"Don't you keep secrets well?"... Michael Rapaport expelled from 'The Traitors' amid controversy over mocking coming out

Peacock's popular reality show 'The Traitors' Season 4 was turned upside down by a cast member's crossing the line remarks. Actor Michael Rapaport was effectively expelled for using a fellow cast member's painful past as a game tool.

According to local media in the U.S. on the 16th (Korean time), in the 'Round Table' scene of Episode 5 released on the 15th, Rapaport launched a homophobic attack against former football player and 'The Bachelor' alum Colton Underwood.

◆ "No one keeps secrets as well as you do"

When Underwood suspected him of being a traitor, Rapaport retorted, "No one in this room could keep secrets as well as you have for so long." This was interpreted as a jab at Underwood's 'closet' years, during which he had to hide his sexual identity for 29 years until coming out in 2021. Underwood immediately responded, "Is my 29 years of life a joke to you?" in anger.

◆ Cold reactions from peers... "Vile attack"

Rapaport defended himself, saying, "I wasn't talking about the closet," but the situation was already irreparable. Fellow LGBTQ+ figure skater Johnny Weir remarked, "You can't blame someone who had to live in hiding due to social pressure," and Maura Higgins from 'Love Island' criticized it as a "very low blow."

Even when Rapaport misused the word 'commiseration', Rob Rausch from 'Love Island USA' pulled out a dictionary to correct him, leading to a comical situation.

◆ People come before the game... Unanimous expulsion

Ultimately, the vote that day shifted from the game's strategy of 'finding the traitor' to 'punishing bad manners.' 'Survivor' winner Natalie Anderson raised her voice, saying, "There is enough reason to send him out just based on the way he spoke today," and many cast members voted for Rapaport's expulsion.

Rapaport, who has previously caused controversies due to stalking allegations against actress Lily Taylor, once again left the show disgracefully, earning the label of 'troublemaker.'