NBC's 49-Episode Unscripted Series Is So Good, It's Already Renewed For 3 More Seasons

Published Sep 29, 2026, 11:45 AM EDT

Alexandria is a British-Canadian writer with a passion for network TV. 
She has a bachelor's degree in computer science from Aston University, Birmingham. After initially working as a software tester, she rekindled a passion for writing and has written for blogs and publications like Hidden Remote, Make a Living Writing, and The Daily Voice. She has interviewed various actors and showrunners, with her most memorably being Tony Shalhoub and Mark-Paul Gosselaar.

Multi-season renewals have become a rare commodity in television, held mostly for top-tier scripted dramas. Unscripted TV is usually kept on a tight, season-by-season leash, but NBC has changed the game. As The Traitors proves that it is a major success after 49 episodes, the Peacock network has stepped up to offer audiences more.

After building a dedicated fanbase via the streaming platform Peacock, NBC has started testing the waters on broadcast TV. Premiering on September 17, The Traitors: New Blood was a calculated risk, especially as many similar competition shows have failed. Fun game shows with questions for audiences to answer at home have become the go-to unscripted hit, but shows like Deal or No Deal Island and The Mole have struggled to get the loyalty that The Traitors commands.

With this Emmy-winning reality series, NBC created the perfect mix of Survivor and The Mole. While The Traitors has added twists, they haven't always been needed because the fun is in watching human psychology and betrayal at work.

The Traitors stands out in that it forces contestants to work together while also competing against each other. Rather than outside manipulation, each contestant is working toward their own goals, and while everyone knows that, it doesn't stop the feeling of deceit from setting in. In many viewers' eyes, it has become the best reality show ever, with The Traitors wholeheartedly earning its multi-season renewal.

Traitors Is Already Renewed For 3 More Seasons

NBCUniversal

It's rare for a TV show to land a multi-season renewal anymore. In recent years, only CBS has offered multi-season renewals — to popular scripted series FBI and Ghosts. Other networks tend to play it safe, especially when it comes to unscripted shows. There's no need to lock in more than a year at a time for reality and competition series, as there's no need for long-running arcs.

Yet, NBCUniversal knows fans want more of The Traitors, and has rewarded their loyalty. As long as people keep watching, the NBC parent company is more than willing to see more celebrities and potentially civilians prove they can deceive everyone — or figure out who the traitor is.

The move comes at the same time as NBC airing its first broadcast season of The Traitors. Up until now, the U.S. version of the show has only been available to stream on Peacock. Putting it on broadcast during the highly anticipated fall TV season was a risk, but people tuned in, proving that it doesn't matter where this unscripted show airs; everyone is there for it. It also helped that NBC proved it was listening to the wishes of The Traitors viewers, with New Blood bringing a full civilian season.

Why Traitors Has Quietly Become A Fan-Favorite

When you tell people that there's a TV show that turns parlor games like Werewolf or Mafia into a TV show, there may be an initial wonder how something could become so popular, but it's all thanks to the intrigue that these types of games create. The Traitors has turned human psychology into a high-stakes game that keeps everyone on their toes, while also featuring one of TV's most energetic hosts in the form of Alan Cumming.

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Just watching the show is thrilling. There's the basic team-building element to see how big the prize pot can become, but then there's the chance to watch people lie to each other in the name of the game. The viewer gets to know who the Traitors are from the start, getting rid of the guessing game and allowing everyone to watch how contestants strategize, develop alliances, and betray everyone.

There's an outside look at human behavior at work, whether it's how herd mentality develops or what happens when paranoia takes over. Alliances shift, and everyone is looking for a tell. Of course, watching competitors believe that there is a tell when there's not adds entertainment, and there's nothing like screaming at the TV when people make the wrong decisions to get the adrenaline up.

One of the greatest things, though, is that the producers stay out of it. Most unscripted programming involves producers manipulating every single shot. They create challenges that force people to turn against each other. While there are fun events each episode, the manipulation actually comes from the contestants themselves, making betrayals and wins feel earned rather than exploitative.

The Traitors: New Blood airs on Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC, and the regular celebrity version of The Traitors will return to Peacock in 2027.

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  Alan Cumming

  Self - Host

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  Kate Chastain

A reality competition series featuring celebrity and civilian contestants engaging in challenges while trying to uncover the traitors in their midst. Based on the Dutch series, The US incarnation of The Traitors is hosted by actor Alan Cumming.