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The 5 Traitors and how they were banished
The most anticipated TV shows of 2025
USA TODAY TV critic Kelly Lawler shares her top 5 TV shows she is most excited for this year
Spoiler alert: This post contains details from the finale of “The Traitors” Season 3 (now streaming on Peacock).
It was a cannibalistic season for the murderous Traitors, who went at each other more than they targeted Faithfuls to kill off on the competition show.
Their strategy was so individualistic, so uncompromising, that it cost the group – comprising Bob the Drag Queen, “Boston” Rob Mariano, Carolyn Wiger, Danielle Reyes and Britney Haynes – the prize pot of up to $250,000. They left the door wide open for Faithfuls Gabby Windey, Dylan Efron, Dolores Catania and Lord Ivar Mountbatten to take the bragging rights as the Season 3 winners.
Here are Season 3’s Traitors and how they were plucked off, one by one.
Bob the Drag Queen
First to go from the murderous bunch was “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 8 winner Bob (who is non-binary and uses he/him and she/her pronouns), affectionately known to some as Bob TDQ/Tidicue. He landed on Boston Rob’s bad side with one simple comment in Episode 4 and ultimately drowned under Rob’s underhanded vote collecting tactics ahead of the roundtable.
The beginning of the end: “I did think that one of the new guys needs a head up there because we all think one of them might be a Traitor.” Rob felt this offhanded comment after the statue-building game put “the sus” on him, and he started launching an offensive against “the head of the dragon.” Rob embarked on a campaign to get Bob off the show before the drag queen could do the same to him, and this set the tone for a season full of traitor-on-traitor crimes.
How Bob the Drag Queen got banished: Bob did not do himself any favors with his overly defensive strategy at the Episode 4 roundtable. Dolores, Danielle, Chrishell, Britney, Ciara, Dylan, Carolyn, Sam, Ivar, Rob and Bob Harper voted for him after Rob managed to turn them against the drag queen.
But before his grand exit – and as he floundered in the face of Rob’s direct attacks – Bob managed to get in one low blow to fellow millennials: the cutting remark that Dylan Efron’s older brother, Zac Efron might be an actor, but “not a good one.”
Boston Rob
His gaming prowess, banishment of a fellow Traitor and ability to wiggle out of the spotlight in multiple roundtable conversations didn’t keep Boston Rob safe for long. The “Survivor” legend was voted out of the castle in Episode 7 after he saw to the murder of his biggest threat, Derrick, which placed “the sus” on him (as Rob would say).
The beginning of the end: Going so hard for Bob the Queen earlier in the season started getting the cogs turning for some players, who wondered whether it was a case of a Traitor getting out another Traitor. Then with Derrick’s murder, Dolores accurately noted that fingers could start pointing at Rob, who replied with shockingly little conviction: “Yeah, I’m being framed.”
How Boston Rob got banished: A broken clock is right at least twice a day. Tom Sandoval believed Rob was a Traitor and could not be convinced otherwise. Though Rob tried to deflect suspicion onto Britney, the roundtable discussion did not go his way. Sam pointed out that several times, those who dared to target Rob found themselves sleeping with the fishes. Fellow Traitors Danielle and Carolyn gauged how the winds were blowing and jumped aboard the “Rob is a Traitor” train just in time. Tom, Britney, Carolyn, Ivar, Sam, Danielle and Gabby cast their votes in Rob’s direction.
Carolyn Wiger
With her offbeat antics and sincerity, Carolyn flew under the radar throughout Season 3. Then she burned out in spectacular fashion, becoming the third Traitor to fail their mission of stealing away the prize money from the Faithfuls.
The beginning of the end: Carolyn and Danielle had been at odds since Danielle started floating Carolyn’s name earlier in the season. Things between the two came to a head in Episode 9, when the Traitors were gifted the option of replenishing their membership with a new player. Danielle wanted “Big Brother” bestie Britney to join the crew, and Carolyn accurately clocked this as a possible ploy to knock her out of the running for the prize money.
The nail in the coffin, likely, was the human chess game in which she just couldn’t keep her cool. Carolyn realized too late that, as a Traitor, her aim was not to get the superlatives correct but, rather, to be as inobtrusive as possible. She put herself on the chopping block by naming herself as a player no one listens to and, well, the rest is history.
How Carolyn got banished: In a game of Danielle versus Carolyn, the Faithfuls had a 100% chance of ridding themselves of a Traitor in their midst. (Unfortunately, Tom and Dolores did not get the memo, as they confoundingly wrote each other’s names on their blackboards.) Danielle convinced Faithfuls Ivar, Britney and Dylan to get the “Survivor” alum out of the castle. And as Carolyn admits, “I wasn’t ready to fully defend myself.” Carolyn’s dear friend Dylan was the deciding vote.
Danielle Reyes
Against all odds – including eyebrow-raising antics such as her overly dramatic banishment reactions – Danielle made it to the final episode. She was a hairsbreadth away from a win when the Faithfuls finally got their act together and voted en masse to take out the “Big Brother” alumna.
The beginning of the end: It was by sheer miracle that Danielle didn’t make it on to everyone’s hit list in Episode 5, when she somehow thought it was a good idea to keep nominating players other than herself for a shield during the riddle game. Then there was the falling-to-the-ground-hyperventilating when Carolyn was banished and also Gabby’s astute observation that Carolyn’s banishment might’ve been yet another Traitor-versus-Traitor moment.
How Danielle got banished: The first of two banishments in the finale had a split vote between Ivar and Danielle. Dylan could not ignore the mountain of evidence against his friend Danielle, and he jotted down her name. Gabby also cast her vote for Danielle, and Britney – claiming she thought her “vote would not save” Danielle – did the same.
Britney Haynes
Britney had one of the show’s shorter stints as a Traitor. Despite the season beginning with an iciness between the two over Britney voting Danielle off “Big Brother Reindeer Games,” they turned into strong allies, with Danielle keeping her new friend safe from murder. But the strategy backfired as Britney contributed to Danielle’s banishment in what was either a calculated move or a fatal mistake.
The beginning of the end: Boston Rob planted the seed that Britney might be a Traitor back when she was saving his own hide in Episode 7, and he didn’t even know the prophesy would turn out to be true. Between this niggling thought in the back of some Faithfuls’ minds, as well as the fact that Danielle was so aghast at her best friend’s betrayal earlier in the final episode, the remaining contestants could not in good conscience go to the fire pit with Britney still alive and breathing.
How Britney got banished: As the finale came to a close, Britney’s offensive against Dylan did not go according to plan. Her argument that Danielle being “visibly distraught” by Dylan’s vote for her banishment meant he was stabbing a fellow Traitor in the back did not win anyone over. For once, the roundtable had a unanimous vote, and Britney was cast out – and was unable to reveal her status as she left the Faithfuls to guess whether there was another fox in the henhouse.
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Forced labor, employee sex assault
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to remain in jail until May 2025 trial
In a press conference, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York revealed shocking allegations against Sean “Diddy” Combs.
The government’s case against hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs seems to be building ahead of his criminal trial this spring.
On Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York submitted a new federal court filing that leveled one new allegation against Combs to add to the racketeering and sex crimes charges he already faces — and pled not guilty to in September.
The second superseding indictment, which updates the amended indictment from January that added three unnamed women who were allegedly victims of his so-called sex trafficking enterprise, claims Combs subjected employees to forced labor under inhumane circumstances.
Combs and his conspirators “maintained control over certain employees of the Combs Business” and “forced” them to “work long hours with little sleep, through use of, among other things, physical force, psychological harm, financial harm, and reputational harm, and/or threats of the same,” per the indictment.
These actions “caused these employees to believe they would be harmed — including by losing their jobs — if they did not comply with his demands,” U.S. attorneys claim.
They allude to allegations from one former employee, who told them Combs “used physical force, psychological harm, financial harm, and reputational harm, and/or threats of the same to cause the employee to engage in sex acts with Combs.”
The rest of the indictment maintains the government’s position that Combs turned his “multi-faceted business empire” into a “criminal enterprise” in which he and his associates engaged in kidnapping, arson and physical violence, sex trafficking and forced labor, among other crimes.
In response to the updated indictment, Combs’ lead attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said his client is not guilty of the charges the government has brought against him.
“Mr. Combs has said it before and will say it again: he vehemently denies the accusations made by the SDNY,” he said in a statement issued Thursday. “(Combs) looks forward to his day in court when it will become clear that he has never forced anyone to engage in sexual acts against their will.
“Many former employees stand by his side, prepared to attest to the dedication, hard work, and inspiration they experienced while helping build groundbreaking, award-winning businesses.”
Since his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura filed — and quickly settled — a lawsuit with bombshell assault and abuse allegations against the Bad Boy Records founder in November 2023, Combs’ attorneys have maintained his innocence as he faces dozens of sexual assault lawsuits that date back to the 1990s, as well as his criminal sex crimes charges.
Combs is currently in jail after being denied bond multiple times and is scheduled to head to trial for his sex trafficking and racketeering charges on May 5.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers free, confidential, 24/7 support to survivors and their loved ones in English and Spanish at: 800.656.HOPE (4673) and Hotline.RAINN.org and en Español RAINN.org/es.
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Crossword Blog & Answers for March 7, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today’s puzzle before reading further! Broken Bats
Constructor: Stella Zawistowski
Editor: Amanda Rafkin
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
- TBS (27A: “American Dad!” network) American Dad! is an animated sitcom which premiered on Fox in 2005. The TV show moved to TBS in 2014 for its 12th season. The 21st season of American Dad! premiered on TBS in October 2024. The show centers on an eccentric upper middle class family – the Smiths – who live in a fictionalized version of Langley, Virginia. Stan Smith is the title character, who is a right-wing CIA agent.
- BRA (55A: Cosabella product) Cosabella is an Italian luxury lingerie brand founded in 1983 by Valerie Campello. This brand is new to me.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
- SHOE (16A: Flip-flop or flat) Lovely alliteration here: Flip-flop or flat.
- MIAMI (17A: City in “The Birdcage” and “The Golden Girls”) The Birdcage is a 1996 movie adapted from a 1978 French movie, La Cage aux Folles (which was, in turn, adapted from a 1973 play). The movie is set in the South Beach neighborhood of MIAMI. The Golden Girls (1985-1992), the TV sitcom about four older women who are roommates, is also set in MIAMI, Florida.
- SLIME (32A: Glue-and-contact-solution concoction) SLIME is a non-Newtonian compound, which means it doesn’t behave like a solid or a liquid. You can pick it up like a solid, but it oozes like a liquid. SLIME can be made at home using glue, baking soda, and contact solution.
- BAHA’I (37A: Religion that originated in Iran) The BAHÁ’Í faith was established in the 1800s by Bahá’u’lláh, its prophet-founder who lived in Iran. The religion emphasizes the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people.
- BAD FEMINIST (56A: 2014 essay collection by Roxane Gay) Roxane Gay is an author, social commentator, and professor. She is currently the Gloria Steinem Endowed Chair in Media, Culture and FEMINIST Studies at Rutgers University. She is also a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. BAD FEMINIST is Roxane Gay’s 2014 best-selling collection of essays, which explores what it means to be a FEMINIST while loving things that seem at odds with feminism.
- NACHO (66A: “What do you call cheese that’s not yours? ___ cheese!”) I am here for all the clues containing cheesy jokes!
- ATTA (70A: Chapati flour) ATTA is a type of wholemeal wheat flour that is often used to make flatbreads such as chapati, roti, and naan. Because of the high gluten content of ATTA flour, dough made with it is strong and elastic, and can be rolled into thin sheets.
- SAMBA (4D: Dance with lots of hip action) SAMBA is a dance that originated in the Afro-Brazilian communities of Rio de Janeiro. SAMBA is characterized by fast, rhythmic footwork and rolling hip movements.
- AAVE (6D: Dialect in the Black community) I wrote about AAVE when we saw it a few days ago.
- SERIAL (8D: Sarah Koenig’s investigative journalism podcast) SERIAL is an investigative journalism podcast that narrates a nonfiction story over several episodes. Sarah Koenig hosts SERIAL, which first aired in 2014. The fourth season of SERIAL aired last year. It focused on the history of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
- CHEESEHEAD (10D: Fan of the Green Bay Packers) CHEESEHEAD is a nickname used for Wisconsin residents. The nickname refers to Wisconsin’s abundant cheese production. It’s said that CHEESEHEAD was first used as an insult, but residents decided to embrace the name, which has also come to be associated with fans of the state’s NFL team, the Green Bay Packers. CHEESEHEAD hats (think large yellow foam triangles resembling cheese) are common sights at Green Bay Packers games.
- CORGI (21D: Burrito-esque dog breed) The Welsh CORGI is a breed of herding dog that originated in Wales. The dogs have short legs and a long body. Inspired by a video of a CORGI wrapping itself in a towel, it has become an online trend for CORGI owners to post burrito-esque photos and videos of their dogs.
- TRIBE (22D: Kaw Nation, for example) The Kaw Nation, also known as the “People of the South Wind” are a TRIBE of indigenous people in Oklahoma and parts of Kansas.
- OBAMA (51D: “Becoming” author Michelle) Becoming is Michelle OBAMA’s 2018 memoir. I have previously written about the great memories I have associated with this book.
- TOTE (62D: Canvas bag) and TEA (64D: Leaves in a bag) Combining these clues here to get (a) TEA (bag) in a TOTE (bag).
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
- BARBECUE PIT (20A: Place to cook spareribs)
- BARGAIN BASEMENT (40A: Part of a store with discounted goods)
- BAD FEMINIST (56A: 2014 essay collection by Roxane Gay)
BROKEN BATS: The word BAT is BROKEN by each theme answer: BARBECUE PIT, BARGAIN BASEMENT, and BAD FEMINIST.
In general, BROKEN BATS are not a good thing. However, as a crossword theme, they work quite nicely. Today the title of the puzzle let me know just what to expect, and it was enjoyable to discover each of the three great theme answers. Thank you, Stella, for this excellent puzzle.
For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles
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Thousands to walk across Florida, hand out friendship bracelets
Lauren Book is preparing to walk 1,500 miles across the state of Florida — from Key West to Tallahassee — to pass out friendship bracelets and bring light to a dark subject.
“We’re walking 20-plus miles a day,” she says.
Book founded Lauren’s Kids, a nonprofit with a mission to prevent child sexual abuse and help survivors heal.
“I’m a survivor of childhood sexual abuse,” she says, “from the time that I was 10 years old until I was 16. I wanted to turn what was a very painful, difficult, horrific experience into something transformative to help others.”
The former Florida state senator started “Walk in My Shoes” more than a decade ago. Each year, she launches the event in Key West, the southernmost part of the U.S.
Then, for the month of April, Book passes through Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Naples, Tampa, Orlando and Pensacola. The walk ends on the Capitol steps in Tallahassee on April 30.
Last year, more than 5,000 participants laced up. This year, the goal is 7,500.
“Every year we try to do something different,” she says.
That’s where Taylor Swift’s record-breaking concert comes in. Book, a mom of two, attended two nights of the Eras Tour in Miami. Book was inspired by the singer’s community trading friendship bracelets in the stadium and wanted to incorporate the beaded jewelry into her own journey.
Long live the Eras Tour with our enchanting book
“Survivors are making bracelets with their name and age,” she says. “We are sending those to the directors of child abuse centers so the center can distribute bracelets to other children or adults. It allows those kids to know they are not alone and it’s been incredibly moving to watch.”
Not all the bracelets reflect survivor stories. Some have Swift’s lyrics, like “for the hope of it all” and “speak now.”
“You never know what a small act of kindness can do to help someone,” Book says. “Being able to pass a survivor on the street and hand them something special is a remarkable thing.”
Book will visit schools and centers across the state. Her itinerary is full of community visits that she and her team will walk to.
On April 8, they will stop at the PACE Center for Girls in Fort Lauderdale to make extra-large bracelets for the Florida Panthers’ mascots. Deputies from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office will collect bracelets to give out during difficult calls involving children.
On April 14, Lauren’s Kids will do a service project at Peace River Victims Services in Lakeland, painting and brightening the exam room and employee breakroom.
On April 21, the Bikers Against Child Abuse will join the march in Ocala. The organization is made up of volunteers who stand watch at a child’s house overnight or join them in court to help them feel safe.
“I’s not easy to walk 1,500 miles, but I keep doing it for the survivors,” Book says. In the U.S., there are 42 million survivors of child sexual abuse.
Interested walkers can register for the event at laurenskidswalk.org.
And for Swifties skilled at making the handmade jewelry, Book is asking them to send inspirational friendship bracelets to her office: 4000 Hollywood Blvd, Suite 677-S, Hollywood, FL 33021.
Don’t miss any Taylor Swift news; sign up for the free, weekly newsletter This Swift Beat.
Follow Bryan West, the USA TODAY Network’s Taylor Swift reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
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'Baywatch' actress Pamela Bach dies aged 62Entertainment
‘Baywatch’ actress Pamela Bach dies aged 62Entertainment
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Halle Bailey, DDG son Halo reacts to Ariel in ‘Little Mermaid’
Lin-Manuel Miranda talks song inspiration for ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’
Lin-Manuel Miranda tells USA TODAY how proud he is of how much music got to tell the story in “Mufasa: The Lion King.”
“The Little Mermaid” is a children’s movie staple. But for Halle Bailey, the family viewing experience is a little different.
The actress, who starred in a 2023 live-action remake of the Disney classic, shared an emotional clip of her son recognizing her on screen.
On Wednesday, Bailey posted a video to X showing her 14-month-old son Halo watching the opening sequence of the film and repeating, “Mama.”
“Guys i’m crying he actually knows Ariel is me,” she captioned the post. Bailey shares Halo with ex DDG.
The actress, and one-time member of sibling R&B duo Chloe x Halle, took on the coveted role of Ariel, starring alongside Javier Bardem and Melissa McCarthy. Despite racist backlash surrounding Bailey’s casting as the lead in the film, since the original cartoon version features a white Ariel, the movie was a critical and commercial success, raking in $560 million at box offices worldwide and breaking streaming records when it arrived on Disney+, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Since then Bailey has embarked on a solo musical career, releasing several singles including the Grammy-nominated song “Angel.” All the while her sister Chloe, whose own solo track “Have Mercy” became a radio favorite, has stood by in support − both as a professional peer and as an aunt to Halo, who may be following in the path of his musically inclined family.
“He’s singing, he’s dancing a lot,” Chloe Bailey told People magazine at the NAACP Image Awards in February. “He’s making beats in his kids’ beats machine … that’s going to be my little mini-producer, my little mini-me.”
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‘SWAT’ canceled at CBS, Shemar Moore reacts
The most anticipated TV shows of 2025
USA TODAY TV critic Kelly Lawler shares her top 5 TV shows she is most excited for this year
Fans of CBS’ “S.W.A.T.” are saying goodbye to the Shemar Moore-led police procedural.
The series, which kicked off its eighth season in October and will wrap in May, has been canceled, Moore announced to fans on social media.
“I wasn’t going to do this, but I can’t help it,” he said in a lengthy Instagram video early Friday. “‘S.W.A.T.’ here we are, Season 8, three weeks away from the finale. We are canceled again. It sucks. It’s sad.”
Moore, 54, said he had to give a speech to the action-drama series’ crew, calling the production “the most amazing crew in Hollywood.”
“Just good people,” he said. “No jerks. People who show up, sacrifice seeing their families and work their tails off to make ‘S.W.A.T.’”
USA TODAY has reached out to CBS for comment.
Moore, a CBS mainstay (“The Young and the Restless,” “Criminal Minds”), thanked the network for “the honor” of doing the show while also giving a wink to other networks.
“Thank you for the opportunity. Thank you for the ride. If you change your mind, I promise you, you’ll make a lot of people smile,” he said. “But if you’re done, CBS, I say thank you. Hey, Netflix, how you doing?”
Moore said he’s “not done” with Hollywood, adding he’s “so excited for the next chapter of my life and my career” and being a father to 2-year-old daughter, Frankie. “I ain’t done. My knees are ready. I lost 20 pounds. I’m ready to go.”
The series also starred Stephanie Sigman, Alex Russell, Lina Esco, Kenny Johnson, Peter Onorati, Jay Harrington and David Lim.
The crime drama was originally canceled by CBS after Season 6 in May 2023, and in April, the network surprised by renewing the series weeks before the Season 7 finale, thought to be the final season.
On his Instagram story Friday, Moore shared the Deadline article about the cancellation, in which showrunner and executive producer Andrew Dettmann called the news “heartbreaking.”
“It’s heartbreaking news, primarily because it’s been such an immense pleasure working with this cast and crew to put out a show that we’ve always been proud of,” Dettmann told the outlet. “They are truly an extraordinary group of people who have all worked so hard and have been so dedicated for all these eight seasons, overcoming countless challenges. I can’t give them enough credit.”
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Ed Burns talks new film, marriage adviceEntertain This!
Ed Burns talks new film, marriage adviceEntertain This!
