Claudia Exit Interview | The Traitors Australia | Ep 8 | Beyond The Traitors

In this episode of Beyond Reality: Beyond The Traitors, TV producer Hayley Ferguson sits down with Claudia Bonifazio following her banishment from The Traitors.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:16

This is beyond reality. Hi, Claudia. Oh, how are you? I'm good. Thank you so much for joining me. I loved last night's episode. I think your banishment has been one of the best of the season. Oh my god, thank you.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

How do you feel about it? I, you know what? It's very therapeutic to watch it. Uh, and also like the reactions from people, it's very funny to me because everyone's just as frustrated as I was.

SPEAKER_00 0:48

Yeah, tell me about that. I mean, how frustrating was that moment?

SPEAKER_01 0:54

It was I also lost my voice. So these people are coming at me, and I feel like I couldn't go to my full self because I'm like, um, so I couldn't get everything out, but it's very frustrating because you're literally talking to walls. No one listens to you, no one cares what you say. They're set in their ways, and then do you know what happens? The bandwagon effect. One person says it, and everyone's like, you know what? That's an easy vote. Let's jump on it. As long as it's not me, let's jump on it.

SPEAKER_00 1:25

Well, I think you got your point across with screw you all. Yeah, I was gonna say a different word, but I used that one. It was so great. I mean, Luke obviously made a very dramatic speech at breakfast, uh, not revealing who he thought the original trader was, but basically saying, I've got you pinned. In that moment, who did you think he was talking about?

SPEAKER_01 1:46

Kira. I thought he was talking about Kira, and I'm like, okay, Luke, don't know where you're going with this, but I'm gonna see. Like, I was like, you know what, whatever, Luke. My Luke says, I'm going for it. Because Luke and me, we agreed with everything. We were on the same path together. We were gonna win, genuinely. Um, and I'm like, okay, if he's he has must have a logical reasoning for why he thinks Kira, even though no, she's obviously not. So I was waiting to talk to him. He ref he like did he avoided me like the plague that whole day. And I was like, okay, this is a bit weird. Maybe he's had like something happen to him, but I didn't think it was me at all.

SPEAKER_00 2:27

Wow, okay, so you were completely blindsided at that round table. Why do you think he convinced himself it was you? I'm still asking myself this question.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

Um I think his main reason was that I didn't want to vote for Alex because I didn't suspect Alex, which is bizarre to me because it's like what I can't be wrong. Like you have been wrong about so many things, and I'm not okay to be wrong. Like, I think that's what set him going, is when I was like, oh, but maybe not, because you haven't said it, and neither have I. So why are we randomly jumping on Alex?

SPEAKER_00 3:10

It kind of feels like a bit of ego got in the way, and the like Luke and Josh kind of got carried away and a bit drunk on power, given that they'd they'd managed to get two traitors in a row, but then they just went off the wrong path.

SPEAKER_01 3:25

I think also having someone there who's like your other half beat like boosts your ego so much as well, because you know someone's gonna have your back. I think that was a very big advantage in the show. So that only fed into it was like I know my brother's gonna go for it, and then everyone else will, because two voices are bigger than one. So I think he was blinded, um, and he he had his path and he wanted to go down it, and nothing could turn his head, and there was no way I could defend myself. No way.

SPEAKER_00 3:56

You had that relationship with Luke from the start. Did it hurt more coming from him? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:03

Like I would have suspect I would have expected Rachel, I would have expected Chrissy, um, but never in my life would I think it would be Luke. Uh, the literally the closest person in that place to me. Yeah, it's it's it's very wild to think about that. It is a game, like I know that, but at the time I was so angry. I was more angry than upset. I'm like, how dare you? But then obviously, I'm I'm empathetic, so I'm like, maybe like he maybe he thought the closest person to him him was portraying him. Like maybe that's what he's thinking. Silly, but that's what he was thinking.

SPEAKER_00 4:40

Obviously, the dust has settled now. What was your conversation like after the game?

SPEAKER_01 4:46

Oh, it was hilarious. It was hilarious. He offered me full year service of lawn. He does, he puts lawn down. So he offered to pay for like my hotel, he offered to pay, he he he was so upset, and I think that made me feel better because I'm like, okay, he genuinely got it wrong, and like he feels bad about it, and that's all I really cared about. But it was so fun telling my family because they were so angry at him. Um, but yeah, we're absolutely fine now. But it was fun to be angry at him for a bit.

SPEAKER_00 5:18

Oh, it made for a great like jaw drop moment at the round table. It was when you revealed you were a faithful.

SPEAKER_01 5:26

Everyone I know was messaging me, going, Where is he? Um and Josh was so funny. He sent something in the group chat and he like sent a gif of him with a sword and these horses running at him, and he's like ready for Claudia's followers to come at us. And he's like, because they he knew that they were gonna get attacked. But no, that everyone is fine. Like it's a game. We know it's a game.

SPEAKER_00 5:46

There was already suspicion on you. I mean, Chrissy suspected you. I guess looking back, is there one particular moment that you wish you could take back? Something that you might have done that you didn't realise was suspicious at the time.

SPEAKER_01 6:01

I think the only thing I was I could take back would be the um getting the shield on that second on the day. Just because I mean, I don't think it was the wrong thing to do, don't get me wrong. I think I can do whatever I want, and it's the traders after all, you're supposed to get shields, but I think that just put a little seed maybe in a few people's heads. Not that it was the main thing, but I think maybe that could have helped my chances.

SPEAKER_00 6:26

Maybe, but I don't regret it. I mean, you had the traders picked. You named Kirby and Reese correctly at that round table. I guess I want to talk about Kirby because obviously Kirby has been the trader that everyone suspected, or she had a lot of heat on her from the very beginning, and yet she's still the original trader that's still in the game.

SPEAKER_01 6:49

Oh my god, it is. I think that's the most frustrating thing about being on that show. I remember like me and me and AJ, me and Luke would go around to everyone and go, it's Kirby, guys. It's Kirby, you know it's Kirby. From day one, we were saying this to people. No one listened to us when it came to the round table. It was so frustrating. And then, of course, at the round table table, you don't want to lose your vote, so you have to go with the crowd, of course. But oh my god, the most frustrating thing because she was so blatantly, obviously a traitor. But try telling people who have are so stuck in their own ways. It's impossible. Impossible. Why was she obviously a trader? What was the giveaway for you? Um, her persona, how she was acting, it was so obvious. It was everyone, like when my family are watching it, they're like, Claudia, she's so obvious. And I said, How do you think I felt? Like, I would say to everyone, she's obviously a traitor. We said to each other, I'm like, well, obviously you're my trader. And she went, Well, obviously you're my trader. Um, and it was like a thing, but she just her whole persona was traitor. She's she's a survivor player, she's amazing at it, she's so personable, but she had this like fog over her face that you could just tell. You could just tell. So for you, it was more of a gut feel. Oh, a hundred percent. I'm like, there's I swear to you, there was no one else in that manner that I was more like gung-ho on than her.

SPEAKER_00 8:21

So, given that, what is it about Kirby? What is she doing to still be alive in there?

SPEAKER_01 8:28

You know why? Because she's the best person ever, and everyone loves her. I actually think maybe they don't want to get rid of her because they love her so much. She's the best. She really is the best person. So I think I don't know, maybe she she's just very good at manipulating people. I think that's also a good the thing. She's she's very good at surviving. She's a survivor after all. And even though the heat's all on her, she'll slyly move it on to someone else, and you would be completely blind. You'd be like, okay, let's go off of Kirby now. She's made a good point.

SPEAKER_00 9:02

Yeah, she is very good. I mean, she just seems to be shaking that target to stay in the game. You said on your way out, you all listened to the man. Is that something you felt throughout the game? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:14

I think the challenges were very um male dominant. Um, imagine me going against Reese or Henriette, tug of war. Could you imagine that? Um, I think you know the challenge where we're holding up the pie? The thing? I my hands weren't even on it because I was too short. Like, there's no way, like uh this is for everyone. But you'll see in the challenges, in the conversations, it is very male dominant as to who we listen to and who who everyone chooses to take and and run with. Um, it was very frustrating. A lot of the girls were very frustrated. I'm pretty sure a lot of people have spoken about it already. It happens in life, it's of course gonna happen in the game. And I saw someone say, Well, Claudia, but you were listening to Luke, and it's because actually me and Luke had the same ideas. That's why I was going for Luke, because Luke and me were on the same path. Just be like, you know, just because he was mad, I was listening to him because he was listening to me, you know? So yeah, I I think that's a problem in life, but it very much happened in that show as well.

SPEAKER_00 10:20

That's interesting, and I guess the guys taking control in the challenge, and then that translating around the round table and and when Dicko, oh my god, Dicko said to me when we were doing that challenge with the he goes, Well, who's gonna go up, Claudia?

SPEAKER_01 10:37

And I was like, Who are you? Like, what what is going on right now? Uh you go up, and I think he actually did, he go, it went up. You guys don't actually get to take the lead of everything. Like, we can I think the girls were great at that though. We were like, you know what? Actually, no, we're gonna take lead. Um, so there is some great greatness in that, but yeah, I don't know. I think that's just a general thing, isn't it?

SPEAKER_00 11:00

Well, I mean, what I loved about you is that I think you did stand up for yourself and you were very vocal and you weren't afraid to push people's buttons or say what you really thought. And so you made amazing television on the show. I think you were really great at, you know, just being who you are and showing who you are on the show. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 11:21

I was worried about that. I'm like, what if people think well, maybe you should actually a bit too nuts?

SPEAKER_00 11:25

But I will take that. The traitors and Love Island are obviously very different shows. What do you feel you got to show in the traitors that you didn't get to show Australia in Love Island?

SPEAKER_01 11:39

Oh, that I actually have a brain. I think everyone has this like idea of Love Island people that we're just you know cute and and ditzy, but like a lot of people on that show are so smart, and I love shows like this where we can actually show that to the world. Um, you know, a lot of people don't know about me. I play game murder mystery games every single night. Like this is my this is my niche, is like I I love this shit. So I love that I got to show people um, you know, I can do I can do be cute and I can be a good liar. You didn't even have to lie in this. Oh no, I didn't. I was so ready to though. I actually didn't even have to lie, but I was so ready to. I went in there, I'm like, I'm gonna be a traitor.

SPEAKER_00 12:30

You definitely showed how smart you were. What did you get completely wrong though? Watching it back, what surprised you the most? That Alex was a traitor.

SPEAKER_01 12:37

I didn't know she was a traitor at all. I I think I just didn't spend enough time with her, but also I think she was fantastic. I could not see past her like silliness and how real she was. I did not suspect her. I got that completely wrong until the last day.

SPEAKER_00 12:54

Yeah, we could see how shocked you were in that moment.

SPEAKER_01 12:57

Yes, and like that was so real because I I genuinely didn't know that, which became a disadvantage, you know?

SPEAKER_00 13:05

Yeah, I mean that's what got you killed in the end, it feels like. I'd love to get to some quick fire questions. Who was your favourite person in the game? Alvin, Rob. That's it. Well, I mean, I've love all of them, but Alvin and Rob. If you were a traitor, who would you have murdered first? Oh, Kirby. Why? She's so good. She's so good, she's so smart, and I love her. Who do you think was the most dangerous in the game? Henry. For the best reasons. Who surprised you most in the game? Who did you misjudge?

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Monarchy. Because he's so smart.

SPEAKER_00 13:41

Frickin' fantastic. You would have been good teaming up with Monarchy if he had have stayed. We get back on this show. That's my teammate. Arriving at the manor, who were you most starstruck by?

SPEAKER_01 13:53

Um, uh, but but but I didn't know any of them. Didn't know any of them. I didn't even know who Rob's dad was, and I I still don't really know, but now I know, but um, but now I'm starstruck at all of them. I love them all. You need a John Farnham education. I know. Oh, it was so embarrassing, but bless him. He was so beautiful about it.

SPEAKER_00 14:14

Which Australian celebrity would you like to see play The Traitors? Robert Erwin, of course. He, I mean, he would kill it.

SPEAKER_01 14:22

I I wouldn't get him out just because I love him so much.

SPEAKER_00 14:26

Claudia, thank you so much. I loved watching you. I love what you brought to the show. So thank you for taking the time to chat to me today. Well, thank you so much.

unknown 14:35

This is beyond reality.