Spoiler warning: This guide reveals every Traitor, murder, banishment, finalist and the winner of The Traitors Season 1.
Before The Traitors became an all-star reality-TV institution, its first U.S. season was a genuine experiment. Peacock sent 20 players to Ardross Castle in the Scottish Highlands: 10 familiar faces from shows including Survivor, Big Brother, The Bachelor, Below Deck and The Real Housewives, plus 10 contestants with no established reality-TV résumé.
That split made Season 1 different from everything that followed. The reality veterans arrived with reputations, existing relationships and an understanding of how televised competition works. The civilian players were less predictable, but also less likely to be judged through the lens of an old alliance or previous show. Nobody had a finished U.S. season to study, and the American edition was filmed before the British version had aired.
The result was tense, messy and unusually revealing. Some of the sharpest Faithfuls identified real Traitors but could not persuade the room. Several of the season’s most trusted players were wrong until the final seconds. And Cirie Fields finally turned years of near-misses on Survivor into a masterful $250,000 win.
For a spoiler-free explanation of the Round Table, murders, shields and the Fire of Truth, start with how The Traitors works.
The Traitors Season 1 at a Glance
| Detail | Answer |
|---|---|
| U.S. premiere | January 12, 2023 |
| Host | Alan Cumming |
| Filming location | Ardross Castle, Scottish Highlands |
| Main-season episodes | 10, followed by a reunion |
| Cast size | 20 contestants |
| Casting format | 10 reality-TV personalities and 10 civilian contestants |
| Original Traitors | Cirie Fields, Cody Calafiore and Christian de la Torre |
| Recruited Traitor | Arie Luyendyk Jr. |
| Winner | Cirie Fields |
| Runners-up | Andie Vanacore, now Andie Thurmond, and Quentin Jiles |
| Final prize | $250,000 |
The Full Season 1 Cast, Roles and Results
The table below is arranged by final result, beginning with the winner. “Original Traitor” means the player was selected at the first Round Table. Arie Luyendyk Jr. began as a Faithful and was recruited later.
| Contestant | Known for or occupation | Game role | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cirie Fields | Four-time Survivor player | Original Traitor | Winner; claimed the full $250,000 |
| Andie Vanacore, now Andie Thurmond | Director of music services | Faithful | Runner-up |
| Quentin Jiles | Political analyst | Faithful | Runner-up |
| Arie Luyendyk Jr. | The Bachelor and former racing driver | Faithful, then recruited Traitor | Withdrew at the Fire of Truth |
| Kate Chastain | Below Deck | Faithful | Banished in the finale; fifth place |
| Christian de la Torre | Veteran and content creator | Original Traitor | Banished at the final Round Table; sixth place |
| Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick | Survivor | Faithful | Murdered in Episode 9; seventh place |
| Rachel Reilly | Big Brother winner | Faithful | Banished in Episode 8; eighth place |
| Shelbe Rodriguez | Public affairs manager | Faithful | Banished in Episode 7; ninth place |
| Anjelica Conti | Hairstylist | Faithful | Murdered in Episode 7; 10th place |
| Cody Calafiore | Big Brother winner | Original Traitor | First Traitor banished; 11th place |
| Amanda Clark-Stoner, credited as Amanda Clark | Emergency-room nurse | Faithful | Left after testing positive for COVID-19; 12th place |
| Kyle Cooke | Summer House and Loverboy founder | Faithful | Banished in Episode 5; 13th place |
| Ryan Lochte | 12-time Olympic swimming medalist | Faithful | Murdered in Episode 5; 14th place |
| Michael Davidson | DMV office manager | Faithful | Banished in Episode 4; 15th place |
| Azra Valani | Yoga instructor | Faithful | Murdered in Episode 4; 16th place |
| Brandi Glanville | The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills | Faithful | Banished in Episode 3; 17th place |
| Robert “Bam” Nieves | Tech sales executive | Faithful | Murdered in Episode 3; 18th place |
| Geraldine Moreno | Actor | Faithful | First player banished; 19th place |
| Reza Farahan | Shahs of Sunset | Faithful | First player murdered; 20th place |
The Complete Elimination Order
The show alternated between overnight murders and Round Table banishments, with one medical withdrawal and one finale withdrawal. In chronological order, the exits were:
- Reza Farahan — murdered
- Geraldine Moreno — banished
- Robert “Bam” Nieves — murdered
- Brandi Glanville — banished
- Azra Valani — murdered
- Michael Davidson — banished
- Ryan Lochte — murdered
- Kyle Cooke — banished
- Amanda Clark-Stoner — withdrew after testing positive for COVID-19
- Cody Calafiore — banished; revealed as a Traitor
- Anjelica Conti — murdered
- Shelbe Rodriguez — banished
- Rachel Reilly — banished
- Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick — murdered
- Christian de la Torre — banished; revealed as a Traitor
- Kate Chastain — banished in the finale
- Arie Luyendyk Jr. — withdrew at the Fire of Truth; revealed as a recruited Traitor
- Andie Vanacore — runner-up
- Quentin Jiles — runner-up
- Cirie Fields — winner
The COVID-19 Cast Changes Season 1 Barely Explained
Season 1’s finished roster contained 20 players, but COVID-19 affected production twice. Post-season reporting based on cast accounts said Kevin Greene initially began filming, tested positive on the first day and was replaced by Geraldine Moreno after the opening day was reshot. The broadcast presents Geraldine as part of the cast from the beginning, but that production history explains why she is sometimes described as a late replacement.
Amanda Clark-Stoner’s departure was different. Alan Cumming said only that she had left for reasons beyond her control; Amanda later explained that she had tested positive for COVID-19 and could not continue. She was neither murdered nor banished, so her exit is best understood as a medical withdrawal rather than a gameplay defeat.
Who Were the Traitors in Season 1?
The original Traitors were Cirie Fields, Cody Calafiore and Christian de la Torre. All three were selected by Alan Cumming during the blindfolded opening Round Table.
That matters because Christian is sometimes misidentified as the season’s recruited Traitor. He was not. Christian played as a Traitor from the beginning. Arie Luyendyk Jr. was the late recruit, accepting an invitation from Cirie and Christian after Cody had been exposed.
The four Traitor games played out very differently:
- Cody looked well positioned early, but pressure around the murder of his real-life friend Ryan Lochte led him into an inconsistent conversation with Kyle Cooke. Once the group had a credible case, Cirie and Christian voted with the Faithfuls and let Cody go.
- Christian survived longer, but his own attempt at misdirection destroyed his cover. He announced that the Traitors had tried to recruit him and claimed he had refused. The story immediately sounded manufactured, and he could not produce the recruitment letter he said he had received.
- Arie built a strong Faithful game before joining the turret. He won three consecutive shields, rarely became the room’s central target and reached the Fire of Truth. His mistake was assuming Cirie would be content to split the money.
- Cirie managed every phase of the role: she stayed socially central without looking controlling, abandoned exposed partners at the correct moment, recruited a replacement and entered the endgame trusted by the two Faithfuls she needed most.
Every Season 1 Contestant Ranked From 20 to 1
This ranking is based only on each contestant’s Season 1 performance—not fame, career or entertainment value. The main criteria are strategic influence, accuracy, social positioning, ability to conceal or identify Traitors, and avoidable mistakes. Early murders are difficult to judge, so the lowest placements often reflect a lack of available game rather than bad play.
20. Reza Farahan
Reza was the first person murdered in the American franchise, which left almost no meaningful game to evaluate. His last-place ranking is about opportunity, not ability: he was removed before the first banishment could show how he would handle pressure.
19. Robert “Bam” Nieves
Bam followed Reza as the second murder. The Traitors chose him partly to avoid an obvious pattern, and his short edit offered little evidence of either strong reads or damaging mistakes.
18. Azra Valani
Azra’s quieter approach made her difficult for the group to read, but it did not protect her from the turret. She was murdered before she could turn a low-profile game into a useful long-term position.
17. Ryan Lochte
Ryan was likable and straightforward, but he trusted Cody—a real-life friend who was secretly helping decide whom to murder. His exit also gave Kyle the information that eventually cracked Cody’s story, making Ryan more important to the season’s turning point than to his own game.
16. Geraldine Moreno
Geraldine became the first person banished after her body language drew immediate suspicion. Post-season reporting later revealed that she had joined as an alternate after a different cast member tested positive on the first day and the opening was reshot. Whatever effect that disruption had behind the scenes, the game shown on screen gave her almost no time to recover from a first-impression vote.
15. Michael Davidson
Michael survived the first vote but became the early consensus suspect. Once his defensiveness and the group’s fixation on him reinforced each other, he could not create a stronger alternative theory or repair his social position.
14. Anjelica Conti
Anjelica lasted into the middle of the season and built genuine relationships, but she did not drive many of the decisive conversations. After she was placed on trial with Kate and Rachel, the Traitors murdered Anjelica while keeping the two louder suspects in the game as useful distractions.
13. Shelbe Rodriguez
Shelbe’s muted reaction when Cody revealed himself as a Traitor became damaging evidence in a game where tiny behavioral details carried too much weight. Once the group interpreted her response as disappointment rather than shock, she struggled to reverse a theory built almost entirely on demeanor.
12. Amanda Clark-Stoner
Amanda was not outplayed. Her run ended after a positive COVID-19 test forced her to leave, and she appeared socially secure when it happened. She lands in the middle because there is no endgame evidence—not because the cast had solved her.
11. Quentin Jiles
Quentin’s communication skills helped him survive every murder and banishment, and reaching the final three as a civilian Faithful is a real achievement. The problem was accuracy: he reached the finale without casting a successful Round Table vote against a Traitor. At the Fire of Truth, he accepted Cirie’s explanation without asking how she had identified Arie so confidently.
10. Brandi Glanville
Brandi produced one of the best early reads of the season by identifying both Cirie and Christian as possible Traitors almost immediately. Her failure was delivery. She could not build enough trust around a correct theory, and being right did not matter once the group decided she was the more disruptive presence.
9. Kate Chastain
Kate’s game was almost anti-strategy: she openly wanted to leave, clashed with Rachel and made herself suspicious enough to become useful cover for the real Traitors. Yet surviving to fifth place while nearly everyone wanted her gone is its own strange accomplishment. She also eventually worked out that Christian may have been a Traitor before his supposed recruitment story.
8. Christian de la Torre
Christian reached the final six as an original Traitor, which cannot be dismissed. He was energetic, socially connected and willing to take risks. The problem was that many of those risks were unnecessary. His false recruitment announcement turned vague concern into a clear case against him and forced Cirie and Arie to cut him.
7. Cody Calafiore
Cody helped the Traitors control the first half of the season and initially benefited from his calm, competition-show résumé. His collapse came from a single weak lie around Ryan’s murder, followed by visible stress as Kyle and Rachel pressed him. A strong Traitor game ended because he could not manage the emotional weight of one decision.
6. Andie Vanacore
Andie built one of the season’s strongest social positions, remained trusted across shifting groups and reached the final without becoming a serious banishment target. They also recognized the case against Christian after Rachel’s exit. The fatal flaw was treating emotional closeness as evidence that Cirie could not be lying.
5. Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick
Stephenie was central to the successful push against Cody and tried to prevent Rachel’s incorrect banishment. She reached the final seven and was murdered because she remained strategically active. Her blind spot was Cirie: a real-life relationship became stronger evidence in her mind than the possibility that the game had assigned her friend a deceptive role.
4. Kyle Cooke
Kyle made the season’s most consequential Faithful deduction. He noticed that Cody’s account of Ryan’s suspicions did not make sense and tried to bring the case to the Round Table. He also raised Cirie’s name earlier than most. His weakness was coalition-building; he found the right thread but could not persuade enough people before they banished him instead.
3. Rachel Reilly
Rachel read Cody early, immediately recognized that Christian’s recruitment story was suspicious and later became wary of Cirie. Few Faithfuls were more consistently pointed toward the correct people. Her feud with Kate and forceful communication style made it easy for opponents to frame good instincts as manipulation, costing her the social protection her reads deserved.
2. Arie Luyendyk Jr.
Arie played the best all-around game outside Cirie. As a Faithful, he avoided sustained suspicion and won three consecutive shields. As a recruited Traitor, he reached the final four and understood that Cirie’s red flame was aimed at him. Withdrawing prevented a ceremonial banishment, but it could not change the larger mistake: he entered the endgame without enough influence to stop Cirie from deciding who deserved the money.
1. Cirie Fields
Cirie did not merely survive as a Traitor; she controlled when the season’s other Traitors stopped being useful. She let the Faithfuls build the case against Cody, accepted Christian’s collapse rather than defending him, recruited Arie and then removed him at the only moment that produced a solo win. Most importantly, Andie and Quentin trusted her even after Arie’s reveal gave them a final reason to reconsider. It remains one of the cleanest social-strategy wins in the franchise.
How Cirie Fields Won the Entire $250,000
Cirie entered the game with the most dangerous résumé in the cast. Four seasons of Survivor had established her as an elite social strategist, so trying to dominate every Round Table would have confirmed what people already feared. Instead, she stayed close to the center of the group while allowing louder conflicts—Kate versus Rachel, Michael versus the room, and later Christian versus his own story—to absorb attention.
Her most important skill was timing.
When Kyle exposed the contradiction in Cody’s account of Ryan’s final suspicions, Cirie did not waste social capital protecting a partner who had become difficult to save. She voted with the group. When Christian’s fake-recruitment claim made him the obvious next target, she again chose self-preservation over Traitor loyalty.
Arie’s recruitment solved a structural problem: Cirie needed another Traitor in the game, but she did not need to take him to the money. At the Fire of Truth, Arie, Andie and Quentin voted to end the game. Cirie alone chose to banish again, saying she did not want someone she felt had not earned an equal share to leave with the prize.
Arie understood the message. He withdrew and revealed that he had been recruited as a Traitor. That should have forced the remaining Faithfuls to ask one final question: How had Cirie known?
They did not. Andie and Quentin believed Cirie had saved them. All three voted to end the game, Cirie revealed her Traitor status, and she claimed the entire $250,000 rather than splitting it.
Was Cirie’s Finale Move Fair?
Strategically, yes. Emotionally, the answer is more complicated—and that tension is why the ending still works.
At the reunion, Andie and Quentin made clear that their hurt was tied to the personal trust they had built with Cirie, not simply the money. Arie’s exit and disclosure that he had been recruited gave the remaining Faithfuls one final reason to reconsider who had initiated the extra banishment. In the moment, neither finalist followed that question to Cirie.
Cirie’s position was straightforward: the relationships were real, but the role required deception. She had not chosen to enter as a Traitor, and once selected, her alternatives were to play the role fully or lose.
The most honest reading is that both things can be true. Cirie formed authentic bonds and used those bonds to win a game built around betrayal. Andie and Quentin were entitled to feel hurt; Cirie was still entitled to the victory. The finale did not expose a flaw in her game. It exposed the emotional cost of playing it perfectly.
Why the Season 1 Cast Still Stands Out
Season 1’s celebrity-and-civilian split was not just a casting gimmick. It changed how suspicion worked.
The veterans carried visible reputations. Cirie, Cody, Rachel and Stephenie were judged partly on what castmates already knew about their strategic ability. Cody’s real-life friendship with Ryan became part of the game. The civilian players had less baggage, but they also had to compete for authority with people who already understood confessionals, group votes and reality-TV storytelling.
That imbalance produced the season’s defining irony: several veterans made excellent reads, but two civilian Faithfuls reached the final because Cirie made them feel safe.
The experiment also produced a cast strong enough to win the 2023 Emmy for Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program. Peacock moved to an all-celebrity format for Season 2, but Season 1 remains the version in which the show felt most like a social experiment rather than a reality-TV crossover event.
What Happened to the Cast After Season 1?
The origin cast did not disappear when the castle doors closed. Several players returned to major reality franchises:
- Cirie Fields competed on Big Brother 25, then returned to her original franchise for the milestone Survivor 50 in 2026.
- Kate Chastain became the only Season 1 player to return for The Traitors Season 2, where she was recruited as a Traitor. She later joined the cast of House of Villains Season 3.
- Rachel Reilly returned to the Big Brother house for Season 27 in 2025, 14 years after winning Season 13.
- Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick joined Cirie on Survivor 50, putting the two allies back into another game built around trust.
- Reza Farahan returned to Bravo in The Valley: Persian Style and won Worst Cooks in America: Reality Check. Ryan Lochte also joined that season’s cast.
Those follow-up appearances sharpen Season 1’s legacy: the cast was not simply a collection of familiar names and first-time players. It became a launch point, a comeback vehicle and, for Kate, a direct route back into the castle.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won The Traitors Season 1?
Cirie Fields won The Traitors Season 1 as an original Traitor. She reached the end with Faithfuls Andie Vanacore and Quentin Jiles, who voted to stop the game without identifying her. Cirie therefore claimed the entire $250,000 prize.
Who were the original Traitors in Season 1?
The three original Traitors were Cirie Fields, Cody Calafiore and Christian de la Torre. Arie Luyendyk Jr. began as a Faithful and was recruited later.
Was Arie a Traitor from the beginning?
No. Arie played most of the season as a Faithful. Cirie and Christian recruited him after Cody’s banishment, and he accepted.
Why did Amanda leave The Traitors?
Amanda Clark-Stoner left after testing positive for COVID-19. Her departure was not caused by a murder, banishment or strategic decision.
Who was the first person eliminated?
Reza Farahan was the first contestant eliminated after the Traitors murdered him. Geraldine Moreno was the first player banished at the Round Table.
Who were the Season 1 runners-up?
Andie Vanacore, now Andie Thurmond, and Quentin Jiles were the runners-up. Both were Faithfuls, but neither won money because Cirie remained in the game when they voted to end it.
Why did Arie leave at the Fire of Truth?
Arie recognized that Cirie’s decision to continue the game was aimed at him. Rather than wait for the banishment vote, he withdrew and revealed that he had been recruited as a Traitor.
Did any Season 1 contestant return?
Yes. Kate Chastain returned as a surprise addition in Season 2 and was later recruited as a Traitor.
How many contestants were in The Traitors Season 1?
There were 20 contestants: 10 established reality-TV personalities and 10 civilian players.
Did the Season 1 cast watch the U.K. version before filming?
No. The U.S. season filmed in 2022 before the first U.K. season had aired, so the players did not arrive with a completed English-language season to study.
How many episodes are in The Traitors Season 1?
Season 1 has 10 competition episodes. Peacock later released a reunion hosted by Andy Cohen, bringing the total to 11 installments.
Where was The Traitors Season 1 filmed?
The season was filmed at and around Ardross Castle in the Scottish Highlands, near Inverness. The castle and its surrounding grounds provide the setting for the Round Table, breakfast scenes and many of the missions.
Where can you watch The Traitors Season 1?
In the United States, all 10 competition episodes and the reunion are available on Peacock. Streaming availability may differ outside the U.S.
Continue Through the Castle
- How The Traitors works: rules, murders, shields and the Fire of Truth
- The Traitors Season 2 cast and winners
- The Traitors Season 3 cast and winners
- The Traitors Season 4 cast and winner
Editorial note: The ranking above reflects OpenThreadNews’ assessment of the game shown on screen. Roles, exits and results are factual; the ordering is editorial judgment.
