‘The Traitors’: Joey Graziadei Admits He ‘Didn’t Know’ Most of His Costars When He Arrived

Alyssa Norwin November 10, 2026, 12:16 pm

TV personality and former Bachelor Joey Graziadei appears on 'The Jennifer Hudson Show' — Chris Haston/WBTV via Getty Images

What To Know

Joey Graziadei is a contestant on Season 5 of The Traitors.
He opened up to TV Insider about meeting his costars for the first time and admitted he wasn’t familiar with many of them.
Graziadei also shared which past contestants he spoke to about the show and why he didn’t want to come in with a set strategy.

Joey Graziadei is taking on his next reality television venture as a contestant on Season 5 of The Traitors, alongside other fellow reality stars, as well as athletes, actors, and more. However, the Dancing With the Stars winner wasn’t immediately familiar with most of his costars.

“I think people forget sometimes … I don’t know a lot of people,” Graziadei told TV Insider. “I got faces down. So I walked in, and I saw a lot of familiar faces, but, unless they were someone I knew or met beforehand, I didn’t know who they were. So I’m sure you’re going to see that there was a lot of me not knowing who people are.”

Luckily, Graziadei had plenty of friends who have been on the show before, so he was able to get some advice before heading to Scotland. “My buddy Wells [Adams] was on the show. He was there [for a] fleeting time, as he loves to not think about, but he was at least able to experience it. I know Dylan [Efron] now very well, and I got to talk to him a little bit, as well as Boston Rob. I really just try to connect with anyone I knew that was on it and hear what their experience was.”

At the end of the day, though, Graziadei didn’t come into filming with any real strategy. “Everyone has their own thing when they go in there, and you never know what position you’re going to be in,” he pointed out. “I was just lucky enough to have had friends that have done it, so I just wanted to know their thoughts.”

Craig Conover on Why He Had No ‘Strategy’ for ‘Traitors’

Even though Graziadei has been on The Bachelorette, The Bachelor, and DWTS, he’s admittedly not an avid reality television watcher, but Traitors has been on his radar for a while now. “I watched the last two seasons and loved it,” he shared. “When that opportunity came along, I was pretty quick to say yes, just because it’s been such a cultural movement, such a cool show to be able to experience from my couch at home. So now that I get to be on it, I’m very grateful.”

The Traitors, Season 5, 2027, Peacock