Three’s glossy new reality show promises twists, turns and murderous celebrities. But does it measure up to the hugely successful international versions? Stewart Sowman-Lund tunes in.

Contains spoilers for episode one of The Traitors NZ.

It’s been a long time coming, but The Traitors NZ is finally here. If you haven’t watched the first episode yet, I recommend you stop right here and do that immediately – The Traitors is a format that relies heavily on cliffhangers and unexpected twists.

If you somehow still have no clue what this show is, here’s a brief lowdown. The Traitors NZ is a murder mystery party hosted by the one and only Paul Henry. Airing twice weekly on Three, the show follows a group of 19 contestants, including some famous faces, as they work to unmask the secret “traitors” in their midst. Each night the traitors get a chance to “kill” one of the innocent “faithfuls”, and then the whole group has an opportunity to banish someone they believe to be a traitor. At the end of it all lies a potential cash pot of $70,000. Easy!

Despite the somewhat miserly prize pool (compared to the $250,000 in Australia and £100,000 in the UK version) it’s clear that Three has a lot riding on The Traitors NZ. It’s rare these days for a brand new reality format to debut, especially with such a high profile host and the amount of marketing spend that’s gone into pushing this. So I’m pleased to report that – based entirely off tonight’s first episode – we appear to have a hit on our hands.

My thesis going into episode one was that it would probably be harder to make a bad version of The Traitors than a good one. That’s because it’s a perfect format, one that reliably manages to drum up tension, laughs and tears – often in a single episode. In recent interviews, Henry has made clear that the hero of this show is the premise and not himself or any of the contestants. That’s because, the host claims, the contestants aren’t being deprived of food or creature comforts like they would be on Celebrity Treasure Island – they’re being starved of their sanity. It’s a slightly extreme way of looking at, but he’s pretty much spot on. The constant suspicion at the heart of The Traitors does something to people, and the New Zealand edition is no different. 

The drama kicks off early in The Traitors NZ. Moments after arriving at the lodge, contestants are offered the chance to take $10,000 in silver(!) and leave the game immediately. It seems an obvious choice. It is, as comedian Sam Smith points out, a seventh of the total prize pool. Or as Colin Mathura-Jeffree describes it: “A delicious amount of money.” And yet the allure of taking part in the game wins out for all but one contestant, with only professional gamer Sam Fury willing to make the dash for the 10k.

Many of the contestants who chose not to attempt to cash in on the prize seem to quickly regret their decision. “That’s the smartest move that you can do in this game,” Smith says, realisation dawning that he now has to risk being murdered in a big house and could very easily leave empty-handed.

Another icebreaker task drums up further suspicion among the contestants. Each player is asked to add green dye to the cocktail of the player they trust the least. They’ve only been together for a few hours, and yet we quickly see suspicions directed at just about every single player, often for the most mundane of reasons.

“I’m scared of Colin Mathura-Jeffree,” says Sam Smith, choosing to tip his dye into the model’s drink. Colin returns the favour. Professional dancer Loryn Reynolds says that “Dylan [Reeve] has been extremely vocal… I wouldn’t trust him with any information”. Multiple contestants target hairdresser Robbie, for seemingly no reason. She jokingly adds the dye to her own drink as well. “Oh, what the hell,” she laughs. 

Twists, turns and large piles of silver bars – so far, so good. As is a prerequisite for local reality television, there are also attempts to make the show feel more expensive than it really is. For example: The Traitors UK is set in a Scottish castle. The Traitors AU in an historic hotel. The Traitors NZ? What appears to be an upmarket Airbnb. It’s described on-air as an “isolated lodge”, despite swooping drone shots revealing the property definitely has neighbours. I wouldn’t have expected, or wanted, anything else from The Traitors NZ.

But while I’m happy to play into the faux mystique of the lodge, the first episode left me slightly frustrated with how it is utilised – or underutilised. For a show based on the idea of contestants being “murdered”, why is most of it filmed in broad daylight? The Traitors UK leant heavily into the general creepiness found filming at night in a big spooky castle. The location became another character in the show, making the players even more on edge than they already were. By contrast, The Traitors NZ has opted for a more pleasant, daylit vibe, with everyone sitting around in a lovely sun-soaked lounge swigging cocktails like it’s The Bachelor.

While the contestants might seem to be having a bit too much fun in the sun, Paul Henry is intent on ruining any pleasant atmosphere. He’s gone full Daniel Day-Lewis as a pompous, mean, cane-holding, fedora-wearing, red wine-swilling tyrant. Where the real Henry ends and Traitors host Henry starts is an impossible question to answer, but for fans of Breakfast-era Henry, you may be disappointed that his frosty facade doesn’t drop very often, in the first episode at least. His famous laugh is kept largely under wraps and he looks to be fully engrossed in cultivating a sort of psychopathic Willy Wonka character, gleefully leading each of the contestants to their possible death. 

I hope he loosens up a little bit as the series goes on, though perhaps I’m just holding him up against the UK’s Claudia Winkelman who, while being serious when introducing challenges, would often show emotion or tear up as contestants were banished from the show. If Henry sheds even a single tear during The Traitors NZ, I’ll eat both my fedora and his. 

As for the cast, it’s a mix of celebrities and regular folk, perhaps skewed a bit heavily towards the celebs. I think the show would work better if nobody was familiar with one another before filming – admittedly a hard task in a place like New Zealand. “A group of complete strangers,” says Henry in his opening voiceover, a line that doesn’t really hold up when the cast includes broadcasters, comedians and other celebrities who openly talk about how well they know each other. It instantly forms cliques and a power imbalance that takes away from the show’s format, which relies on forging alliances and reading people you’ve never met before. How this will play out across the season remains to be seen, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the regular folk are banished earlier just because they’ll struggle to form relationships. 

I’m glad, however, that the traitors themselves aren’t just famous faces. Radio Hauraki’s Matt Heath has earned immediate trust from many of the competitors, but risks his big mouth giving away his big secret. Then there’s poker player Dan. He should have, well, the best poker face – and he has an established friendship with Brooke Howard Smith (further evidence that the “strangers” line from the start is a blatant lie) – but he already looks uncomfortable lying to peoples’ faces. It’s Dancing With the Stars dancer Loryn Reynolds I’m most convinced will be the last traitor standing – she’s someone you wouldn’t expect to backstab you and seems totally at ease pretending to be innocent.

And so, with the episode ending on a traditional Traitors cliffhanger, I’m convinced that this will be a series worth staying faithful to. It’s high concept reality television, with a little bit of low budget charm. 

The Traitors NZ airs Mondays and Tuesdays at 7.30pm on Three.

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