Five fictional traitors from the world of film

Series four of The Traitors is well and truly here - bigger, better and badder than ever before.

Here at BBC Bitesize, we’re loving another trip to the Scottish Highlands full of malicious murders, revelatory round table discussions, the occasional brutal banishment and plenty of underhand gameplay.

Series four of The Traitors has got off with a bang and while we await each new episode, we're obsessed with the idea of the cinema's greatest backstabbers. So much so, that we’ve dug into the film archives to unearth some of Hollywood’s most conniving, deceitful and evil traitors to have ever hit the silver screen.

If the latest crop of Claudia’s contestants take any inspiration from these characters, we could be in for quite the series.

Lights…Traitors…Action!

1. Scar - The Lion King

It’s only natural that contestants in The Traitors’ castle quickly adopt a “don’t trust anybody” mindset. But what about secret family members in the ranks? Surely they can be trusted? (Has anyone got Ross and Diane’s number?!)

One fictitious family figure who it seems certainly can’t be trusted is Uncle Scar, from Disney’s The Lion King.

Who is Scar? Voiced by the iconic Jeremy Irons (and by Chiwetel Eljiofor in a 2019 remake) Scar is the younger brother of King Mufasa, and uncle to next in line to the throne, Simba.

What makes him a traitor? It all starts off so well for Simba and his family. From an early age Mufasa starts to teach the cub the way of the pride and the circle of life. Though he has some interesting opinions, Simba is pretty excited to one day become king.

Meanwhile Scar, with his sense of entitlement, is anything but excited. In the shadows, he plots and schemes with a pack of aloof hyenas (think Jonathan Ross keeping a close eye on Alan Carr).

Eventually Scar’s vengeful plan comes to a head. Longing for power he kills Mufasa and manipulates the innocent Simba into thinking it was his fault. This forces the youngster to leave the pride. With the heir apparent out of sight, the traitor assumes the throne.

However, in an end-game Claudia Winkleman would be proud of, Simba makes an emphatic return, and forces a confession from his evil uncle. In a final attempt to save his skin Scar tries to throw his hyenas under the bus in an act that would be his ultimate downfall.

Traitor trivia: In a deleted scene from the original movie, we get an actual banishment! Following Simba’s lioness best-friend Nala rejecting romantic requests from Scar, he sends her packing into the wilderness.

2. Anakin Skywalker – Star Wars

Who is Anakin Skywalker? A young Anakin Skywalker makes his first appearance in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. Released In 1999, it was the first of the Star Wars prequel trilogy and introduced us to nine-year old slave Anakin who dreams of being a Jedi. He’d go on to appear in multiple Star Wars films as his story progressed.

What makes him a traitor? Unlike the instant overnight recruitment of a faithful to the traitors' dark side, this Jedi’s change of allegiance is a slow burn. But stick with us for one of Hollywood’s biggest twists. When we first meet Anakin he couldn’t look more innocent. Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn, goes as far as to proclaim that he could be the “Chosen One”. Despite initial concerns, the Jedi council eventually permit Anakin to be trained up. Following various light-sabre battles and dramatic plot points, Anakin marries his love, Senator Padmé. In a way this was the beginning of something dark happening.

Enter Senator Palpatine who until this point had somewhat been on the fringes of things, keeping a close eye on the powerful Skywalker. This scheming senator had some dastardly plans. Palpatine was a Sith Lord (effectively a “baddie” on the dark side). He preyed upon Anakin’s fears – manipulated and tempting the young man into betraying his fellow Jedis and turning to the dark side. Anakin would become a Sith Lord know as Darth Vader. We won’t give away the finer details of everything he encountered in his quest to ruthlessly rule the galaxy, but safe to say he was not a force for good. Though whether as Anakin or Darth Vader he may have “used the force” for good one final time in 1983’s Return of the Jedi.

Traitor trivia: In the original three Star Wars films Darth Vader was played by one person (David Prowse), but was voiced by another (James Earl Jones.)

3. Lotso – Toy Story 3

Who is Lotso? Introduced to the world in Pixar’s Toy Story 3, Lotso, short for Lots-o’-Huggin’ Bear, is a large, strawberry-scented teddy. He’s the leader of the toys at Sunnyside Daycare, where our favourite cowboy, space ranger, and friends unwittingly find themselves.

What makes him a traitor? He might seem cute and cuddly on the outside, but this plush toy isn’t stuffed full of the soft stuff. Instead, he’s filled with a sense of betrayal and abandonment. As a result, he’s the ruthless ruler of the Sunnyside toys, which for Woody and co is not good news! From assigning them to a room full of rowdy toddlers, to having Buzz rebooted to his factory settings in order assert control, it becomes pretty clear pretty quickly that Lotso is not to be messed with.

An ill-fated escape from Sunnyside by Woody and the gang, mostly at the hands of Lotso, launches the film’s emotional rollercoaster of a final act. All at a landfill incineration plant, of course.

Here, the toys, including Lotso, find themselves on a conveyor belt, facing the prospect of being shred to pieces. Whilst some find a way to avoid this grizzly fate, Lotso is looking less fortunate. However, Woody and Buzz, in their kind spirit, successfully rescue him.

But moments later, as the films protagonists face the real threat of going down in flames at the end of another conveyor belt, Lotso is less forthcoming with help. He spots a ladder that leads to a “stop” button, hitting this would bring a halt to the toys’ devastating demise. However, in a cut-throat move even Harry Clark would be impressed with, Lotso runs off without pressing the button, leaving the toys in absolute peril.

Traitor trivia: Pixar are known for their cameos. Eagle-eyed viewers of the film Up can spot Lotso sitting in a young girl’s bedroom as Carl’s house floats by.

4. Dennis Nedry – Jurassic Park

Who is Dennis Nedry? Played by the acclaimed American actor Wayne Knight, Dennis Nedry is a somewhat gruff computer programmer in the 1993 blockbuster, Jurassic Park.

What makes him a traitor? In a film full of prehistoric beasts, hints of romance, and some questionable science, you would be forgiven for not expecting a computer programmer to be the ultimate antagonist. But in Jurassic Park, Dennis Nedry is exactly that.

Initially Nedry is paid to create the computer system for bioengineering firm Ingen’s dinosaur filled Jurassic Park. However, because Nedry isn't happy with how the company were treating him, plus he's facing tricky financial difficulties (and perhaps just being greedy) he decides to take malicious action. Nedry agrees to steal dinosaur embryos and pass them on to a rival bioengineering company to give them a competitive advantage.

Nedry sets about completing his mission (no shields would be available to him - just the promise of $1.5m) However, not everything goes to plan. His scheming leads to many dinosaurs escaping their enclosures. The result – carnage. The security breach, combined with a powerful storm results in dramatic scenes. In the end Nedry pays the price for his traitorous ways. Crashing a vehicle during the storm, ultimately losing the embryos, and meeting a terrifying Dilophosaurus who swiftly sees to the end of him.

Traitor trivia: To fulfil his industrial espionage mission, Nedry is given a modified shaving foam can to collect the dinosaur embryos in. Although he drops it during his demise, the can makes a reappearance 29 years later in the film Jurassic Park: Dominion, released in 2022.

5. Ernesto de la Cruz – Coco

When you hear the words ‘singer’, ‘traitor’, ‘betrayal’ and ‘friendship’ in the same sentence you might well recall Alan Carr brutally bumping off Paloma Faith in the first series of The Celebrity Traitors. But that’s not the first time a musician has been involved in a traitorous plot.

Who is Ernesto? Ernesto de la Cruz is a character in Pixar’s 2017 hit, Coco. An actor, singer, musician he appears to be the ultimate showman, adored by millions.

What makes him a traitor? A quick bit of context – Coco is a wonderful film that explores Mexican culture and heritage, using a lot of imagery associated with the ‘Day of the Dead.’ Full of song it follows young Miguel who somehow finds himself in the ‘Land of the Dead’ following a disagreement with his family. He thinks one man can truly help him find his way home – Ernesto de La Cruz. Miguel idolises the musician who he comes to believe is his long deceased great-great grandfather. Sounds lovely and wholesome, right?

However, in his quest to seek a blessing that will see him return to his family, Miguel first meets Héctor who attempts to help the boy but reveals some home truths along the way. It soon comes to light that the ‘great’ Ernesto and Héctor were once a double act on stage, who were close to stardom. But when Héctor felt he could no longer continue, the malicious and manipulative Ernesto poisoned him, took Héctor’s guitar and claimed to adoring fans that all the songs and music were his own original works. What a shocker. Of course, there are some other twists in the tale before Miguel manages to make it back to his family – but we’ll only tell you of Ernesto’s final demise. His fans in the Land of the Dead (of which there are many) are quick to turn on the charismatic crooner, and after taking flight in the mouth of a spirit animal, he finds himself crushed by a giant bell.

Traitor trivia: With Ernesto being such a great singer, and key character, animators went to impressive lengths to ensure his adams apple moves when he sings - gulp!

In wrapping up this list of sometimes tyrannical, often vengeful, and always malicious fictional characters, we’re aware that there’s no females on this list – but that’s not to say they don’t exist. Some might argue that X-Men character Mystique could be seen as a traitor, or perhaps Dr Elsa Schneider in Indian Jones and the Last Crusade.

For more inspiration on that front why not jump to BBC iPlayer to relive some iconic traitorous moments from the show to date, offered up by the likes of from the likes of Minah, Linda, and of course Cat Burns - and see how our latest castle villains are getting on in series four.

This article was published in December 2025