The Traitors: New Blood opened with the biggest format shake-up in U.S. franchise history, and it was not the all-civilian cast. In the premiere, host Alan Cumming named only two Traitors, Joe Vanella and Tomica Adams, instead of the usual three, then handed the pair a new weapon: the Accomplice twist. Rather than simply picking a third Traitor, Joe and Tomica had to audition two Faithfuls for the job, knowing only one would survive.
The twist confused viewers and split the fanbase. Here is the verified sequence: what the twist is, what Katie Fites and Xavier Scruggs were asked to do, why Katie won the spot, and how this differs from a normal recruitment.
What Is the Accomplice Twist?
Per NBC Insider’s official explainer, the mechanics are simple. The freshly chosen Traitors select two Accomplices from the Faithfuls. Those players are secretly tasked with a special mission to complete in plain sight among the other Faithfuls. The Traitors anonymously observe how they perform, then pick one Accomplice to join their ranks. The other is murdered. NBC notes the twist also trims the cast early: 22 players to 20.
Cumming introduced it in the premiere: after naming Joe and Tomica the season’s only two Traitors, he gave them 24 hours in the turret to pick two players to be “put through a series of tests” (MEAWW). The Accomplices were revealed at the end of Episode 2.
The twist, beat by beat
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Premiere | Cumming names only two Traitors (Joe Vanella, Tomica Adams) and announces the Accomplice twist |
| Premiere night | Joe and Tomica get 24 hours in the turret to choose two Accomplices |
| Early episodes | The Accomplices help carry out the season’s opening murder (Kim Daily) |
| End of Episode 2 | Katie Fites and Xavier Scruggs are revealed as the Accomplices |
| Episode 3 | Both complete the Death Warrant task; Katie is recruited as the third Traitor, Xavier is murdered |
The Two Accomplices: Katie Fites and Xavier Scruggs
Joe and Tomica chose Xavier Scruggs, a 38-year-old MLB analyst from Wesley Chapel, Florida, and Katie Fites, a 23-year-old marketing manager from Jacksonville, Florida, the youngest player in the 22-person civilian cast. Per TheThings, Joe saw Katie as “a great chess piece” tied to the younger players, while Tomica said Xavier “thinks ahead, and he’s easy on the eye.”
Crucially, the Accomplices knew about each other but not the Traitors’ identities (Reality Tea); Xavier told Parade he had no inkling of the Traitors’ thinking when he made his moves.
What the Accomplices Were Asked to Do
Task one: helping murder Kim Daily
First, the season’s opening murder. Joe and Tomica chose Kim Daily, the Houston lawyer posing as a basketball coach, because they feared her influence (MEAWW). The Accomplices helped carry it out: Kim was escorted to a coffin on a floating boat, cut loose, and sent down the river, with her death revealed the next morning (NBC’s eliminations recap).
Task two: the Death Warrant retrieval
Two death warrants were hidden inside copies of Crime and Punishment in the library and atrium. Katie and Xavier each had to find one and deliver it face-to-face to the Traitors that night; failure meant murder. The catch, per Hollywood Outbreak, was that grabbing a suspiciously specific book while everyone hunts for Traitors is exactly the kind of behavior that becomes Round Table evidence. Episode 2 ended on a cliffhanger.
Why Katie Became a Traitor and Xavier Was Murdered
Episode 3, “The Traitors Are Watching,” resolved the contest. Both retrieved their warrants, so the decision fell entirely to Joe and Tomica’s judgment, per Reality Tea and the DraftKings Network. They recruited Katie and murdered Xavier.
Xavier’s own strategy sank him. He told Parade he went on offense, whispering that Katie had “nervous energy” and floating her name, believing the Traitors would reward an Accomplice willing to do “whatever it takes.” Instead, Joe and Tomica were put on edge: Parade reports they feared his behavior foreshadowed Traitor-on-Traitor violence and chose the candidate they saw as more loyal. Katie donned the green cloak, and Xavier was confirmed as a Faithful who never held the Traitor role (MisrYoum).
How This Differs From a Standard Traitor Recruitment
NBC’s explainer draws the contrast: past seasons used an ultimatum, a Faithful secretly asked to flip allegiance or be murdered. Here, candidates “work for the job” under observation. Two compete instead of one being approached; they do not know the Traitors’ identities; the Traitors watch them perform covert tasks under pressure; and the loser is murdered instead of returning as a Faithful. It is less a job offer than a public audition with a built-in execution.
Clearing Up the Biggest Points of Confusion
Was Xavier ever a Traitor?
No. He was an Accomplice candidate; when Joe and Tomica picked Katie, the rules required his murder, and he left confirmed as a Faithful.
Did one of them fail the Death Warrant task?
No. Pre-Episode 3 coverage framed it as pass-or-die, but both retrieved warrants, so Joe and Tomica’s choice decided it (Reality Tea, DraftKings Network).
What did the “battled in plain sight” clue actually mean?
In Episode 3’s crypt mission, Michael Foote and Ben McDonnell chose $5,000 plus the clue over adding $15,000 to the prize pot, forgoing $10,000 in potential mission earnings. The clue read: “Last night, two players battled in plain sight to become a Traitor.” Michael claimed it described Arisa Thomas and Victor Vollbrechthausen’s hand-holding “human lie detector” bit as a recruitment ritual. Reality Blurred’s Andy Dehnart notes the clue said nothing about a ritual or recruitment; it described Katie and Xavier’s warrant competition the night before. Kriste Lewis read it right, asking if Xavier had competed and lost. The misread still got Arisa, another Faithful, banished at the next Round Table.
Did the Accomplices know who the Traitors were?
No. They knew of each other but not the Traitors’ identities (Reality Tea), which is why Xavier smeared Katie in front of Joe and Tomica without knowing his real audience.
Fan Reception: A Twist That Split the Fanbase
Reality Realm collected fan reactions from X and found a genuine split: admirers called it “one of the best [twists] I’ve seen in the franchise,” while detractors called it “pretty boring” because the Accomplices “didn’t have to do much at all,” with others arguing producers should “leave the format alone.” The Episode 2 cliffhanger gave fans a full week to argue about the rules before Episode 3 settled it.
FAQ
Who were the Accomplices on The Traitors: New Blood?
Katie Fites and Xavier Scruggs, secretly chosen by Joe Vanella and Tomica Adams in the premiere and revealed in Episode 2.
Who became the third Traitor?
Katie Fites. After both Accomplices completed the Death Warrant task, Joe and Tomica recruited the 23-year-old marketing manager in Episode 3, judging her more loyal than Xavier.
What happened to Xavier Scruggs?
He was murdered in Episode 3 after losing the recruitment decision. He was confirmed as a Faithful and never held the Traitor role.
What tasks did the Accomplices complete?
Helping carry out the murder of Kim Daily, then retrieving death warrants hidden inside copies of Crime and Punishment and delivering them to the Traitors face-to-face.
Will the Accomplice twist return later this season?
Unconfirmed. NBC called them “the first Accomplices,” hinting it could reappear, but no second round has been confirmed.
When do new episodes air?
Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, streaming next day on Peacock. There is no new episode on October 1; Episode 5, “Wake of the Living Dead,” airs October 8.
Through Episode 4, the active Traitors are Joe, Tomica, and Katie. For episode-by-episode results, follow our episode tracker.
