Traitor or Faithful? What to Know About The Traitors Star Danielle Reyes' Big Brother Bonafides
Don't underestimate an expert Big Brother player with something to prove on The Traitors.
Of the 21 incredible personalities who were selected to show up for Emmy Award-winning host Alan Cumming in Scotland earlier this year to compete in Season 3 of The Traitors, most possess the mental savvy or social game to excel as either a Faithful or a Traitor. And if their game is on point, any of them could eventually win the cash prize of up to $250,000.
With the new season of The Traitors having started on January 9 on Peacock, NBC Insider continues to take a deeper look at all of the contestants so we can spotlight where they came from, and what strengths they bring to the game this season.
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One player to watch from the top is Big Brother veteran Danielle Reyes, considered to be one of the best to ever play that reality competition series despite having never landed a season champion title. Smart, a master of the social game, and easily able to make allies, Danielle should come to the castle with a fair warning: Beware of the competition reality player with an incredible reputation and no wins to their name.
Is Danielle Reyes playing The Traitors as a Traitor or a Faithful?
Danielle Reyes was chosen by host Alan Cumming to play The Traitors as a Traitor. She is one of four players hiding in plain sight.
Who Is Danielle Reyes?
It's always great when your day job informs your competition reality show skills. In the case of Danielle Reyes, she's a real estate manager in the extremely high-end San Francisco market. As anyone who's bought or sold a property can attest, a great real estate manager is someone who can read your emotions well and anticipate what's going to make you fall in love enough with a property to make it your own. Be it personal or business, Danielle's success in making clients happy has definitely been a big part of her legendary Big Brother appearances.
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She was also a young mother of two and has been married for 32 years to Javier Reyes. Being a mom, a committed partner, and a working professional in the trenches means she's got everyday life skills too. Not to knock the more pampered contestants she's playing against this season, but they might be at a disadvantage when it comes to working against Danielle. She's got the advantage of knowing how to dig in and weather the storms Alan is certainly going to send their way.
Breaking down Danielle Reyes' Big Brother bonafides
Unlike fellow The Traitors Season 3 contestants who have competed in multiple competition reality series — like Boston Rob Mariano or fellow Big Brother alum Britney Haynes — Danielle has only been on Big Brother. However, her history with the series goes back two decades.
She made her debut in 2002 on Big Brother Season 3 when the show was still in its U.S. version infancy, meaning that she set some standards that will forever remain hers, like being the first woman to win the extremely coveted (and potentially game-changing) Power of Veto; she was the first houseguest to make it to the final two with no eviction votes cast against her; and Danielle was the first Black houseguest to reach the Final Two in the U.S. version of Big Brother. In other words, Danielle is comfortable being a trailblazer in this specialty TV lane and in assessing how to best take advantage of fledgling reality competition shows that require a great social game.
After not winning Season 3, Danielle returned for Big Brother All-Stars Season 7 where she was targeted for her skills as witnessed in her prior season. Nicknamed "The Black Widow" by her fellow players, Danielle wasn't able to get as far in this season, but she did make it to the season's jury box.
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After a 17-year hiatus from Big Brother, she returned to the franchise in 2023 for the holiday edition, Big Brother: Reindeer Games. She won $5,000 in that season, but was thwarted in winning a BB season, yet again. After that recent loss, Danielle was quite vocal that she was ready for a new reality competition venue, with her top choices being Survivor or The Traitors. And after having manifested this outcome, we're looking forward to seeing Danielle leave the Big Brother house and graduate to The Traitors castle.
New episodes of The Traitors Season 3 premiere on Peacock on Thursdays at 9/8c, with the season finale and reunion premiering on March 6.
All episodes of Seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream right now on Peacock.
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Originally published Dec 10, 2024.
