Maya Jama has spoken out about James Acaster’s dramatic exit from Celebrity Traitors after her hooded accomplice shockingly outed himself at the penultimate round table.
The dust is still settling after the final episode of this year’s series saw Faithfuls Romesh Ranganathan and Sebastian Croft triumph over the Traitors and take home a shared prize of £83,000 for their chosen charities – and viewers, and it seems contestants, are still reeling from Acaster’s surprise confession.
Jama has since addressed her co-star’s shock exit when she was asked about her reaction to the moment in an interview with Variety.
“I know, bless him,” said Jama. “Never in a game would you expect that you’re going to be put in a situation where you absolutely hate being a Traitor. And I obviously had no idea beforehand that he didn’t want to be a Traitor, I just thought everyone’s kind of up for it.”
During his time on the series, Acaster made no secret about hating his new position and frequently said that he wanted to continue playing the game as a Faithful by trying not to lie to his fellow contestants.
Jama continued: “But yeah, it was hard. I don’t think anybody knows how it would feel once you’re in the situation, and that’s going to impact everyone completely differently. As he said, for him it was a lot.
“You’re like, ‘OK, this is a game, we’re playing for charity.’ But then these people have real feelings, and trying to find the balance between it is tougher than it looks.”
Jama went on to speak about just how immersive the game can feel, calling it a “mind trip”.
“I came in there like, ‘Oh, this is just fun and we’ll have a laugh, silly silly.’ But there’s definitely days where you’re like, ‘Jesus, this feels really real.’ And you can’t escape the bubble of being in the castle and everyone’s emotions and feelings,” she said. “It definitely gets heavy at times.”
Viewers were left in shock after Acaster’s confession, which was largely glossed over in the series following Friday night’s finale where it was not discussed at length. Co-star Ranganathan did, however, praise his banished co-star, stating: “The amazing thing about James is that he has done something that I don’t think I’ve seen anybody do.
“He played a truly unique game, which was to accept his role, but to do it as a Faithful, helping as he possibly could, and that is kind of typical of the sort of thing that James A does. And I respect it a lot.”
Amol Rajan, meanwhile, who was “murdered” in episode two after Jama and Grant chose to recruit Acaster over him, later commented on a clip posted by the BBC, calling Acaster a “remarkable soul”. On the same post, Strictly host Josh Widdicombe posted a series of love heart emojis.
Speaking on The Rest is Entertainment podcast, Richard Osman defended Acaster from viewers accusing him of “ruining” the series with his premature admission.
Osman said that despite Acaster visibly wanting to exit the game throughout the whole process, he chose the right time to do so when his exit wouldn’t “blow up the whole show”.
“You know, like at a party where suddenly there is a gap between you and the door and you think, ‘I could just go now and nobody is going to see me,’” Osman said. “I think he just took the opportunity... I think he didn’t want to go into that end game. He didn't want to go into that bit where you really have to look people in the eye, face to face and say, ‘Yes it was me.’
“I think he thought, if I go here and now, then at least Maya and Kenny have a chance. I think he’s brilliant and he does bend the conventions of everything he does and he did it here and I get it. As gameplay, it’s a hand grenade for sure... it’s interesting as a character study, I would absolutely defend his right to do it.”
It was reported that filming of the penultimate episode was paused so producers could intervene when Acaster became distressed at the roundtable. The BBC responded with a statement, saying that its “highest priority is always the safety and welfare of everyone taking part”.
A spokesperson added: “Players are closely monitored and supported throughout by production which includes a dedicated and experienced welfare team.”
Fans were concerned after Acaster went seemingly unmentioned in the spin-off show The Traitors Uncloaked over the weekend.
On Friday night, as Ed Gamble and host Claudia Winkleman discussed the final with contestants Ranganathan, James Blunt, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and King Kenny, fans noticed Acaster’s conspicuous absence from the conversation. “I hope James Acaster is OK,” TV host Dan Walker remarked on X. “No appearance and not even mentioned on the Uncloaked show.”
Acaster was not the only star to skip the Uncloaked final: Bella Ramsay, Michael Sheen, Joanna McNally, Rob Beckett, Sharon Rooney, Myha’la, Jerry Hall, and Maya Jama were also absent.
The Independent has contacted Acaster’s representative and the BBC for comment.
This series of Celebrity Traitors has been a ratings winner for the BBC, bringing in 15 million viewers at its peak, even amid disgruntlement over how the show unfolded.
Thursday’s semi-final was watched by its biggest live audience to date, with 10.7 million tuning in, with a 62 per cent share of Thursday night’s viewership.
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