The Traitors US season 2’s first Traitor banished from the game, Dan Gheesling, is a Big Brother legend but made some major mistakes in the game that cost him during his final moments. After a decade-long retirement from reality TV competition shows, Dan chose to come back to do The Traitors US season 2. He’d been a fan of the first season of the series, and though he was certain he was finished with reality TV competition shows, he’d been intrigued enough to answer when the casting director for the series reached out. Hopeful he would be named a Traitor, Dan was ready to play when he got to Scotland.
After being named a Traitor by The Traitors US season 2 host Alan Cumming, Dan knew that he was going to have a tough road ahead of him. Hopeful that he would be able to play a game of treachery and deceit, Dan was excited to find out who his fellow Traitors would be. Throughout the first half of the game, Dan, Married To Medicine’s Phaedra Parks, and Survivor’s Parvati Shallow were all working to take down the Faithful. After some missteps, Dan was the first Traitor banished from the game after a round table where he met his match.
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8 Dan Waited Too Long To Speak Up About Suspicions
He’s A Quiet Game Player
Although Dan has always been a quieter player in the beginning of the game, many were curious if his strategy was going to be different when it came to The Traitors US. Coming from a series like Big Brother, speaking up about the suspicious nature of certain players would be frowned upon, but on the new series, it’s important to be open about who you believe could be a Traitor. Working on his instincts, Dan’s strategy in the game was to keep his thoughts to himself until he felt certain, which ultimately made him look suspicious to the majority of the Faithful.
7 Dan Didn’t Lessen The Target On His Back
He Came Into The Game As A Threat
Coming into The Traitors US as one of the two Big Brother legends in the game, Dan was seen as a massive target alongside Janelle Pierzina. While his former ally was playing the game as a Faitfhul, Dan was a Traitor from the very beginning and needed to shrink the target on his back in order to maintain some semblance of blendability in the group. Unfortunately for Dan, that was easier said than done. He wasn’t able to tone down the target he had on him from the start, and as people observed him in the game, the target only grew larger.
6 Dan Played The Game Too Slowly
He’s Used To A Slower Paced Strategy Game
As a Big Brother player, Dan was able to use tactics that were slow and drawn-out, spanning throughout an entire season of gameplay. Used to being able to take his time, Dan was quick to begin making connections that would take time to grow on The Traitors US. Attempting to connect with his fellow players on personal levels, Dan made a mistake when he spoke more personally than he did about the game. He looked suspicious to the rest of the Faithful in the castle, and when he shared that this was simply how he played the game, many felt he was being too devious.
5 Dan Aligned With The Wrong People
He Didn’t Have Anyone To Back Him Up
Although he didn’t have formal alliances outside the Traitors team, the people Dan chose to work with on the series didn’t have his back in the moments he needed them to. Early on in the game, Dan had former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder vouch for him during a round table which seemed to take the pressure off of him for a bit. While Dan could’ve benefitted from aligning with people like Deontay or other murdered player Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu, he chose to stay in his own corner. Without loud voices behind him during round tables, Dan’s name was thrown around without much rebuttal.
4 Dan Didn’t Take Control Early Enough
He Let The Other Traitors Do The Work
While Dan was happy to sit back and let the other Traitors get blood on their hands, he was somewhat too hands off in the early phases of the game. Despite knowing that he could contribute to the Traitors decisions on who to murder, Dan stayed out of the conversations as best he could in order to maintain his innocence. Later in the season, when Dan needed to take control of the Traitors turret for the evening, things felt odd. Rather than letting the other Traitors do the work, Dan should’ve taken care of things more independently, or at the very least contributed to the team.
3 Dan Used Big Brother Strategy On The Wrong People
He Wasn’t Able To Fool Other Gamers
Coming into the game, Dan was one of the most well-known strategy competition series players on the show. After appearing on Big Brother 10 and winning the game, he returned for Big Brother 14 where he took second place after playing one of the most cutthroat games in the show’s history. Known to other competition players as one of the greatest of all time, Dan came into the series hoping to utilize his strategy on other gamers in the castle. Instead of spending time with the people outside of his realm, he worked with other gamers and found himself at a loss when he needed backup outside of his allies.
2 Dan Tried To Manipulate The Round Table
He Worked Too Hard, Too Late
In his final round tables, Dan did as much as he could to throw suspicion onto other players as he possibly could. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late as he had already been sussed out by several people in the game, but he did his best to create a case for his fellow Traitor, Phaedra, in order to try to get her out of the house. Manipulating those who were seated with him at the round table, it was difficult for Dan to make his way back into the other players good graces. He went too hard after too much time had passed, making himself look even more suspicious.
1 Dan Underestimated His Fellow Traitor Phaedra
He Would’ve Been Better To Throw Parvati Under The Bus
Although Dan was likely always going to be at a loss in the final round table he appeared in, he did try to give one last push to keep himself in the game. Knowing he had to throw a Traitor to the wolves, Dan pushed for Phaedra to be banished from the game. While he likely had a better case for Parvati’s banishment, Dan tried to go for Phaedra in order to remain loyal to Parvati in the long-term. Unfortunately, throwing Phaedra to the wolves didn’t work for The Traitors US season 2 cast and Dan was the one who found himself banished from the game.
