — the Secret Traitor is the only person that knows the other Traitors’ identities and who all the other Faithfuls are.
“The Secret Traitor holds all of the power.”
