Ricky Gervais has declined to take part in the BBC's Celebrity Traitors, despite being at the top of the producers' wish list. The 65-year-old actor and comedian said he loved playing the game but did not want to be filmed doing so.
Gervais explains his refusal
Speaking to Saga Magazine, Gervais said: "It’s not that it’s beneath me. I’d love to play Traitors, but I don’t want to be filmed playing. What good can come of that?" He added: "I like watching MMA [Mixed Martial Arts], I don’t want to do it. I don’t want to be doing something I’m not in control of. I don’t want to be away from home playing a game with strangers."
This is not the first time he has rejected celebrity reality TV. In December 2025, he told Heart Breakfast: "I wouldn't go on celebrity anything. No, there's nothing with celebrity in front of it that you could tempt me with," before joking: "If it is just me in a five-star hotel room, then I might do it." He also dismissed Big Brother as "the worst" and joked about his fear of spiders preventing him from appearing on I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!
Celebrity Traitors success and upcoming season
The debut season of The Celebrity Traitors aired in October 2025 and peaked at 15.4 million viewers for its finale. The second season will return to BBC One later this year, with a line-up including Amol Rajan, Bella Ramsey, James Acaster, James Blunt, Jerry Hall, Joanne McNally, Joe Lycett, Julie Hesmondhalgh, King Kenny, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Maya Jama, Michael Sheen, Miranda Hart, Myha’la, Professor Hannah Fry, Richard E. Grant, Rob Beckett, Romesh Ranganathan, Ross Kemp, Sebastian Croft and Sharon Rooney.
