We're just days away from the return of The Traitors, and we couldn't be happier. Not only have we been absolutely bereft since the celebrity edition came to an end, but host Claudia Winkleman has been teasing viewers that this is the best season yet...
"All I will say is there's something new, and what happens in this series is truly extraordinary with moments that made me gasp," Claudia said ahead of the new series, which returns to BBC One and iPlayer at 8pm on 1 January. "I can't wait for people to see it," she added. "The producers have the greatest minds on earth."
Claudia's comments follow an exciting trailer that dropped on Christmas Day and revealed a major change to the show's format: a red cloak. Typically, traitors on the show wear a green cloak, so fans have been left wondering who is wearing the red cloak in the new series and, more importantly, what it means.
In true The Traitors style, Claudia and the show's producers are keeping us on our toes by not yet revealing what the red cloak actually means for the upcoming season. Until we find out, here's our pick of the best fan theories on the red cloak in The Traitors season four...
The Traitors red cloak theories
The red cloak player is a secret traitor
In all seasons of The Traitors so far, viewers have been in-the-know about who the traitors are. But some fans think that is about to change.
"A red cloak… what if a traitor is selected, unknown to the viewers?" one viewer theorised on X. "In the turret, the red cloak player always wears the cloak and has their back to the viewer, is never on screen saying anything, and we all have to guess who it is???!!!"
"All money on it being a secret traitor that isn’t revealed to the audience," someone else agreed, as a third viewer echoed this with, "My guess is the identity of the red traitor will remain a secret to the audience."
The red cloak player is a one-traitor-winner
Elsewhere on social media, some fans think the red cloak traitor can only win if they out-traitor their fellow traitors. That being, they can only win if they are the only traitor left in the game at the end.
"Is it a traitor traitor?" one fan asked, adding: "They're told, 'you will only win if you are the sole traitor at the end'."
The red cloak player is a returning traitor
Other fans reckon a traitor from a previous season will make a return to the turret in the mysterious red cloak.
"Banking on it being a returning player," someone suggested on X, as another viewer offered a similar theory: "Imagine if the traitors are in trouble, they can call in a past traitor (the red traitor) to give them advice/tips."
The red cloak player is on a secret mission
The Traitors is already a pretty (read: very) riveting game, but some fans theorise that the red cloak signifies we'll be watching a game within a game this season.
"[Red cloak is] a player who is a traitor, but is secretly working for the faithful?" a viewer wrote on X as someone else said they "wouldn't mind" if the red cloak player is a "double agent" in the game.
Offering a similar but slightly different theory, a third fan shared: "I think the red cloak will be a secret traitor role. They will be an unknown traitor who the other traitors know nothing about. They will work against both the traitors and the faithful to get to the end. If they make it, they take everything, and the traitors get nothing."
The red cloak player has special powers
In a previous season, we saw faithfuls given the opportunity to become a 'see-er' and, therefore, earn an advantage in the game. Now, fans think that could be what the red cloak in the trailer signifies.
"Prediction for the red cloak in The Traitors, this will be a 'see-er' or a 'witch'," a fan wrote on X, continuing to say, "The witch would be able to save or banish the person chosen at roundtable or the person selected by the traitors."
The red cloak player is not a traitor at all
Not everyone online is convinced the red cloak featured in The Traitors trailer is actually a traitor at all. "Is it not just Claudia in a special cloak?" someone asked on X, and, given how much Claudia likes to mess with us, they could be right...
We! Can't! Wait!
