The Traitors Australia 2026 has been praised for being beautifully camp and devious.
If the Cluedo-style concept of the show wasn’t enough to convince you, perhaps marvel at Gretel Killeen’s outfits or her dramatic hosting style as the contestants brave challenges set everywhere from a field on a hilltop to a dark bunker.
However, another major detail fans have become obsessed with emerged from the cast of traitors in the turret.
Fans are loving this season’s representation
When the show first began, Alex Nation, Kirby Bentley, and Alvin Quah ruled the turret as the original three traitors, with both the players and fans watching at home commenting on how incredible it was to see a fully queer turret.
Now that Rhys Nicholson – comedian and judge of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under – has been recruited by Kirby as a traitor, this audience sentiment has only grown.
“I love how we’re keeping the LGBT streak going in the turret!” one fan wrote online after Rhys accepted Kirby’s blackmail.
“Didn’t see Rhys getting recruited but I am delighted by Kirby’s choice,” another agreed. “I was really anticipating Tully or Lawson, but thrilled that we’ve kept the LGBTQIA+ conclave alive and well.”
“Rhys is so fun as a traitor,” a third commented. “His confessionals are top tier.”
Speaking to WHO after his elimination earlier in the season, Manaaki Hoepo agreed with fans’ excitement over the representation this season.
“It was actually like super cool watching,” he said. “I think just even seeing the representation on screen, I think it’s super important with these shows and with reality TV and social media to see a wide range of people from different cultures, different sexualities, different genders and stuff like that.
“That’s a big reason why I do TV, just to make sure that I can showcase my culture. So watching [The Traitors] on TV and seeing us from all these different places, all these different walks of life, come together has been a great thing to watch.”
Rhys was the player that surprised contestants the most
Everyone loves Rhys on the show – players and audiences alike – and Alex revealed to WHO why Rhys was so beloved during the show.
“If anyone took me by surprise, I found Rhys to be absolutely incredible,” Alex told WHO. “Having Rhys – this amazing, brilliant-minded Australian comedian – in such a tense environment where, for the most part, we’re all on edge, was great.
“The way they could come in – and I don’t even think that they intentionally meant to be this way, I think that’s just their personality – and have this quick wit, this humour, it just would lighten moments where it felt so heavy.”
Alex really appreciated having someone who could “make things feel light and fluffy from time to time” and bring the players “back to reality” when the pressure of a $250,000 cash prize took control.
The former traitor revealed that while the show is a competition, it’s also entertainment, and it’s “a very camp TV show” where they have permission to “have some fun”.
While Rhys has committed to following Kirby’s lead for now, fans will have to wait and see if the player remains faithful to their traitor ally Kirby, or if they flip the switch in the games’ final moments.
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