It was the "Bravo-con" takeover that nobody—not even the most seasoned reality TV junkies—saw coming. If you spent the early part of 2024 glued to Peacock, you know exactly why the Scottish Highlands became the center of the universe for a few weeks. The tension was thick enough to cut with a dull knife. Everyone wants to know who won season 2 of traitors, but the answer isn't just a name. It’s a masterclass in how a single decision can destroy a friendship and net someone a massive six-figure payday.
Trishelle Cannatella and Chris "C.T." Tamburello walked away with the grand prize. They split the pot. It was $273,000.
Seeing two The Challenge legends standing there at the end felt like a glitch in the matrix for people who grew up watching them on MTV in the early 2000s. They weren't supposed to win together. In fact, for most of the finale, it looked like they might eat each other alive.
The Brutal Logic of the Final Fire
Reality TV finales are usually scripted or predictable. This wasn't. The "Fire Ceremony" in The Traitors is designed to be a psychological meat grinder.
By the time the group got down to the final four—Trishelle, C.T., MJ Javid from Shahs of Sunset, and the last remaining Traitor, Kate Chastain—the vibe was radioactive. Kate was banished first. That was the easy part. Everyone knew she was the Traitor. But then the game shifted into "Prisoner's Dilemma" territory. Once the Traitors are gone, the remaining Faithful can choose to end the game and split the money, or vote again to banish one more person.
Trishelle and C.T. chose violence.
They didn't have to vote out MJ. They really didn't. They had the numbers. They were all Faithfuls. But in the world of high-stakes gaming, "split three ways" sounds a lot worse than "split two ways." Trishelle, ever the strategist, grew paranoid. She didn't fully trust C.T. in that final moment, and C.T. was looking at MJ as the weakest link.
The first vote was a stalemate. It was a mess. MJ looked genuinely heartbroken. She thought she had an alliance, a real bond. But C.T. and Trishelle have twenty years of history. They’ve bled, sweated, and argued on camera since George W. Bush was in office. That history won out. On the re-vote, they both turned on MJ. She was banished, left the circle in tears, and the "Castle Daddy" and the "Challenge Queen" took it all.
Why MJ Javid’s Loss Still Stings
Let’s be honest. MJ wasn’t the most active player in terms of "detective work." She spent a lot of the season kind of floating. But in The Traitors, floating is a legitimate strategy. If you aren't a threat, the Traitors don't murder you. If you aren't annoying, the Faithful don't banish you.
MJ played a perfect social game right up until the final thirty seconds.
The fallout was real. This wasn't just "TV drama." At the reunion hosted by Andy Cohen, the tension was still there. MJ didn't hold back. She felt betrayed. Not just by the game, but by people she thought were her friends. It highlights the biggest flaw—or maybe the biggest feature—of the show: it rewards the most ruthless, not the most "faithful" in the literal sense of the word.
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Breaking Down the Winners' Strategy
How did two of the biggest targets in reality TV history make it to the end? Normally, the "gamers" get picked off early because they’re too smart for their own good. Look at Dan Gheesling. He’s a Big Brother icon, a legend. He was out before he could even get his engine started because everyone was terrified of him.
Trishelle and C.T. succeeded because they played "The Shield Game."
- They dominated the physical challenges. This kept the pot high.
- They were loud about their suspicions. Usually, this gets you killed. But they had a "Shield of Protection" (metaphorically and sometimes literally) because the Traitors thought they could use them as shields.
- The MTV Bond. You cannot underestimate the power of knowing someone for two decades.
C.T. played a much quieter game than we’re used to seeing. He wasn't the "CT" who used to get into fights on The Challenge. He was the elder statesman. He cooked. He listened. He stayed out of the petty "Housewives" drama that consumed the middle of the season. When Larsa Pippen and Tamra Judge were bickering, C.T. was just... there. Waiting.
Trishelle, on the other hand, was the engine. She was the one who sniffed out Dan. She was the one who pushed the Peppermint banish (which, okay, was a mistake, but it showed she had the floor). She was the "Aggressive Faithful." It’s a dangerous role, but she survived it by being just right enough, just often enough.
The Dan Gheesling Factor and the Traitor Collapse
We have to talk about why the Traitors lost. Because they should have won. At one point, the Traitors had a stranglehold on the house. Dan Gheesling, Parvati Shallow, and Phaedra Parks. That is an "Avengers" level lineup of villains.
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But ego is a hell of a drug.
Dan tried to make a "big move" by throwing Phaedra under the bus at the roundtable. It was a disaster. It was like watching a grandmaster blunder his Queen in the first ten moves of a chess match. Phaedra, a literal lawyer, dismantled him in front of everyone. But the damage was done. The "seed of doubt" wasn't just planted; it was fertilized and watered.
Parvati was the next to go. She played a "Black Widow" game that was just a little too obvious for this group. Then came Phaedra. Oh, Phaedra. She was the heart of the season. Her "I'm an attorney, honey" energy kept the Faithfuls spinning for weeks. But she couldn't outrun the "Gamer" alliance forever.
By the time Kate Chastain was recruited as a Traitor late in the game, the ship was already taking on water. Kate is amazing TV—the best, honestly—but she wasn't a "Traitor" at heart. she was a chaos agent. Her heart wasn't in the deception, and it showed in the finale.
Key Moments That Led to the Win
- The Bergie "Murder" Attempt: When the Traitors tried to kill Bergie and he had a shield, it blew up their entire game. It proved there was a Traitor among the "Alpha" group.
- The Peter Weber "Pilot Pete" Resistance: Love him or hate him, Peter’s "Bachelor" charm created a voting bloc that the Traitors couldn't break. Even though Peter didn't win, he paved the way for Trishelle and C.T. by forcing the Traitors to play defense.
- The Leftover Alliance: The internal split between the "Bravo girls" and the "Gamers" created enough noise that the winners could hide in the middle.
What Season 2 Taught Us About Future Winners
If you're looking at who won season 2 of traitors and trying to figure out the "meta" for season 3 and beyond, here is the reality. Being a Traitor is actually harder than being a Faithful if the Faithfuls are smart. In Season 1, the Traitors had it easy because people were still figuring out the mechanics. In Season 2, the players were sharks.
The "Faithful" win wasn't an accident. It was a shift in how the game is played.
You have to be "selectively loyal." Trishelle and C.T. weren't loyal to the "Faithfuls" as a group. They were loyal to each other. That’s the secret sauce. If you go into that castle alone, you’re dead. If you go in with one person you’d trust with your life (or at least your bank account), you have a chance.
Practical Takeaways for the Super-Fan
If you're re-watching the season or preparing for the next installment, keep your eyes on the "quiet" players who perform well in challenges. Google search trends show that fans often overlook the "physical" players in favor of the "loud" ones at the roundtable. But as C.T. proved, being the guy who wins the money for the pot makes people hesitant to vote you out. They want the money to be there when they win.
Next Steps for Traitors Enthusiasts:
- Watch the UK and Australian versions. If you think the US Season 2 was brutal, the international versions (especially Australia Season 2) are on a whole different level of psychological warfare.
- Follow the cast on social media. The beef between MJ, Trishelle, and C.T. didn't end when the cameras stopped. The post-game interviews on podcasts like The Traitors Postmortem or Bachelor Happy Hour provide context that the editors cut out.
- Analyze the "Shield" strategy. In future seasons, the "Shield" isn't just about avoiding murder; it's about information. Pay attention to who tells the truth about having one and who lies. That is usually where the game is won or lost.
The ending of Season 2 was polarizing. Some people called it a "robbery." Others called it "perfect gameplay." Regardless of where you land, Trishelle and C.T. cemented their legacy as the greatest to ever do it. They came, they saw, and they left a "Shahs of Sunset" star standing in the cold while they split the gold.
Reality Check: The Prizes
- Total Pot: $273,000
- Trishelle’s Cut: $136,500
- C.T.’s Cut: $136,500
- MJ’s Cut: $0
The math is simple, but the emotions are complicated. That’s why we watch.