James Acaster’s Secret Struggle: Why the ‘Reluctant Traitor’ Almost Brought Down the Show
Ever sign up for something and immediately wish you’d read the fine print? That’s James Acaster on Celebrity Traitors this season—the human embodiment of “did not read” energy, standing in the crosshairs of betrayal and group challenges, all while looking like he’d rather be at literally any other board game night . It’s hilarious and a bit genius, really. Here’s a guy who can roast an entire room with a single look, yet the prospect of sneaking around like a budget Bond villain nearly sends him home in a body bag.
There’s also been a fair bit of grumbling about James making it clear he never wanted to be a Traitor—almost as if the game should only draft those with an inner cackling villain. But, as someone who’s always been suspicious when handed the “killer” card in a friendly round of Mafia, I get it . Is it really a reality show if there isn’t at least one person who keeps accidentally breaking the fourth wall, dodging blame, or, best of all, awkwardly refusing to play along? That reluctant chaos is precisely what keeps this genre fresh.
The beauty here is how Acaster, despite his protests, stumbles into playing perhaps the most “faithful” Traitor the show has seen—and boy, does it make the argument for picking players randomly instead of handpicking professional schemers . The more the producers try to manufacture jaw-dropping TV, the more we start to anticipate the twist before it’s even landed. But throw in someone like James, who’d probably hide behind the curtains if he could, and suddenly the game is unpredictable again—funny, tense, and never as formulaic as last year’s awkwardly obvious picks .
So, can a comic whose greatest crime is not removing his blindfold outwit a house full of suspicious celebrities? And does giving the role to someone who’s allergic to deception actually give the show new life? Time to dig in to one of the weirdest, most watchable case studies of why awkward reluctance may be the best plot twist reality TV never saw coming. LEARN MORE.
James Acaster and his reluctance to be a Traitor has turned out to be one of the best parts of this season of Celebrity Traitors, at least in your humble author’s opinion, and is making a case for why the Traitors should be chosen at random.
There has been some criticism of Acaster making it clear he didn’t want to be a Traitor and signing up for Celebrity Traitors when there was always a risk he was going to become one.
Other recent criticism came from last night’s (22 October) challenge where the Traitors had to sneak around and build a shield of their own while in the same room as the Faithful in order to increase the prize pot.
Maya Jama and King Kenny were perplexed when James didn’t remove his blindfold and try to help them, but he was rightly concerned about being stood next to Michael Sheen who was listening out for movement.
Some viewers said it was ‘frustrating to watch’ and thought it was a mistake from him that would incur the wrath of his fellow Traitors, while others called it ‘optimum play’ and in the end Maya and Kenny were a bit hopeless at the challenge anyway and James probably wouldn’t have helped.
James Acaster got some criticism for not participating in a challenge, but it helped him avoid detection (BBC/Studio Lambert)
At the end of the day this is a game and you’ve got to be in it to win it. If James moved he was likely to have been heard and that would be curtains for him.
Your humble writer understands the argument that if you join a game you need to be willing to play any role in it, but there are always going to be people who play hidden role games who would prefer not to be on the devious side.
There’s a solid argument to be made for the players being picked at random, as would be the case if a group of people were playing a game like this without the cameras rolling.
Even if he’s a reluctant Traitor, Acaster has got into the gameplay of being one and it’s a fresher take on things after several series of The Traitors.
We’ve seen all sorts of Traitors over the course of the show, hopeless, confident, devious and sacrificial. To have one so reluctant to play the role is a rare one, but it’s been an interesting sight to see and a show like this needs variation.
Acaster has said he’s going to play his part like a Faithful, and as such he’s ended up being one of the most trusted players in the game.
Funnily enough during the latest episode all three Traitors were chosen as the most trustworthy players in the game, and even if Acaster didn’t really want to be a Traitor he’s giving a very good account of himself in the role.
James Acaster is a reluctant Traitor, and he’s exactly what this game needs (BBC/Studio Lambert)
There’s another benefit to seeing how someone who doesn’t want to be a Traitor gets on in the role when not just there to be sacrificed at the next vote.
The more popular The Traitors gets the more accustomed to how the show works the people playing it will be, and there are always going to be producers trying to set things up for maximum entertainment.
The audience is aware of it and so are the contestants. On the first series of Celebrity Traitors the ‘big dog theory‘ did the rounds as they basically tried to guess who among their ranks the producers would choose to be Traitors.
It looks like the same trick was repeated this season with Richard E. Grant, which immediately blew up in their faces when he immediately outed himself as a Traitor and the first two episodes were largely concerned with getting to vote him out.
If there’s a criteria to picking players to be Traitors then eventually you’ll just get the same personalities in the role and run the risk of treading over old ground.
Acaster muddling through being a Traitor and learning to grow into the role is an unexpected part of the game, and the worst thing something like The Traitors could do is become predictable.
James Acaster has been a surprisingly good Traitor, and The Traitors format needs those surprises (BBC/Studio Lambert)
Body language expert Dr Beth Dawson pointed out that the producer’s hand in the game meant contestants were ‘trying to predict the production team’s decisions rather than simply assess the people in front of them’.
She said: “They are effectively playing two games: trying to identify the Traitors while simultaneously trying to work out what would make the best television.”
It opens the door for players who don’t fit the ‘expectation’ for who would be a Traitor, and she named someone like Kenny who has also flown under the radar.
He’s turned out to be such a good recruitment as a Traitor because the Faithful don’t suspect a thing from him, it also doesn’t hurt that in this current season they’ve been pretty hopeless at the game.
As it stands the two Traitors they’ve got are Richard, who explicitly said he was a Traitor, and Hannah who was under the microscope from the moment of her recruitment after being one of two options to be murdered.
There’s pretty much no heat on any of the Traitors this late into the game (BBC/Studio Lambert)
To be fair, it is really hard to catch Traitors in a game where there’s no consistent method of detection, most hidden role games have some mechanism to find out which team other players are on.
This bunch have pretty much nothing to go on except their gut, and when someone like James Acaster is playing the game like a Faithful who happens to be murdering off someone every night it’s looking like it’s paying off well.
Given the state the game is in with three undetected Traitors who have basically no heat on them against a diminishing gaggle of Faithfuls who don’t seem to have a clue, there’s a point where we’ve got to admit that they are doing a bang up job.
Has it been boring and predictable?
Nope, and that’s why it works.
The Door Balancer Eliminates The Need for Door Props, Door Stops and Door Wedges
(as of October 23, 2026 01:01 GMT +00:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
RIVER OF GOODS Mid-Century Modern Transitional LED Bronze Chrome Ceiling Fan - 52" L x 52" W - Rich Barnwood/Light Driftwood Fan Blades - Metallic Ceiling Fan with Light and Fabric Shade
(as of October 23, 2026 01:01 GMT +00:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
RIVER OF GOODS Coastal 52 Inch Wooden Bead LED Ceiling Fan, Brown
(as of October 23, 2026 01:01 GMT +00:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Fire Blanket - 1500F CE Certified Emergency Fire Blanket for Home & Kitchen | 500GSM Fabric & 0.5mm Thick - 100% Fiberglass Fire Extinguisher for Car,Warehouse Office - 2pc (47x47 inches) by Supa Ant
$53.45 (as of October 23, 2026 01:01 GMT +00:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Post Comment