The “Love Island USA” alum confirmed that he’s still “super tight” with the pair even after the brutal finale.

Where The Traitors’ Rob Rausch stands with Maura Higgins and Eric Nam after that shocking finale

The "Love Island USA" alum confirmed that he's still "super tight" with the pair even after the brutal finale.

By Emlyn Travis

Emlyn Travis is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2022. Her work has previously appeared on MTV News, Teen Vogue, and *NME*.

EW's editorial guidelines

February 27, 2026 2:15 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Rob Rausch, Maura Higgins, and Eric Nam on 'The Traitors'. Credit:

Euan Cherry/Peacock (3)

**This article contains spoilers for *The Traitors* season 4, episode 11, "Leap of Faith."**

Rob Rausch may have won *The Traitors*, but at what cost? **

The *Love Island USA* alum and casual snake wrangler, 27, shocked the world when he backstabbed Eric Nam and tricked Maura Higgins into believing he was a fellow Faithful in order to win the grand prize at the end of last night’s dramatic finale. But did his serpentine moves come at an emotional cost?**

As it turns out, there was no love lost between Rausch and his fellow competitors. “Me and Eric are cool. Eric understands it’s a game,” Rausch told *Us Weekly*. “He said it took him a few days, but he got over it, and we’re cool. [With Maura], she took it like a champ, and she said she would have done the same thing, but it was hard because she really trusted me.”

Johnny Weir, Tara Lipinski, and Eric Nam on 'The Traitors' season 4.

Euan Cherry/Peacock

Nam, who Rausch personally recruited to his side during the show, admitted it took him a moment to comprehend what happened at the castle, but that the pair are “good” these days. **

“It took a day or two for me to be like, ‘Wow, that was a crazy experience. And I can’t believe that I once again trusted somebody and I got completely stabbed in the back,’” he told the outlet. “But Rob sent me a message after filming, and I think it just said, like, ‘My fault, G,’ and I was like, ‘That’s just him.’”**

Nam continued, “At the end of the day, it’s a game, and I can’t be mad at him for playing a really good game. We’re friends, we’ve remained friends, we will stay friends. And I’m really happy for him.”

(From left) Eric Nam, Maura Higgins, Tara Lipinski, Johnny Weir, and Rob Rausch on 'The Traitors' season 4.

Euan Cherry/Peacock

'Traitors' reunion melts down as Michael Rapaport explodes on Johnny Weir

Lisa Rinna claims she was drugged with fentanyl at the 'Traitors' premiere party

Still, if he could go back in time, Nam told the outlet he wished he’d been “a little more wary” of Rausch and his intentions ahead of the finale. **

“It would have been a very complex thing to try to pull one over on him, because he had so much trust in the castle,” he added. “But maybe I would have played it differently.”

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.*****

Higgins, on the other hand, believed that Rausch was a Faithful until the very end, which made for a particularly brutal moment in the finale when she discovered that he’d completely bamboozled her. However, she told the outlet that she’s not taking his betrayal “to heart” moving forward.**

“It’s not real life to me — he was chosen as a Traitor,” she said. “He’s not allowed to tell anyone, and he played an incredible game, so I can’t be mad at that. I can only be mad at myself for trusting the wrong person.”**

Especially if he makes it up to her with a nice gift. “He told me he’s going to get me a gift, which is going to be a Birkin handbag,” she continued. “So when he gets that, then he’s fully forgiven.”

Alan Cumming and Rob Rausch after Rausch won 'The Traitors' season 4.

Euan Cherry/Peacock

In an interview with *GQ*, Rausch similarly echoed that he, Nam, and Higgins are all still “super tight” and stood by his decision to double-cross Nam. **

“Can you imagine if I let a Traitor that was there for three days beat me in the game and win the whole thing?” he told the outlet. “Hell no, I’m not taking that chance. I’m getting out of here with the money."**

Although he admitted that it didn’t feel great to turn on Nam and Higgins.

“It was so weird, in that moment,” Rausch said. “I did it, I won the game, it’s over…but at the same time, it was very bittersweet. It wasn’t like, *Hooray!* It wasn’t happy feelings straight away. I was like, *Oh, gosh*.”

The *Traitors *season 4 finale and reunion is streaming now on Peacock.

- Reality Action Shows

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Reality”