Alan Cumming loves trans people. Why aren't they on The Traitors?

Alan Cumming was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame last week for his contributions to film, television, and theater — not only as a groundbreaking performer, but also as a boundary-pushing producer, writer, and director who's been a queer luminary for the past four decades. As noted by Playbill, this recognition reflects Cumming's Tony Award-winning performance as the Emcee in Cabaret, as well as the four Primetime Emmy Awards he's won as a producer on and as the host of Peacock's The Traitors.

Cumming wore a Trans Pride medal at the event, as he's done while attending showbiz-related events in the last few years, to display his support for trans rights. A dear friend of Cumming's, Dylan Mulvaney, also sat in the audience and applauded this well-deserved milestone for the Scottish superstar.

Hours after Cumming's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was revealed, season 4 of The Traitors premiered with a three-episode batch introducing fans to new Faithfuls and Traitors who'll be loved, hated, and meme-fied for months to come.

A chaotic cast of reality TV stars: Check. A new set of spectacular looks worn by Cumming: Check. The exciting narration of a game of "treachery," contrasting the Instagram-ready soundbites from reality TV icons: Check. For a moment, everything felt just right, except for one noteworthy absence that has now gone unchecked for a second season in a row: There wasn't a single trans contestant on the show.

The trans-inclusive casting choices of The Traitors.

I can hear it already: Why ask this question about The Traitors, specifically, when nearly all mainstream reality shows never even cast a single trans person at all? Well, that's precisely what makes it such a conundrum. Unlike other shows, The Traitors (U.S.) featured at least one trans contestant in each of its first two seasons — which helped the reality competition stand out and queer-ified Cumming's castle even more.

The season 1 cast, which combined reality TV stars and non-famous players, had a nonbinary, transmasc contestant, Andie, whose goal was to get top surgery after the show. A year later, The Traitors season 2 cast featured Peppermint, a trans woman who had a breakout run on RuPaul's Drag Race, made Broadway history in Heads Over Heels, and was the subject of a 2025 documentary titled A Deeper Love: The Story of Miss Peppermint.

The heartbreaking departures of Andie and Peppermint.

Even though their journeys on The Traitors were very different, it's hard to dismiss that both Andie (season 1) and Peppermint (season 2) had heartbreaking endings in their respective seasons.

Andie made it to the grand finale of The Traitors season 1 only to find out that Cirie Fields was a Traitor, meaning that the grand prize wouldn't be split among Faithfuls, further delaying Andie's desire to get top surgery. This tragic experience was so intense that it prompted the show to overhaul its casting practices and only cast celebrities within reality TV and social media moving forward.

After The Traitors shifted into a celebrity-only casting format, Peppermint was announced as a season 2 cast member, which was incredibly exciting for fans who had known her from Drag Race, or various movies and TV shows, or Broadway, or even just social media. Alas, unlike Andie, the overall Traitors cast never really warmed up to Peppermint. One minor slip and a misinterpreted reaction later, Peppermint became a target and was promptly banished from the castle by majority vote in episode 2.

Both Andie and Peppermint were featured in their respective reunion specials still feeling unsure of why things played out that way, and left those reunions without resolving anything or gaining any clarity from other competitors.

Alan Cumming's trans advocacy roars (outside the show).

Those two first seasons turned The Traitors into one of the most popular reality shows on television and positioned the series as a new frontrunner in awards shows too.

Cumming attended the 76th and the 77th Emmy Awards ceremonies to win trophies, thank the Television Academy, and wear visible Trans Pride pins. In his first speech, the host and producer reasoned that "all of America's problems will be solved" if they could get together to have a few drinks. The following year, Traitors and Cumming won again, and the host spoke of a "difficult time we're living in; it's so great that our show brings a little bit of joy into this life."

Since 2024, Cumming turned up the volume on trans advocacy even more, telling Entertainment Weekly that he "actually lobbied quite hard" for The Traitors producers to increase the number of contestants from the LGBTQ+ community. As the cover of Out, Cumming remarked that "anything I can do to just show trans power and trans beauty and trans happiness, I do," adding that trans people are "being erased in front of us."

Trans rights were also discussed on The View: "I can't imagine what it must be like to be a trans person," the Traitors host mused, "knowing that the government is trying to legislate that you do not exist." Cumming went on to deliver an iconic monologue as a guest host on Jimmy Kimmel Live, calling out the anti-trans rhetoric that was sweeping the nation.

But the bottom line is that the casting choices for the third and fourth seasons of The Traitors were not impacted by Cumming's speeches, interviews, or "lobbying," despite his dual role as host and producer on the show. And, frankly, this equation is just straight-up odd.

A reality series once perceived as being ahead of its time for casting trans contestants in seasons 1 and 2 became very successful, won awards, and then reverted to casting zero trans contestants in its two latest cycles (season 3, which aired in 2025; and season 4, which is currently streaming new episodes every weekly).

When the season 4 cast was announced last year, Peppermint attributed to the lack of representation as a direct result of the new political environment following the 2024 election. "I was hopeful to see more inclusion with the new cast, but after the current administration's threats to punish those who include trans people in their respective industries — everything from healthcare and beyond — I knew many would fall in line," Peppermint told Out in a statement.

"I've called upon producers and casting directors to be more inclusive, hoping someone would be brave. I know Alan Cumming understands the importance of trans inclusion especially in this time and I'm hopeful more people in the industry will take the next opportunity."

A precedent of betrayed Faithfuls who return for revenge.

A well-liked contestant from season 1 who didn't engage well with The Traitors as a reality competition series was, in fact, brought back for another run in season 2: Kate Chastain (not Andie).

A well-established and beloved reality TV juggernaut ended up being a way-too-early-out player on The Traitors who, amid outrage from fans, was brought back the following season for a second chance: Dorinda Medley (not Peppermint).

Why not bring back Andie? Why not bring back Peppermint? And if contestants like Michael Rapaport, with a problematic history of racist and Zionist statements, can be featured in a 2026 cast, why not highlight a transgender person who, sure, might be controversial in this political moment, but also deserves a chance to win a reality competition — and just maybe, some hearts and minds.

The Traitors season 4 is streaming new episodes every Thursday on Peacock.

Bernardo Sim is a staff writer and associate editor for Out magazine. Follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim and explore more of his work on bernardosim.com/links.

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