Amidst the debate about James Acaster’s Traitors exit, we’ve forgotten a moment from episode one

After James Acaster had a breakdown and admitted his Traitor status mid-roundtable discussion, the internet launched into a fierce debate over his decision. 

In the Celebrity Traitors moment no one saw coming, he said: “I just want to explain my situation. I was made a Traitor without wanting to be. I’ve had a unique experience on this that no-one’s had before, I wanted be a Faithful that’s all I wanted to be but I couldn’t just go ‘guys its me, vote for me’ but that’s all I can do really.”

It’s left people pretty torn. On one side, you’ve got people arguing that it’s a game, and that mental health should always be the priority. At the same time, others have argued he’s ruined the game, and the Traitor role could have been given to someone else more deserving. What’s the point of getting to the final episodes and then quitting?

“James Acaster. What a guy. Truly incredible game he’s played and I’m honestly so proud, that round table was once in a lifetime,” one person wrote on Twitter. 

Another said: “What an absolutely selfish tw*t James Acaster is. Completely ruined the entire series. Should have scrapped the entire thing and started again. #CelebrityTraitors.”

Indeed, James Acaster never wanted to be a Traitor, and while I’m still personally torn by the decision, a scene from the very first episode is rubbing salt in the wound. 

James Acaster’s breakdown was a long time coming, unfortunately 

Credit: BBC

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At the start of The Celebrity Traitors season two, Claudia selected Maya Jama and Richard E. Grant as the Traitors. They were then tasked with recruiting a third member, and it was a toss-up between James Acaster and Amol Rajan. 

Throughout the episode, James had said over and over again that he was passionately opposed to being a Traitor. Richard and Maya didn’t know this, and they opted to choose him despite Amol’s years of journalistic training. It was then that James first said he would play the game totally differently. 

Credit: BBC

But during that tense first murder, he fully had the opportunity to stick to his ethics. He argued to become a Traitor with as much veracity as Amol, so if he was really that against being a Traitor, why did he go so hard? He could have just stuck to his guns and accepted his fate. The simplest argument is that he wanted to stay in the show, which is fair, but to get so far and then throw in the towel is infuriating. 

Putting James Acaster’s decision to the side for a moment, it does highlight an interesting tidbit: We knew who he was from the get-go, and he continued to play the “reluctant Traitor” violin for the rest of the show. 

Can we really be that annoyed that he was consistent? I can’t decide. 

For all the latest news about The Celebrity Traitors, like The Holy Church of The Traitors on Facebook. 

Featured image credit: BBC