Ricky Gervais has responded to fan pressure for him to appear on a celebrity edition of The Traitors, suggesting that other contestants would struggle more than him.
The 65-year-old comedian, who co-created The Office and Extras with Stephen Merchant, replied after a mocked-up image of him wearing a Traitors cloak was shared on X. The post, from The Ricky Gervais Clips account, carried the caption: 'The BBC definitely can't afford him, but this is what the nation wants for the next series of The Celebrity Traitors.'
Gervais on Traitor or Faithful
In response, Gervais wrote that 'It would be all the others that have the breakdown.' When another fan asked whether he would prefer to be a Traitor or a Faithful, he said it made no difference to him.
'Don't mind,' he wrote. 'Traitor is more fun if your fellow traitors are good. But I think everyone would assume I'm a traitor anyway, so I'd be out early either way.'
Previous comments on the show
This is not the first time Gervais has addressed the possibility of joining the reality series. In 2024, when rumours emerged that the BBC was developing a celebrity version, he was linked with the show but said it was unlikely.
'I love the show, and I'm very flattered, but it won't happen,' he wrote on X at the time. 'I'm too busy, and there's no way they could afford me.'
However, Jonathan Ross claimed on his podcast that the real reason Gervais stayed away was a fear of being targeted. Ross said Gervais called him after The Traitors and asked whether he was taking part. Ross replied that he was, and that Stephen Fry and Alan Carr were also involved.
According to Ross, Gervais said he did not want to do it because he feared the Faithfuls would vote out the biggest names. 'You're going to wind up getting voted out just because they think you're a bigger name in the outside world,' Ross claims Gervais said.
Netflix has not yet commissioned a second season of Alley Cats, Gervais's animated series, which could leave him free for a future series of the show.
