Rob Rausch Turned Down Another Major Reality Show for The Traitors Season 4

January 23, 2026

Whomever cast Rob Rausch on The Traitors Season 4 deserves a raise. So far, Rob and his top-notch vocabulary are playing a sneakily smart game, which is currently threatening to divide the Traitors. Overall(s), Rob is an excellent distraction for us all in times like these. Production crews everywhere apparently agree, since Rob just revealed that he turned down another gig ahead of joining this cast.

Rob Rausch declined an invite for Love Island: Beyond the Villa

Rob Rausch on Love Island — Photo Credit: Ben Symons/Peacock

Fans met this snake-wrangler midway through Season 5 of Love Island USA. He later returned for Season 6, where he had many highs, plus a few lows. Meanwhile, on The Traitors, fans are far less divided about his antics. So, it’s easy to see that Rob belonged in this game, possibly even more so than on his original series.

Nevertheless, production knew that Rob was a star, so they still invited him back to his first love’s spin-off series, Love Island: Beyond the Villa. However, Rob decided to shun this opportunity. Rob’s nope had nothing to do with his brief romance with Leah Kateb, who, unlike Rob, signed on the dotted line to appear on this spin-off. Instead, Rob reasoned, he was only trying to keep things real with his fans.

Beyond the Villa follows various former Islanders as they navigate their native habitat, also known as the jungles of Los Angeles. But in his Instagram Stories, which Reality Shrine captured, Rob explained that “the only reason” he decided not to appear in the series is because he doesn’t even live in LA. So, he didn’t want to relocate his entire life for eight long weeks of filming.

He added, “Like, what do you want me to do? Just show up and say, ‘Hey, this is my life. I live here for eight weeks.’ It just didn’t make sense; it was inauthentic to me. So I was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t think I can do it.’”

Several beats later, Rob signed onto The Traitors instead. And we are all better for it.

The Traitors is streaming on Peacock. New episodes drop on Thursdays at 9/8c.

TELL US – HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT ROB TURNING DOWN A STINT ON BEYOND THE VILLA?

Amy is a former teacher who used reality television as a form of escapism during her decade spent in the classroom. In addition to education, she also studied and performed long-form improvisation while mastering the art of comedic sketch writing via the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in NYC. Amy has interviewed reality television stars from the Real Housewives and Below Deck franchises, as well as each of the winners from E!'s OMG Fashun.