Below Deck alum Kate Chastain is breaking down the differences between her time on House of Villains and The Traitors.
“It is so shocking to me that I loved House of Villains so much more than The Traitors, because it was so much more fun,” Chastain, 43, exclusively told Luxury Handbag Shopping. “But I think if people in the Bravo world [and] want to do Traitors and House of Villains, Traitors is the one to do first.”
Chastain explained that The Traitors — which she appeared on in seasons 1 and 2 — is “so strict” and “so about the game,” making contestants learn “how to be a gamer.” (Survivor’s Cirie Fields won season 1, while Chris “CT” Tamburello and Trishelle Cannatella took home the top prize in season 2.)
The House of Villains, meanwhile, is “a little more fun and loose” in Chastain’s perspective. “But it’s still a game, so you got to learn how to play a game first and Traitors is like boot camp for that,” Chastain said, explaining that she felt she had a one-up going into the house. “You start learning things called social strategy and all these gaming terms that the more experienced gamers teach you.”
The House of Villains season 3 cast was announced in 2025, with reality TV stars like Vanderpump Rules’ Tom Sandoval and Selling Sunset’s Christine Quinn battling it out for a chance to win $200,000 and the title of “America’s Ultimate Supervillain.”
Despite Sandoval, 43, also having a past on The Traitors (he competed on season 3), Chastain did not view him as fierce competition. (Dylan Efron, Gabby Windey, Dolores Catania and Ivar Mountbatten ultimately split the final amount of $204,300 on The Traitors season 3.)
“Did I think Tom Sandoval was the biggest competition? No, no, I did not. I was not that worried about it,” Chastain told Us, before explaining her reasoning. “Just because he participated in Traitors. I wouldn’t say he necessarily gamed that well. I think he was just there. He’s just there but he got better, I think, because he certainly tried a game in House of Villains.”
She continued, “I think he played better than I expected, but he’s still Tom Sandoval.”
Chastain, meanwhile, has a pick in mind for who she would recruit from Below Deck for another season of The House of Villains: Rhylee Gerber.
“I think Rhylee, who was a female deckhand on a couple seasons — she’s got a big personality,” Chastain said. “She would do really well.”
House of Villains is streaming now on Peacock with new episodes released every Thursday.
