Bob Harper Says Watching The Traitors Collapse Is 'Absolutely Riveting'
Even thinking about saying Boston Rob’s name will end badly.
Bob Harper knew he was in danger of being murdered on The Traitors once he said Boston Rob’s name. The former host of The Biggest Loser found himself on the short end of the stick in the latest episode after he dramatically called out Boston Rob’s tactics during a heated roundtable discussion, immediately making him a liability to the Survivor and Deal or No Deal Island veteran. It led Boston Rob, along with fellow Traitors Danielle Reyes and Carolyn Wiger, to put a quick end to Bob’s game.
To break down the events that led to his murder, Bob hopped on Zoom to share what he would’ve done differently, his tearful moment during one of the missions, and his thoughts on watching the Traitors implode in real time.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What was the experience like being in the castle while you were in the game?
Unlike anything I've ever done before. I'm a person that loves having game nights with my friends. I'm not really good at games, but I love playing them and when I started watching The Traitors, I became a fan. Immediately I loved it. The macabre quality of it, Alan Cumming being so over the top — not only his fashion, but in his delivery. When I decided I would do this show, I was excited. I was interested in getting the full experience. And man, did I get the full experience. I went in being like, I want to get fashion, I want to have fun, I want to meet some new people. It's going to be out of my comfort zone, which it completely was, and I have no regrets doing this show.
We have never seen you in this environment before. It had also been a while since we last saw you regularly on television. What was that like dipping your toe back into it?
It was really exciting. I remember at one point in the very first episode when we were standing in front of Alan, I was like, wait a minute, that was my job before standing there being the host of a show. And I know the work that's involved and man, is he good at his job. People have this idea of who I am because of what I've done before for such a long time, and they got to see more of what my friends see. I've got a good sense of humor, I've got a sharp tongue, and I'm a real fashion person. It was fun to have people see me in a completely different way.
Did you have any ideas going in of how you were going to play the game? How did it change once the game started?
In the very beginning, I was most familiar personally with some of the Housewives, so I became, in their words, an honorary Housewife. But they were getting murdered left and right. So, I tried to pull back a little bit and show different alliances and meet other people. I needed to pull away. But with that said, Dolores was a ride-or-die for me. She is someone that, to this day, I love more than anything.
Were you surprised at how the game went for you and that you were murdered after throwing out Boston Rob's name at one of the roundtables?
My friends were saying, "Why did you say that!" It was what I was thinking, and I'm gonna stand behind that. If that's what murdered me, then, so be it. But Rob is such an alpha, and he just came in and was trying to be the boss of everyone. When he took Bob the Drag Queen out, he did it with such compassion and conviction, that's when I was like, This dude is a Traitor y'all, because there's no way. I mean, he put his reputation on the line right there, and he gained a lot of respect for a lot of those men in the castle, which annoyed me too. But I feel like he was really dominating, and men trying to establish dominance? That does not work for me.
Do you have regrets? Would you have done anything differently?
I would have done one thing differently. In Episode 1, I would have shaken [Boston Rob's] hand, and I would have taken Ivar out of the house. I didn't know [Ivar], but when I found out that he was part of the royal family, I was like, well, we can't trust the royal family. I would have taken him out, and then I would have Rob as an ally. But when no one picked Rob [to enter the game], what were we thinking? Of course, Rob's gonna come in at some point. When we saw him in the cage, I wish I would have done that.
Watching the episodes, was there anything that surprised you?
What really surprised me was how obvious of a Traitor Danielle is. Danielle was one of the girls I thought I was really aligned with. I rode in the car with her a lot, and she was always acting. People would be like, "I think Danielle..." And I'm like, "No y'all, I don't see Danielle being a Traitor." But as a viewer of this show, what's going on with Carolyn and Danielle is absolutely riveting to me. I cannot wait for Thursday night. I have got to see what these girls are going to do with one another in that turret because it's great television.
How would you describe this group of Traitors?
It is a beautiful disaster. That's exactly what it is right now. I've said this before, when it comes to working with Carolyn, once you once you get Carolyn on the wrong side, there's no going back. If you lose Carolyn like Danielle has, Danielle could jump through fire for Carolyn at this point and I can't imagine Carolyn ever trusting her again.
Who do you think is in the best spot right now? There are still plenty of players under the radar.
I always said, if I ever did a show like this, I would never want to be a floater. I've watched the floaters go all the way like in Season 2 and one of the floaters basically made it to the very end, MJ. I know this is controversial, but that was such good TV when they turned on her. This season, Dylan's playing a really good game because he is putting himself in so many different scenarios. But I'm ready for some other people to really step up their game.
You had an emotional moment during one of the missions where you were struggling to carry the statues up the hill. Can you talk about what that moment meant for you?
That was emotional for me because I have always been the guy on television that was America's trainer. I was fit; I was strong — I was Dylan. I was the one carrying these [statue] heads up the mountain by themselves. After my heart attack, it's changed the way that I work out to this day. It was extremely humbling. Talk about a mirror being put in front of me that day, and that's why I got so emotional. I will say, since doing The Traitors I've been able to realize, OK, I need to start trusting my heart more to do different workouts because after my heart attack, I didn't work out for a long time. I've done yoga, and I teach yoga here in New York City. But there's got to be more for me and that's what I've been doing so I'm grateful for that experience because it's gotten me to put my toe in water that I've not been in for a very long time.
Would you play this game again and would you do anything differently with your approach?
Yes, I would absolutely do the show again. I am such a trustworthy person, and I really thought, I'd love to be a Traitor, I'd be such a good Traitor. I don't think so. So, if I went back, I would want to be a Traitor just to see if I could [do it]. I mean, it would be a whole other s**tshow.
Stream new episodes of The Traitors every Thursday at 9p ET on Peacock.
