Traitor Kirby Bentley has had suspicion firmly placed on her by multiple cast members since The Traitors Australia 2026 premiere, but she’s managed to scrape through and evade banishment week after week.
While Kirby looked like she was a goner since the start, the eliminated Faithfuls, Cosima and Henry have revealed that there are a number of reasons why the cast are keeping the two-time Survivor player around, despite being suspicious of her Traitor status.
Henry told Chattr in an exclusive interview that he believes some of the Faithfuls think that Kirby can protect them from being eliminated.
“There are a lot of smart players in that mansion, and some people want to keep Kirby close because that does act as a shield,” he said.
Henry said that he believes Kirby knew that he knew she was a Traitor, which is why he had to actively advocate for her elimination.
“I think the moment that shield strategy left for me was in the car ride when she asked me if I’d heard. That’s when I clocked that she knew that I knew that she was a Traitor, so I had to act. You can’t just have whispers in this game. If you have whispers, it can just get you murdered. You’ve got to make sure everyone in that mansion knows. And there’s probably two opportunities to do that: probably breakfast and probably the round table,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Cosima told Chattr in an exclusive interview that Kirby’s social game — something that’s been widely discussed both this season of The Traitors and during her time on Survivor — is unbelievably strong in person.
“She’s got incredible people skills, and it’s almost like she knows how to relate to every person. So when she’s talking to me she’ll relate at my level, and then she’ll talk to someone else. She’s very, very personable,” she explained.
The former Australian Idol contestant added that Kirby’s composure helps to make her a great Traitor.
“She’s got an incredible poker face and she knows how to stay really calm. Her being on Survivor, she’s got an amazing history, and she’s technically played this kind of game before. She knows how to build alliances, and she’s just really smart, but she also stands back and watches.”
Eliminated contestants Kween and Shane have Kirby picked to win The Traitors
The winner of The Traitors could be one Faithful or more, or one Traitor or more — depending on who’s left when the contestants decide to stop playing the game. The format of who wins is slightly complicated, so you can find out exactly how The Traitors works here.
However, if Kirby makes it all the way to the end, she could win The Traitors and take home the prize money, something that eliminated contestants Kween Kong and Shane Gould think is likely.
“Kirby’s the biggest competition, and I definitely feel like Kirby’s got what it takes,” she told New Idea. “I watched both her seasons, and she was the one that I was really looking forward to playing with when I saw that she was there.”
Australian Survivor winner Shane Gould told the publication that she was impressed with Kirby, too.
“I was totally convinced by Kirby’s loyalty and her gentleness and her going along with things and making friends with people,” Shane said.
“I just totally got her totally wrong! After I left and found out that she was a Traitor, I thought, ‘Oh okay, she’s good’.”
We can’t wait to see how far Kirby makes it — and if she takes out the win.
The Traitors Australia 2026 airs on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30pm on Network 10 and 10Play.
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