Exclusive Interview: Janelle Pierzina, Dan Gheesling, and Mercedes “MJ” Javid Talk ‘The Traitors 2,’ Their Initial Game Plan, and the Big Brother Alumni That’d be Perfect for Season 3

The Traitors is a nail-biting psychological adventure in which treachery and deceit are the name of the game. Entertainment’s most competitive reality stars and famous faces play the ultimate murder mystery game. Hosted by award-winning actor Alan Cumming at an ancient castle set deep in the Scottish Highlands, contestants work together on a series of exhilarating missions to build a prize fund worth up to $250,000.

Hidden amongst the Faithful are the Traitors, whose goal is to eliminate the Faithful and claim the prize for themselves. Under the cover of darkness, the Traitors murder the Faithful one by one in a treacherous spree, while the Faithful try to uncover the Traitors and banish them from the game. If the Faithful contestants banish all the Traitors, they will share the prize fund, but if a Traitor or Traitors makes it to the end, they will steal all the money.

Among the competitors this season are Janelle Pierzina (Big Brother), Dan Gheesling (Big Brother), and Mercedes “MJ” Javid (Shahs of Sunset).

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Janelle, Dan, and Mercedes about The Traitors 2, their game plans going into the series, and which Big Brother alumni they think would be great for Traitors 3.

PC: Janelle, you’re such an icon in this competition series and in life. Fans have been itching for you to make your return to television. What was it about The Traitors that interested you the most in being a part of this series? So often when you’re on these shows, you’re identified as an immediate threat, and rightfully so. As you were heading into this show, what was your strategy to get to the end?
Janelle: My strategy going in was to identify the Traitors and work with them so I could last a long time and keep my secret. I was going to take that information and work with them as closely as I could to try and get recruited. If I didn’t get recruited, get my fellow Faithfuls to get the right Traitors out.

PC: Dan, you’re known for being this masterful strategist, and staging your own funeral will go down as one of the greatest moments in television history. Without giving any spoilers, will we get another moment from you like that this season? As somebody with such a strategic mindset, what was your game plan if you were picked as a Traitor and if you were not?
Dan: I was 1,000% all in on being a Traitor, especially if they brought me all the way to Scotland and out of retirement from a decade. But I couldn’t bank on it. I still felt like even during the interview with Alan that I have to pitch myself for them to pick me because I didn’t know.

In terms of whether there are going to be funeral moments, all I can say is that I brought the same energy, strategy, and playbook to this game. I just hope that all the reality TV fans and fans of all these shows that have been waiting to see me play again enjoy the ride.

PC: You did it justice. MJ, this is such a departure from your world, and you really do get to show off your strategic chops as well. What was the most surprising part about this experience for you?
MJ: I’m so impressed hearing Janelle and Dan talk about strategy because there was absolutely no experience for me to base this on. I just had to use my own skills, which is being a salesman from being a real estate agent and connecting with people. That’s my thing. What I know about myself is that I love connecting with people. So that aspect of it, like how are you going to be perceived? Are you going to be liked? Are you going to be disliked? I knew that was going to be a big challenging thing.

PC: This season has such a star-studded cast. Who is somebody from your respective franchise that would do well on Traitors 3, and why?
Janelle: I want to put this out there right now, the producers need to get Britney Haynes. She’s a comedian. She’s amazing television. She’s great to watch. She gives the best confessionals. So Britney Haynes definitely needs to be on Traitors 3.

Dan: She’d be my number one vote as well. In fact, we were texting the other day. She just came on the podcast. She was like, “Hey, if you know anyone.” I’m like, “Britney, don’t worry. I’m already on it.” She’s great to see on television. She’s one of those rare people that lights up the room. The other thing about Britney is she’s so strategic. I think she often gets underestimated because she’s never won a show, but she always at the end of the game. I think she would be amazing. I think Derrick Levasseur would be an incredible Faithful. If you saw him in the game, you’d like to see how his real-life sleuthing works to find the Traitors in the game. That’d be fun to watch.

Make sure to follow Janelle (Twitter/Instagram), Dan (Twitter/Instagram), and MJ (Twitter/Instagram). Stream The Traitors 2 on Peacock today.

Photo Credit: Peacock