Celebrity Traitors: Are Celebrity Spin-Offs Still Successful?

By Bethany Dowell

Often when I hear that there is going to be a celebrity rendition of my favourite reality TV show, my heart sinks. However, when I found out that The Traitors UK was expanding to the celebrity domain, I couldn’t help but feel giddy inside. Despite only two episodes being aired so far, it’s already clear that The Traitors: Celebrity UK might just be the rare spin-off that works.  

Before any reality TV show airs, casting is the most significant talking point. Producers must ensure that the mix of personalities they hand-pick will generate maximum viewer engagement. Notable examples of smart celebrity casting include Katie Price, Caitlyn Jenner, and Harry Redknapp, all of whom have been contestants on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Nevertheless, the show remains under heavy criticism for relying too much on British Soap opera stars. Although soap stars often seem more relatable, audiences continue to complain about the show’s lack of diverse famous backgrounds.  Meanwhile, the cast for The Traitors: Celebrity UK is both highly recognisable and varied.  Alan Carr, a beloved television personality, Tom Daley, a renowned Olympic gold medallist and Niko Omilana, a social media powerhouse, are just a few examples. This is merely scratching the surface of the numerous UK icons casted, presenting a known cast for various audience members to root for.  

Source: BBC One - The Traitors

 In terms of the show’s formula, The Traitors never gets tedious. The basic premise follows twenty contestants taking part in challenges to build a prize pot of up to £120,000 (donated to charity in the celebrity version). Among the contestants, three or four are picked to be Traitors, and their goal is to eliminate the other contestants, deemed as Faithfuls, before they are identified and banished. Overnight, the traitors murder one or two Faithfuls selectively, followed by a new day of challenges and tense round-table discussions where players try to prove their innocence. At the end of each discussion, contestants vote to banish one player, who must then reveal whether they were a Faithful or a Traitor. As the show progresses, the Traitors can secretly recruit some of the remaining Faithfuls, but they must do this strategically as tension and suspicion build. Additionally, in the challenges, some offer a ''shield which protects some Faithfuls from being murdered.  However, some contestants keep this a secret as a strategy. Unlike other reality TV shows like Love Island or Big Brother, where the formula is more linear, every season of The Traitors has the potential for different twists dependant on how the game unfolds and what new strategies arise.  

Despite Celebrity Big Brother boasting a very flashy cast with JoJo Siwa, Chris Hughes and Jack P. Shepherd, the ratings for its finale dropped to the lowest in the show’s history. Meanwhile, the launch of The Traitors: Celebrity UK had 6.5 million tuning in, making it the most viewed launch of The Traitors in the UK. There are several reasons for this divide in ratings. While Celebrity Big Brother focuses on fame-driven social drama, The Traitors: Celebrity UK is grounded in mystery, suspense, and strategy, making it an even playing field for all contestants.  

As a result, a wider demographic can appeal to The Traitors: Celebrity UK, because the spectator doesn’t need to know the cast to get hooked. It’s also easier to feel connected to the contestants because of the show’s interactivity, where social media has transformed into a virtual round table for discussing theories and player strategies. Contrastingly, Celebrity Big Brother focuses on the same one-dimensional arguments recurrent for years. 

The Traitors: Celebrity UK shows that not all celebrity spin-offs are destined to fail. When the casting and format align to be engaging, they can feel just as fresh as the original, rather than a fatigued cash grab. In an era where every reality TV seems to follow the ''rinse and repeat'' pattern, The Traitors consistently returns with more entertainment than its previous season.