Three Survivor alums are trading island life for Alan Cumming’s Traitors Castle.
Rob Cesternino, Natalie Anderson and Yamil “Yam Yam” Arocho were announced as part of the season 4 cast on Friday, June 13. They’ll face off against the likes of other reality TV stars, comedians and even the one and only Donna Kelce.
In the past three seasons of The Traitors, some Survivor alums have done well while others were gone too soon. The inaugural season saw legend Cirie Fields put on the Traitor cloak and become the series’ first winner. She outplayed the cast, which included her fellow Survivor 50 costar, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick.
Season 2 brought on Survivor winners Parvati Shallow and Sandra Diaz-Twine. However, the women came up short after The Challenge stars Chris “CT” Tamburello and Trishelle Cannatella shared the victory.
Survivor had four representatives for season 3: Rob “Boston Rob” Mariano, Tony Vlachos, Jeremy Collins and Carolyn Wiger. Despite playing hard and delivering iconic moments, none of the four were able to beat Gabby Windey, Dylan Efron, Dolores Catania and Lord Ivar Mountbatten.
Rob, Natalie and Yam Yam all have impressive histories as competitive TV stars. Keep scrolling for a breakdown of what to know about them:
Rob Cesternino
Rob first graced our TV screens on Survivor: The Amazon back in 2003. He was best known for his strategic prowess, witty confessionals and his magic eight ball. Rob ultimately came in third place. He returned for Survivor: All-Stars but was taken out early due to a big strategic threat. Host Jeff Probst previously referred to Rob as one of the best players to never win the game.
Following All-Stars, Rob did not return to reality TV. Instead, he opted to go down the podcast route by creating “Rob Has a Podcast,” also known as “RHAP.” In 2010, Rob started podcasting about Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains and the final season of Lost. Since its founding, the network has grown to cover more reality competition series — including The Traitors.
This is Rob’s first time back on reality TV in two decades. He was in contention for Survivor 50, which revealed its cast in May.
Natalie Anderson
Before stepping onto the island, Natalie competed on The Amazing Race with her twin sister, Nadiya Anderson. The sisters, who lovingly called each other “Twinnie,” came in fourth place on season 21. They returned for an all-star season in season 24 but were eliminated first.
Following The Amazing Race, Natalie and Nadiya joined Survivor: San Juan del Sur. The season had a Blood vs. Water theme, which included all competitors playing alongside a loved one on opposing tribes. Nadiya was the first one voted out, inspiring Natalie to fight to stay in the game. She teamed up with Jeremy, whose wife Val Collins, was voted off second.
Natalie and Jeremy became a strong duo in the game until the firefighter was blindsided at the merge. Natalie vowed to get revenge in honor of her fallen ally.
Not only did Natalie impress fans with her ability to win competitions and find an idol, but she also gained attention with her strategic thinking. Natalie’s biggest move in Survivor was when she played an idol on Jaclyn Schultz, which led to Baylor Wilson’s elimination. Natalie went on to win the season.
Natalie returned to Survivor: Winners at War but was the first person voted out. She remained on the Edge of Extinction with the hope of re-entering the game. After spending most of the game on the Edge, she was able to win a spot back in a second battle-back and made it to the end of the game. Natalie ended up coming in second to Tony.
In addition to Survivor and The Amazing Race, Natalie competed on The Challenge season 36. She ultimately withdrew from the game due to medical reasons.
Yamil ‘Yam Yam’ Arocho
Yam Yam competed on Survivor 44. He won over fans and tribemates with his charming personality and funny demeanor. In the first episode of the season, Yam Yam proudly declared his excitement to be on Survivor and how he was going to “poop in the ocean.”
The hair salon owner bonded early on with Carolyn and Carson Garrett. The trio became known as the Tika 3 and made it far into the post-merge. Yam Yam was credited as being the leader of the alliance and ultimately won the game over Carolyn and Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt.
