The Traitors | Contenders TV Nominees 2023
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Transcript
00:00 - Hello, my name is Peter White.
00:02 I'm the executive editor of television at Deadline.
00:05 As someone who regularly covers the unscripted world,
00:08 I can say that "The Traitors" has become
00:11 one of the breakout hits,
00:13 both in the US and internationally.
00:16 It's been a fascinating show to watch,
00:18 a fascinating format to see how it's traveled.
00:21 One exec said to me a while back
00:23 that it's done for the global formats world,
00:26 what "Top Gun Maverick" did for the movie theater space.
00:29 So I'm really pleased today that we've got
00:32 some of the team here behind the show.
00:34 We have the casting team behind the "Peacock" series
00:36 to talk about how they found a group of civilian players
00:40 to work alongside a tranche of well-known celebrity faces,
00:44 celebrity reality contestants,
00:46 in a bid to win some prize money
00:48 and sort of dupe some of their other contestants as well.
00:51 So before we head to the castle, let's watch a clip.
00:54 (dramatic music)
00:59 (crowd cheering)
01:02 - Welcome to the highlands of Scotland
01:06 and welcome to "The Traitors".
01:08 (crowd cheering)
01:11 Stunning, right?
01:12 - Yeah. - Yes.
01:14 - And what about the castle?
01:15 (crowd laughing)
01:17 My most esteemed guests,
01:20 you're about to enter a world of backstabbing and treachery.
01:27 And you thought the "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills"
01:28 was bad.
01:29 (crowd laughing)
01:31 But this game, you will need the strength of a lion,
01:33 the stealth of a fox.
01:35 Everyone here is capable of manipulation and deceit.
01:39 Do not let preconceived notions fool or mislead you.
01:43 Very soon, I will select some of you to be the traitors.
01:47 The traitors have the power to murder a fellow contestant
01:52 each night under the cover of darkness.
01:56 The rest of you will be the faithful.
01:59 The faithful's job is to find out who the traitors are
02:02 and vote to banish them from the game
02:04 before they become their next victims.
02:06 One by one, the players fall,
02:10 either by banishment or by murder.
02:13 If you're lucky enough to stay till the end of the game,
02:18 you will have the chance to share a prize pot
02:20 of a quarter of a million dollars.
02:23 (crowd cheering)
02:26 - I don't know, dance for Matt.
02:29 - But beware, if any of the traitors remain
02:33 at the end of the game, they will take it all.
02:36 From this point forth, every conversation counts.
02:44 So trust no one, except me, of course.
02:50 (crowd laughing)
02:51 - Joining us today for some backstabbing and treachery
02:54 are Erin Tomasello, Jazzy Collins, Moira Pyrus,
02:58 and Holly Ossifat.
02:59 Welcome everyone, thank you for joining us.
03:02 Erin, let me start with you.
03:03 Where do you start when you're putting together
03:07 a cast like this for a show like "The Traitors"?
03:10 - Awesome, yeah, so the first thing we were told
03:12 was that it was a Dutch format,
03:13 and so we did get to peek at their show
03:16 and watch it in another language, which was kind of fun.
03:19 And then when we got together with our team
03:21 deciding where we start,
03:23 we wanna find people that are good at lying,
03:25 people that are good at manipulation,
03:28 maybe some people that are really gullible
03:30 that will fall for it.
03:31 And so our first initial brainstorms were,
03:34 what job titles do people hold that maybe emulates that?
03:39 So is it like a retired judge or a lawyer
03:44 or someone that's out on the other side?
03:46 Is it a preschool teacher?
03:47 Is it, who's gullible?
03:48 And so that's kind of a starting point for us
03:51 is what kind of occupations can we maybe put down
03:54 and brainstorm to go after that might emulate
03:57 some of the stuff that we're looking for to play the game?
04:00 - I love that, looking for liars and cheats
04:03 and people who are gullible.
04:04 That's an interesting casting breakdown.
04:07 How do you split it up amongst yourselves?
04:10 Do you each have an area that you specialize in
04:13 when it comes to doing something like this?
04:15 I'm just curious how the four of you
04:16 will sort of divide and conquer.
04:19 - Sure, so I'll jump in and then I'll let my team jump in
04:22 as well as their kind of process.
04:24 So we don't necessarily like say,
04:27 you're gonna take Texas, you're gonna take nurses.
04:30 We want us all to kind of jump in
04:32 and see what we're gonna tackle.
04:34 So everybody has the freedom to kind of look for and find
04:38 all of these different characters and people.
04:41 So team, why don't I pass it to you?
04:43 Holly, Jazzy, Maura, why don't you all talk about
04:46 how you initially start going after these guys?
04:50 - Yeah, for me, I'm really big into diversity.
04:53 So first things first is let me look for
04:56 maybe the mathematician that is a black woman
04:59 that's from a small town.
05:01 Let me just dive in there because I think
05:03 when most people immediately think of a mathematician,
05:05 they're gonna think of someone that's incredibly smart
05:08 and they're gonna be very logical,
05:09 but reality is they might actually be incredibly gullible.
05:14 So you wanna have that mishmash of types of people
05:17 like Quentin, who he's one of those people
05:19 that are very much like politician.
05:22 He's incredibly a great speaker.
05:24 But at the end of the day, when you watch it back,
05:27 you realize how gullible and how funny it was to watch back
05:31 because you expected him to act one way
05:33 and ended up doing something completely different.
05:35 - Again, I would say, I think the best thing about the show
05:39 is that it was a first season show
05:41 and we kind of had the free reign to like,
05:44 who are the types that we should put on?
05:47 Who are the types that people in season two
05:48 and season three will look after and be like,
05:50 my gameplay is going to be like Sari
05:52 or my gameplay is going to be like Andy's.
05:55 So I think, yeah, it was really cool
05:58 as a first season show to be able to put on
06:01 kind of whoever we wanted or submit people to executives.
06:04 So if they had an idea of somebody
06:07 and then they would see someone else
06:08 that maybe they didn't necessarily think
06:10 would be a good fit and they see them and like,
06:12 oh, this person is perfect,
06:13 I would have never thought about that.
06:15 So I think that's really cool specifically about this show
06:19 and how great the cast was.
06:22 - I think for me, TikTok was the best thing ever
06:25 because you can see their personality,
06:27 you can see the way they tell a story.
06:29 And I think some of the things that they may embellish
06:32 on a TikTok story is really telling
06:35 of what they're going to be like on a show.
06:36 So being able to see their personalities,
06:40 the way they tell a story,
06:41 the way they act, their body language,
06:43 I think that was really fun
06:45 and something that was really, really helpful to us
06:47 in a game like this,
06:48 where it is about lying and keeping your composure
06:51 and maybe not giving away the story with those tells.
06:54 - No, that's interesting.
06:56 Nice broad range there.
06:58 Like you say, fascinating because it's a first season show
07:01 and no one I imagine in the States
07:03 will have seen the Dutch version.
07:05 It gives you that blank slate to sort of jump in
07:08 and figure this out.
07:10 How, given that you're putting together 10 civilians
07:14 alongside 10 reality contestants, reality stars
07:17 that people, many of them will know,
07:20 is there something in the balance of that you say,
07:23 okay, we know the types of people
07:24 that are coming from the reality world versus,
07:27 so we need to find some people
07:29 who are a little bit like this or a little bit like that,
07:31 or do you just sort of separate the two buckets
07:33 and say, let's just find the best 10 civilians
07:35 that we can find?
07:37 - I think going in,
07:38 we were just finding the best people
07:40 that we could throw at the wall from all walks of life.
07:43 And knowing when they were going in
07:46 that they were gonna be with those large personalities,
07:48 I mean, they had to be able to hold their own.
07:52 And Christian always comes to mind
07:55 because he is just such,
07:57 he's just such a huge character and held his own.
08:01 And a lot of times I re-watched,
08:04 he brought on heat onto himself, you know what I mean?
08:07 So he probably could have stayed under the radar,
08:09 but I think his mouth got him in trouble
08:10 by bringing on so much heat
08:12 'cause he just could not stay quiet.
08:15 So it was just really finding that
08:16 and finding that balance also.
08:19 Someone like Andy,
08:20 who is not your typical loud, outgoing,
08:24 center of attention person,
08:26 you might not necessarily say,
08:28 hey, that's a reality star right there,
08:30 but we saw something very special in them.
08:32 And they were a huge part of the show and the cast
08:35 and brought such a relatable, genuine,
08:40 when they would cry or they were afraid
08:42 or just the episode when we had the bugs flying down
08:47 and the rats and all that fun stuff
08:48 and just that genuine fear
08:49 that all of us sitting at home,
08:51 screaming in our chairs and at our TV
08:54 would be the same exact way.
08:55 So not everybody is Reza or Kate or Brandy.
09:00 There's room for them all.
09:05 When we were talking about the jobs,
09:06 I thought it was so fun.
09:08 Like we thought, oh, maybe someone like a mathematician
09:11 or a political analyst would be great at this game.
09:13 But then we have Angelica, who's a hairdresser
09:16 and hairdressers know how to talk to people.
09:18 They know how to gain their trust.
09:20 They know how to get out all their dirty secrets.
09:22 So, you know, there's just so many different assets
09:25 to their character, you know,
09:27 whether it's their job or their personality traits
09:29 that could be detrimental to their gameplay
09:33 or really help them.
09:34 - Yeah, that's interesting.
09:35 You talk about jobs, as you say,
09:36 there's such a broad range from people
09:38 that work in politics and emergency.
09:41 There's an emergency room nurse versus, you know,
09:43 somebody who works in tech and a yoga instructor
09:45 and that side of things.
09:46 It's a nice balance.
09:48 Is it easier to find a Christian type character
09:51 who, as you say there, he very loud,
09:54 sort of wears his heart on his sleeve
09:57 versus someone like Andy,
09:58 who obviously did incredibly well to get to where she did,
10:02 but as you say, is a much more quiet character,
10:05 a little bit more reserved.
10:07 I mean, I'm just assuming you can't have 10 Christians,
10:10 but is there a difficulty
10:12 or is one easier to find than the other?
10:15 - I'll let one of you ladies jump in for this one.
10:17 - Yeah, I think it's really easy to constantly get
10:20 the really out there outspoken people.
10:22 'Cause those are the ones that normally apply
10:24 for these shows to begin with.
10:25 They wanna be in front of camera.
10:26 They want to, you know, be able to talk smack
10:29 and talk game.
10:30 A lot of like big brother fans
10:32 and other big reality show fans
10:34 actually came to our, you know, application
10:37 and wanted to apply for this.
10:38 So definitely trying to find those people
10:41 that are usually under the radar,
10:44 kind of fly down there and aren't as outspoken
10:48 are definitely the harder ones to find.
10:51 And it's just, honestly,
10:52 it's sometimes just finding like the nurses
10:54 or people that don't really apply for these shows.
10:56 Those are the ones that are gonna actually stand out
10:58 in this game.
10:59 - To piggyback off that, the characters like Andy,
11:02 that is almost difficult to get through the casting process
11:05 because they are kind of withdrawn
11:08 and they're very smart and they're intelligent.
11:10 And sometimes it's hard to articulate all of that
11:13 in a way that is, I don't know, TV friendly
11:16 is the right word, but like,
11:17 it's still at the end of the day, a reality show
11:19 and there needs to be personality.
11:21 So I think "The Traitors" was very specifically great
11:25 in that, that it could be someone
11:26 who was not such a big personality,
11:28 but still had a very big presence.
11:31 - Yeah, you mentioned Quentin earlier, Jazzy,
11:35 in that example.
11:35 That feels like he wasn't necessarily
11:37 the loudest person in the room,
11:39 but from very early on,
11:40 he felt like one of the elders in the group.
11:43 Do you sort of spot something like that
11:45 in that casting process?
11:46 Do you see someone being able to do that
11:49 or is it just sort of luck of the draw
11:51 and see what you get when the cameras are rolling?
11:53 - I think it's a mixture of both.
11:56 I think when you do interviews with these folks,
11:59 you can really kind of see where they're going to go
12:02 and how they're going to play the game.
12:03 But at the end of the day, once they get on set
12:05 and they're in front of all these different people
12:07 and all these different personality types,
12:08 a lot of the times that game goes out the window.
12:11 So people like Quentin, you knew going in
12:14 that he was going to be really level-headed
12:16 because that's how he is
12:18 and that's how you have to be as a political analyst.
12:20 But once he's in a room with greats like Rachel or Cody,
12:25 how are you going to change?
12:27 How are you going to be able to manipulate in a way
12:30 that you will get further into the game?
12:32 So I think Quentin's a really interesting one to watch
12:36 in this game because it's not exactly
12:37 what you expected him to have a play in.
12:39 - Yeah, it was fascinating to watch how some of them
12:41 were sort of seemingly a little bit awed
12:43 by the louder, the Brandies and the Kates.
12:46 And then there were others that didn't really seem
12:48 to care about who they were.
12:51 Holly, you mentioned TikTok.
12:52 Can you give me an example of some of the people
12:54 that you perhaps found on TikTok?
12:56 Looking at the list or watching the show,
12:58 none of those scream out TikTok personalities to me.
13:02 - You know, the beautiful thing about TikTok
13:05 is that you're not always looking for the loudest
13:07 and the most obnoxious people on TikTok.
13:09 I think the fun thing about TikTok is you,
13:13 as opposed to Instagram,
13:14 where you're just looking at a photo,
13:15 anyone can look beautiful with filters,
13:17 the right lighting, the right outfit.
13:19 TikTok, you can really see who they are.
13:22 I've interviewed plenty of people I found on TikTok
13:25 who are wonderful, and then you get them on camera
13:28 and they fall flat.
13:29 If they're not in their character,
13:32 they don't know how to act.
13:33 So TikTok is tricky.
13:35 People with the really, really big personalities
13:38 don't always end up being the best ones that you interview.
13:41 So it's really a roll of the dice on that one.
13:44 - Yeah, no, that's interesting.
13:45 - I could just picture Geraldine
13:47 doing salsa dancing or something.
13:48 I think Geraldine was one of their salsa dancers,
13:51 I'm sure, on her TikToks.
13:53 - I can see that as an actress in Hollywood.
13:56 I'm sure that comes naturally.
13:58 Can I ask each of you,
14:00 which was the member of the civilian cast
14:02 that most surprised you
14:04 or that you were most unexpected
14:06 once they appeared on the show?
14:08 Erin, I'll start with you.
14:10 - Okay, well, Andy is my person.
14:14 They hold a very special place to my heart.
14:16 I was actually sent them years ago
14:19 by a producer friend of mine
14:21 that I worked on an ABC show with,
14:22 I'm talking 10 years ago.
14:25 And I think in like 2019, 2020, she sent me a text.
14:28 And she said, "My husband's best friends
14:32 "dating this woman and their significant other is amazing
14:37 "and you need to meet them."
14:40 And that was when I was first introduced to Andy.
14:44 Back then, she was Ange
14:45 and she was still going through her transition
14:48 and realizing all of that.
14:50 And the minute I got on the first Zoom with them,
14:53 I just felt the magic through the screen.
14:56 I knew their story needed to be told.
14:58 I knew all of it.
14:59 And so Andy is someone that's held a very special place
15:03 to my heart and I just loved watching them on the show.
15:06 And when they got back, I said, "How was it?"
15:08 And I mean, it was intense.
15:10 I mean, I don't think any of us knew
15:11 that those challenges were going to be so intense.
15:14 We thought it would be more of like a psychological
15:17 head game opposed to also physical challenges.
15:20 And so Andy will always probably be the closest to my heart.
15:26 - Yeah, Moira, who surprised you the most?
15:28 - Oh man, I don't know,
15:30 but I will tell you who did not surprise me the most
15:32 was Michael Davidson.
15:34 He's such a character, so great.
15:38 It's one of those things when you're interviewing someone,
15:39 you're like, "Oh, this is perfect.
15:41 Everything is perfect."
15:43 - He'd cry in the interview.
15:45 I'm just getting, he's actually,
15:47 he's about to cry just now. - He did not.
15:49 He's a reality super fan.
15:51 So I think finally having his chance to like,
15:55 I mean, he didn't get to tell much of his story,
15:57 but his backstory is pretty intense.
16:01 And there are like, just what reality played in his life
16:05 or reality played in his life.
16:08 So I was really hoping that he could like
16:10 really hold it together and make it to the end.
16:13 But I think he went out in spectacular fashion,
16:16 which, so surprised and not surprised with him,
16:19 but yeah, but a big character.
16:21 - Jazzy, yours?
16:23 - I mean, I already mentioned him, but Quentin,
16:25 I definitely thought he was gonna play the game
16:28 a lot differently than he did.
16:30 Going into it as someone that is a political analyst
16:33 and can read people like a book,
16:35 I thought he would be a lot smarter at this game.
16:37 But I mean, he made it all the way to the end
16:41 and was completely backstabbed.
16:43 - You should have seen that coming, Jazzy.
16:45 Come on, you should have seen that coming.
16:47 We could all see that.
16:48 Holly, what was that?
16:50 What about you?
16:51 - I think I was impressed with how everyone played.
16:53 I could not have done it.
16:54 So I have to give them all props.
16:56 I think Christian was someone I was shocked by.
16:59 He's ex-military.
17:00 I expected him to be really great under pressure.
17:02 So watching that as a viewer, when he slipped up,
17:07 I mean, my jaw was on the ground.
17:09 I was texting him.
17:10 I was like, I cannot believe you just did that.
17:12 You know, like that was shocking.
17:15 Great for viewing, but you know,
17:18 as someone who like takes pride in the show
17:20 and you think they're gonna play a certain way,
17:22 I will say I thought he would be a little bit better
17:25 under pressure than that moment.
17:28 - Yeah, I think we all did.
17:29 Well, certainly, as you said,
17:30 certainly made for good television.
17:32 And so thank you for that.
17:35 And thank you for chatting to me about all of this.
17:37 Erin, Moira, Jazzy, Holly, good luck.
17:40 - Thank you.
17:42 - Yeah.
17:43 [BLANK_AUDIO]