We’d barely scratched the surface on The Traitors: New Blood following its premiere on the 2026 TV schedule before the celebrities for the next iteration of the hit reality series were announced. While the whole celebrity cast of Traitors and Faithfuls are a dream for some fans, I was mostly excited for one name on the list — Whitney Leavitt. There are rumors floating around that she was a last-minute addition, but Mark Ballas is shutting them down.
Dancing with the Stars pro Mark Ballas and his celebrity partner for Season 35, Maura Higgins — who both appeared on The Traitors Season 4 — were asked about the new Traitors cast following their performance on the dance competition this week. Ballas said he was “excited” to see Whitney Leavitt’s name, as he danced with her on DWTS last season. Higgins expressed that it was difficult to give advice to future contestants, though, and Ballas agreed, telling EW:
I’ve known Whitney’s doing it for a while. I’ve known for a while. And you’re right, you can’t give advice because you don’t know the people you’re with. You know what I mean? It’s all dependent on the group.
Mark Ballas comment about knowing that Whitney Leavitt was going on The Traitors “for a while” seems to subtly debunk the rumor that the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives alum was added at the last minute before the cast announcement.
The speculation over Whitney Leavitt’s casting has to do with the timing of the announcement. Whitney’s husband Conner Leavitt was a contestant on the current season of Dancing with the Stars, partnered with DWTS: The Next Pro winner Adele Zaikman, but they were eliminated on Night 1.
Some found this timing suspicious, as it came just three days before The Traitors cast was released with Whitney Leavitt’s name on it. Was Whitney given the spot as a consolation prize, of sorts, because of her husband’s quick DWTS elimination? Was Conner’s early exit pre-determined because Whitney was headed out to Alan Cumming’s castle for filming?
I love a good conspiracy theory, but I’m inclined to call this a coincidence. In addition to Mark Ballas alleging that Whitney’s casting came a while ago, we have to consider that Conner Leavitt was not the most well-known celebrity on Dancing with the Stars Season 35.
Also, both of DWTS’ new pros — Adele Zaikman and Hailey Bills, who was partnered with reality TV star Sarah Jane Nader — were eliminated back-to-back on Nights 1 and 2 of the competition. I think a simple lack of a fan base was a big factor in Conner Leavitt’s quick exit from Dancing with the Stars.
I’ve also always thought Whitney Leavitt would be great on The Traitors, so I wasn’t surprised to see her name on the cast announcement. Anybody who’s watched The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives with their Hulu subscription has seen how she’s weaved her way in and out of different feuds as she openly aspired to a career in the entertainment business.
We’ll have to wait a bit to see how she fares on The Traitors, but in the meantime you can catch the everyday joes playing on The Traitors: New Blood, which airs at 8 p.m. ET Thursdays on NBC and streaming the next day with a Peacock subscription.
