James Acaster has said all contestants on Celebrity Traitors should have walked out of the game during a coffin burial task, praising Jerry Hall for refusing to take part.
The 41-year-old comedian became a focus of attention after the conclusion of the BBC show, following dramatic scenes in the semi-final where he unmasked himself as a Traitor.
Filming was halted mid-shoot, with the welfare team called in to check on the celebrity cast, and the episode required significant editing after production was brought to a standstill when the pressure proved too much for James.
Coffin task ordeal
In an interview with Far Out magazine, filmed before the series aired, James opened up about the disturbing task that haunted him after filming. Several celebrities were placed inside coffins before being lowered into the ground and covered with soil.
James was buried alongside Bella Ramsey, who he said remained calm throughout the ordeal, but admitted her reaction did little to ease his growing fear. Recalling the moment, he said: "I was laying there thinking, actually, I think I'm really scared of this." He also remembered Bella's comment as the soil began covering their coffin: "As soon as the soil was heaped on top, Bella did say, 'Imagine if they can't get us out.'"
Respect for Jerry Hall
James went on to reveal that he had the greatest respect for Jerry Hall, who refused to take part in the challenge and chose to walk away. He admitted he wished he had made the same decision rather than staying put in the hope of winning the competition.
He said: "She didn't like it. She didn't like, well, none of us liked it. No, I respect Jerry the most because Jerry just went, 'I'm not doing this.' Like, are you kidding me? And the rest of us were just like, 'We want to win Traitors in our coffins, idiots.'"
He added: "We should have just done what - as soon as I heard Jerry got out, I should have said to Bella, 'I'm getting out, forget it. If it's a free-for-all now, we should all get out. They can't stop us all. We could all do it.'"
Co-star tensions and social media
His comments attracted fresh attention following reports that James struggled with relationships among some of his co-stars. After the series ended, claims emerged that the comedian had felt increasingly singled out by fellow comedians Romesh Ranganathan and Rob Beckett, with alleged tensions centred around their different backgrounds. The BBC previously denied reports of a bullying row involving the cast.
James was also notably absent when the remaining cast gathered for the post-show Uncloaked celebrations, where Romesh and Sebastian 'Bash' Croft were congratulated on their victory.
Elsewhere in his Far Out interview, James spoke about what he considers to be performative niceness, arguing that being pleasant does not necessarily make someone a good person. He said: "Nice doesn't make you a good person, being nice to people, but being kind makes you a good person. And there's a difference between those things."
The comedian also admitted he has become increasingly frustrated by people he feels do not do their jobs properly. "These days it's so rare to find someone who is good at their job, whatever that job is and I just get more and more frustrated in life the older I get," he said.
James also discussed his relationship with social media, explaining that he had gradually stepped away from looking at online reactions to his work. "I don't look at other people's opinions to validate the thing that I've done," he said, adding: "Definitely right now it's much better if I'm not online reading everything."
He also spoke about his experience of Celebrity Traitors, saying the programme's arrival on television had felt surreal. "Nothing feels very real at the minute," he said. "The Traitors is going out but it hasn't really affected my life at all which feels more surreal."
His appearance on the show ultimately became one of the series' biggest talking points after he confessed to being a Traitor during the penultimate episode. The comedian had originally wanted to compete as a Faithful but was recruited to the opposing side, eventually admitting his identity rather than continuing to deceive the other contestants.
