While it can be difficult to play The Traitors as a Faithful with few allies, it's a relatively good position for a Traitor: Rob was able to murder without guilt or context. While the fellow players tried to talk themselves into a grand theory of gamers and/or Housewives betraying one another, Rob kept things close to the chest - developing relationships in thoughtful, quiet ways but always willing to turn his back on his friends when the timing was right.
We watch people lying, and we know they're lying. And also, you watch people dealing with lying not very well and not enjoying it. The lying, backstabbing and manipulation the game inspires does indeed make for delightful TV viewing.
I signed on to play this game, so I knew exactly what I was doing. But the days are long, the sleep is limited, and the stomach is always a little hungry for me. I was like, I made it this far. I am okay. In the same way as when I was tied to the tree - this is out of my hands at this point. I can't do anything to change the outcome. We're just going to let it roll.
The Traitors is, famously, quite a popular TV show, the niche party game of Mafia blown into a gripping televised opera of trust, betrayal and raw humanity. Unsurprisingly, it's already spawned an immersive theatre version right here in London, that allows members of the public to participate in their own short but pretty sweet miniature game of the Claudia Winkleman-hosted show.
Usually, The Traitors brings together stars in Scotland for a murder mystery game, where a few contestants are named Traitors and have to "murder" one of their opposing "Faithfuls" each night. Before the murder, the contestants argue who they think is a Traitor at a nightly roundtable, and vote for someone to banish from the game. But it wouldn't be The Traitors without some twists.
During Efron's Dec. 11 appearance on E!'s Hot Gossalongside his Traitors castmate Rob Mariano (aka Boston Rob), the pair was asked to prove their closeness by answering each other's middle name. Rob correctly said Dylan was, in fact, Efron's middle name. "Nicholas Dylan," he said. However, Efron said he was only "half right" because he actually has a second middle name. "Nicholas is axed off," he explained - and "because it's my first name, everything gets bumped up." (His other middle name, FYI, is Harrison.)
When November's Genius puzzle germinated in July, no one knew how popular its hidden theme would be by the time of publication. A celebrity version of The Traitors? sniffed the sceptics. We and they will already know the personalities. Typical terrible TV idea. Won't work. Eleven million live viewers later, we can now have a look at the filled version of Glyph's remarkable grid. Or rather, grids.
I got a call and they said, 'Phaedra, think Dynasty, Diane Diane Devereaux. You know, spiral staircases. A castle in Scotland.' I said, 'That sounds like me.'