NBC Insider Exclusive

Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!

Sign Up For Free to View
NBC Insider The Traitors

A Multi-Hyphenate Force: Exploring The Traitors Host Alan Cumming's Career

As the actor/singer/writer/advocate returns to host Season 2 of Peacock's hit reality series The Traitors, we take a look at the incredible versatility of his career. 

By Tara Bennett
Alan Cumming stands in front of a mansion with flames on Season 2 of The Traitors

To some fans of Peacock's addictive reality competition series The Traitors, they may only recognize Alan Cumming as the witty yet cunning host who absolutely adores ratcheting up the paranoia vibes for his contestants. But the Scottish-born Cumming is an incredible multi-hyphenate talent who can act, sing, dance, write, and host with equal aplomb. He's been nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and won a Laurence Olivier Award and two Tony Awards, one for his incredible performance in Cabaret (1998) and the other as a producer for A Strange Loop (2022). 

RELATED: Meet the 21 Famous Contestants Taking on The Traitors Season 2

While a castle in the Scottish Highlands has been his recent haunt of late for The Traitors, there's plenty more to explore about Cumming's career. And so we turn our eyes toward this consummate showman's incredible resume, for which he's spent decades effortlessly shifting from theater to television and film.

How did Alan Cumming begin his career?

Alan Cumming stands with his arms open at a table with glasses on The Traitors Season 2

Born in Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland, in 1965 into a non-performing household, Cumming sought a career in the arts, making his TV debut in the British drama Traveling Man (1984), and continued to work in Scottish television shows and in many stage productions in both Scotland and London. In 1992, he made his film debut co-starring in Ian Sellar's Prague, which drew huge praise and even a Scottish BAFTA Best Actor nomination. But it wasn't until Cumming was cast as the oily creep pursuing Minnie Driver's character in Circle of Friends (1995) that international audiences took notice of his talents. He followed that memorable role up with an appearance in a Pierce Brosnan-led Bond film, playing Boris Ivanovich Grishenko in GoldenEye

How did Alan Cumming transition to comedy?

After getting cast as several heavies and unwanted suitors in film and television, Cumming made a career turn toward comedies, appearing in some beloved cult titles including Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997), Spice World (1997), the series 3rd Rock from the Sun and even a TV adaptation of the musical Annie. In 2000, he hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live. A year later, he co-directed the well-received ensemble film The Anniversary Party with Jennifer Jason Leigh.

When did Alan Cumming make it big on Broadway?

After a triumphant 1993 run as The Master of Ceremonies in Sam Mendes' 1993 revival of the musical Cabaret in London's West End, he reprised the role again on Broadway in 1998 and won a Tony Award. In 2001, Cumming returned to the boards to begin a long streak of noteworthy stage roles on Broadway, including playing Otto in Noël Coward's Design for Living, Mack the Knife in the Bertolt Brecht-Kurt Weill musical The Threepenny Opera, and starring opposite Dianne Wiest in Anton Chekhov's The Seagull. 

What series has Alan Cumming starred in on U.S. TV?

In November 2008, Cumming became a dual-national and was sworn in as a citizen of the United States. He settled into residence in New York City, which allowed him to take a recurring role as the wily political strategist Eli Gold on the critically acclaimed drama The Good Wife and its sequel, The Good Fight. In 2018, he played Dr. Dylan Reinhart, the lead character in Instinct, the series adaptation of James Patterson's 2017 novel Murder Games. Most recently, he appeared in both seasons of the musical comedy pastiche Schmigadoon!.

When did Alan Cumming start hosting The Traitors?

Alan Cumming points at photos of the contestants for The Traitors Season 2

Along with everything else listed, Cumming has also written two memoirs, Not My Father's Son: A Memoir and Baggage: Tales from a Fully Packed Life, developed and launched an award-winning fragrance line called "Cumming," and has become an activist for LGBTQ+ issues. However, the one thing Cumming had never done before 2023 is host a reality competition show. He was asked to host both the U.K. and U.S. versions of The Traitors, adaptations of the Dutch series De Verraders. Both series became huge hits in their native countries, with audiences loving the high drama and camp Cumming infuses into each series. 

Who would Alan Cumming add to The Traitors?

In a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Cumming revealed that his favorite competitors are the ones out of left field: Olympian Ryan Lochte from Season 1 and pro boxer Deontay Wilder and former UK Parliament Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow in Season 2.

"I love the random, crazy people you would never imagine. I like more of those," he said. "And also I’d like more queer people, to be honest. We can up our queer quotient. 

 New episodes of The Traitors are available to stream every Thursday at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. on Peacock alongside The Traitors: Postmortem after show. All of Season 1 is already available to watch on Peacock. 

Originally published Jan 3, 2024.

Read more about: