Why Kylie Kelce Was “Irked” by Donna Kelce’s Experience on Traitors

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Kylie Kelce thinks Donna Kelce got played.

Taylor Swift’s mother-in-law, Donna Kelce, was put in a difficult position on the reality show The Traitors. Taylor, who is married to Jason Kelce, believes Donna was unfairly set up to fail as the ‘Secret Traitor’ during the show’s fourth season, which concluded with a dramatic finale on February 26th.

Kylie shared on the February 24th episode of the Green Light with Chris Long podcast that she was bothered by the revelation that someone had been secretly working against the group. She admitted she couldn’t quite understand why it bothered her so much.

She thinks Donna would have had more success if she’d been able to team up with fellow Traitors Rob Rausch, Candiace Dillard Bassett, and Lisa Rinna in the turret.

Kylie said she hoped her friend would be good at the game if she was a ‘traitor,’ but not the secret traitor. She thought she’d excel at being subtly deceptive as part of a team.

Kylie believed the cast wouldn’t have suspected a thing, because Donna is so kind-hearted. This would have allowed viewers to see more of Donna’s character and storyline, rather than her being eliminated in the third episode.

“She needed teammates,” Kylie added. “That was f–ked up.”

The Kelce family, including Jason and Travis Kelce, were thrilled to see their 73-year-old mother enjoy her dream of competing in a challenging game in Scotland last summer.

During the reunion show, Donna told Andy Cohen that her sons believed she had tried her best, but they also felt she might have been more deceitful than they’d imagined.

Taylor Swift, Travis’s fiancée, also showed her support, mentioning that she and her family are fans of the song Traitors. She described them as people who pay attention to details.

The Traitors season four finale and reunion are now streaming on Peacock.

Read on more behind-the-scenes secrets about The Traitors that are simply to die for.

Deception is a key part of the game in The Traitors, but players are randomly assigned as either Traitors or Faithful. Starting in season two, contestants like Phaedra Parks and Kate Chastain had the opportunity to try and convince host Alan Cumming they deserved to stay.

The choice of who plays the Traitor is a major decision, and we definitely consider Alan’s input,” said executive producer Mike Cotton in an interview with Variety. “It’s a bit like a job interview – we carefully evaluate everyone and decide right before the selection who would make the most compelling Traitor. We aim for a diverse group of personalities, each with their own strengths and abilities.

The players didn’t initially know how many Traitors were among them. Cirie Fields, a winner on Survivor, explained to TopMob News in 2023 that they were told at the start of the game there could be three to five Traitors.

Players were also asked to take the Traitor’s oath, which involved promising to lie and deceive others throughout the game, being willing to eliminate fellow players each night, and keeping both their own and other players’ identities hidden.

To identify potential ‘backstabbers’ and bluffs, the show uses a personality test to assess contestants. As Cotton Variety explains, this helps reveal traits that might indicate someone is a good liar or deceptive. However, the producers themselves don’t know who the ‘Traitors’ are until Alan Carr secretly selects them during filming.

Alan Cumming was thrilled to accept the over-the-top role and even bring his dog to work. He told The Daily Beast in 2023 that when he first heard the pitch, he envisioned playing a character similar to a James Bond villain, and suggested including his dog as a playful touch. The producers loved the idea, and that convinced him to take the part.

With his rescue dog, Lala, by his side, he fully embraced his on-screen role, playfully quoting the works of William Shakespeare and Plato. He described adopting a dramatic persona – ‘a sort of flaring-nostril thing’ – and admitted to improvising much of his dialogue. He even compared the experience to stand-up comedy, explaining that lines were sometimes fed to him through an earpiece, requiring him to think on his feet.

While the actors film at the beautiful Ardross Castle in Scotland, they don’t get to live there during production.

Cumming told the Daily Beast that the cast and crew didn’t actually stay at the castle during filming. Instead, they stayed at a hotel near the Inverness airport. He personally had a room in the castle, but only used it to get ready – for hair and makeup. He said it had a large bed and he would often nap there, but never spent the night.

The show almost featured a much more dangerous challenge! Creator Marc Pos told Variety his original idea involved filming on a ship off the coast of Australia. If a contestant lost a competition, they would have to jump into the water and swim to a nearby island. However, he ultimately decided it would be too challenging and expensive to film.

Contestants didn’t have access to the entire castle. According to Cotton, who spoke with Variety, they’re using just one section – a wing of the castle – as the area where the game takes place. They also have full access to the outdoor grounds and are free to move around there.

He pointed out that with room for around thirty bedrooms, complete privacy would be difficult. While people could spread out and talk individually, the space was still small enough that conversations could be overheard or someone could be seen slipping away for a private discussion.

It makes sense that Rachel Reilly, a former contestant on Big Brother, found car rides to and from competitions to be the perfect opportunity for plotting with other players. She told Reality Blurred that “You’re separated, and nobody can hear what you’re saying,” which was much easier than trying to whisper in the house.

Oh my gosh, you wouldn’t BELIEVE the rules! Apparently, even at the hotel, we weren’t allowed to strategize! Dan Gheesling – seriously, a genius player – explained it to Business Insider. He said they didn’t want us talking strategy when the cameras weren’t rolling, because if we accidentally revealed something important off-camera, they couldn’t show it on the show! It’s crazy how much control they had, but honestly, it just makes the game even more fascinating to me!

Chrishell Stause, from season three of the show, also shared that they weren’t provided with a hair and makeup team. She told Us Weekly that she “would’ve died to have glam in the castle,” but Alan didn’t permit it.

Getting everyone settled for the nightly murders is a huge undertaking. According to Cotton, who spoke with Variety, it’s like a large-scale military operation to ensure the ‘Faithful’ are each in their own rooms for the night, and then to allow the ‘Traitors’ to leave and hold their meetings.

Even though Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan were a couple during season two of the show, they weren’t permitted to share a room. According to executive producer Sam Rees-Jones, producers didn’t allow it because it would have given them an unfair advantage over the other contestants.

Despite the rules, Reza Farahan from Shahs of Sunset tried to add some playful mischief. He told Digital Spy that he attempted to slip notes under contestants’ doors, writing things like, ‘I know what you did last summer, signed The Traitors,’ just to have some fun when they weren’t supposed to.

The production schedule is demanding, with the team aiming to film one episode each day. According to director Rhys-Jones, this fast pace helps the cast stay focused and creates a fully immersive experience. While it’s a lot of pressure, it’s the best way to ensure the quality of the show. A typical day includes breakfast, a planning meeting, a mission, and a murder mystery, before starting the process all over again. Sometimes, filming runs late – Stause mentioned one night they didn’t get back to their rooms until 2 a.m.

According to Cotton, who spoke with Variety, breakfast on set is carefully scheduled with actors arriving at different times. However, the meals themselves don’t last long – usually no more than an hour from beginning to end.

Producers of reality shows like Love Island limit alcohol consumption to help contestants stay focused. Ekin-Su Culculoglu, winner of Love Island and a participant on another season of a reality show, explained to Entertainment Weekly in 2024 that contestants were only allowed one drink per night, which she described as “quite restricted.”

Even though it’s often difficult to find genuine support from other players, everyone on the show is paired with a dedicated member of the welfare team. According to Mercedes Javid, a popular contestant from last season, these team members are constantly checking in on the players. She described them as upbeat and professional, making her feel well-cared for throughout the experience.

When it comes to building relationships on the show, contestants don’t find out who their competition will be until they get to Scotland. Casting director Deena Katz told Time that this is intentional – they don’t want anyone researching each other or making plans beforehand. However, once the game starts, players do get information about each other, and they’re also given journals to take notes.

Cumming jokingly refers to himself as a “Traitor,” referencing the social deduction game he enjoys. In a 2023 interview with The Daily Beast, he explained that the game often involves players falsely accusing each other, and he finds humor in the arbitrary reasons used to label someone a “Traitor” – even something as simple as a pat on the shoulder.

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2026-02-28 06:18