Alan Cumming on ‘Traitors’ Reality Hosting Nomination: ‘Ironically, I’m Acting My Socks Off’

Alan Cumming is no stranger to the Emmys. He was previously nominated three times for his portrayal of Eli Gold in The Good Wife and once before for cohosting the 69th Annual Tony Awards. His new 2024 Emmys nomination for reality competition host for The Traitors is, however, his first foray into the category, putting him in leagues with RuPaul Charles, the Shark Tank sharks, Jeff Probst, and Kristen Kish. Unlike the others of his ilk here, though, Cumming is putting on a true performance, fit with costuming and a castle, no less!

Following his nomination, TV Insider caught up with Cumming, who is currently in Scotland and just wrapped Season 3, to find out his reaction to this bold new adventure paying off so well.

Congratulations! This is not your first rodeo with the Emmys, but it is your first for this category and with this show. What does it mean to see The Traitors and your work getting celebrated this way? 

Alan Cumming: It’s just one of these lovely, bonkers things happens in your life — my life — things you never thought were going to happen. I mean, I’ve been nominated for an Emmy quite a few times before, but as an actor, and now I’m nominated as a host, even though, ironically, I’m acting my socks off more in The Traitors than I did in all the other nominations. It’s just a lovely thing. And I really do enjoy The Traitors.

It probably was an odd choice, but I’m in this great show that I really love, something I never thought I’d be doing. I met such lovely people, and the show is such a big success. It opened up all these new doors for me. Now it’s a really lovely thing, and a sort of testament to saying ‘yes’ to things that are different and new and maybe a little scary.

As you mentioned, your part as host is more performative than the other nominees. How similar is the real Alan Cumming to the Alan Cumming we see on The Traitors?

I would say the biggest sort of similarity that me in real life and me in The Traitors have is that we look alike. Apart from that, it’s not very much else. I don’t normally dress like this. I mean, there’s this character that I’ve invented, and great people like Sam Specter, who’s the stylist, helped me. The costume adds so much to it. Of course, this plot of the show is so dramatic and theatrical that I just have to go with it like that.

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The contestants, they come on with their game, they come on with their schtick, and they know how to do it, and they come on with their characters, too. So it’s like this very theatrical, heightened thing. And I love that. I’m not big on realism. I actually quite like heightened theatricality. So it’s great to be in a show that celebrates all that.

How hard is it to keep a straight face when you know who the traitors are?

It’s pretty hard sometimes. This last season, especially, I don’t know why, but I got told off a couple of times. The voice in my ear was saying, ‘Alan, your face, your face, your face.’ Not because I was going to tell you the traitor was, but I was kind of rolling my eyes at certain things — when it got more heated and more dramatic. I’ve got quite a good poker face, but sometimes, because it’s a character, it’s easier. But the thing about this that’s really hard, of course, is now I’ve got to keep the secrets until January, and that I find very difficult. And I’ve got friends who I say, ‘Hey,’ and they go, ‘No spoilers!’ That’s all they say to me — the first thing everyone says to me now, because I’m terrible at keeping secrets. But luckily, I’ve got a very bad memory, so I kind of forgot, I probably have forgotten, by the time it comes around.

If you were playing the game, would you rather be a traitor or a faithful?

I’d rather be a traitor. It’s much better. I mean, it’s like being an actor, they always get the best lines. And I think it’s much more difficult to be a faithful, actually, in terms of just what you’ve got to do, but I think it’s much more dangerous to be a traitor. But I think I’d love it. I mean, I think I would have fun anyway. Give it my best shot.

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When it comes to the daily challenges, how much of a hand do you have in those, and what’s your favorite type of challenge so far?

I don’t really have much say in what the challenges are. There’s a whole team of people who are much better at that than me. I mean, my sort of input’s more about what I say and the look and the feel, the aesthetic of the show. But really,  some of them are so ridiculous and insane — I mean, I find them hilarious. To see all those people having to be dunked in lochs and of all this stuff happening to them, and being terrified, being absolutely terrified, it’s hilarious. So I quite enjoy teasing them and luring them into this thing. But I don’t think I would like it. Actually, I think I would — I like a surprise — but some of these ones are pretty big surprises.

So what can you tease about Season 3?

It’s got a load more twists. I think the thing about doing a show like this is, especially when it’s new, you’ve got to sort of keep people guessing and not make people think they understand or they can sort of work out the way that it’s going. So it’s very twisty this season. And my outfits last year, they kind of did this type of thing of matching my outfits to the missions. This year, there’s some of that, but it’s more just kind of like bonkers. But it’s very twisty and very kind of pulling the rug from under everybody all the time. It’s also got some lovely moments in it as well, in a way that we haven’t had before. It’s very different to the other two seasons—in a really good way.

Lastly, your bestie Ari Shapiro, has taken up the mantle of host as well, with The Mole. What kind of advice did you give him about playing host of a deceitful game, and what would you think if you were both competing in this category next year?

Well, that would be hilarious if we did. That’d be so good. I haven’t watched the finale. Actually, maybe I’ll watch that tonight. But when he started doing it, we have this joke that it’s kind of like All About Eve. You know, I’m Betty Davis. Because I did a solo show, he did a solo show; I wrote memoirs, he wrote a memoir; I hosted the competition reality show, he hosted the competition. I said, “All right, Ari. Ari, Ari, Ari. It’s all about Ari!” The advice I gave Ari when he got the job, as I said, “You’ve got to have a catchphrase.” The one that I suggested to him, but he did not use, was that he would say to them, “You’ve been whacked!” That’s what I thought would be great. Wouldn’t that be funny?!

Like whack-a-mole. Yes!

The Traitors, Seasons 1-2, Streaming now, Peacock