The Real Reason Amanda Clark-Stoner Left The Traitors

Even if you're not really all that interested in the bizarro world of reality television, there is something about "The Traitors" ("The Traitors US" outside of the States) that just sucks you in. The show is based on the Dutch series "De Verraders" ("The Traitors" in Dutch) and it is one of only many, many official spin-offs, including "The Traitors UK," "The Traitors Australia," and the Swedish "Förrädarna." The reality series (which is hosted by Nightcrawler himself, Alan Cumming) has become a massive hit just like its international brethren, following contestants as they play what is essentially a complex version of the party game often called "mafia" or "werewolf." 

In all of the games, there are a couple of murderers (in this case, the traitors) among the group who are able to "kill" other members in secret and everyone else tries to root out the killers. It's a lot of fun at parties and it's just as much fun to watch on Peacock because the producers do their best to help us get to know and root for our favorite players. In the first season, one of those players was Amanda Clark-Stoner (playing as simply Amanda Clark), a nurse from Pennsylvania who played as a faithful (the term for all non-traitors). Unfortunately, she made it to the fifth episode only to voluntarily leave the show without explanation, leaving fans to speculate wildly. So, what the heck actually happened?

According to the BBC website for "The Traitors," Clark-Stoner comes from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and is an emergency room nurse (with a specialty in emergency medicine, no less) who dealt with the harrowing experience of working on the front lines during the early days of the pandemic. Her official bio on the site says that she "loves solving puzzles, murder mysteries, escape rooms, mazes, and more," and that she was working on renovating a farm with her husband in the hopes of homesteading. Her "next big plan in life is to have children," who would liven up the farm alongside her three dogs. 

In her time on "The Traitors" first season, which mixed everyday, regular Americans with reality TV stars to compete for the $250,000 prize, Clark-Stoner held her own as a faithful and was one of the best at playing the game. Audiences seemed to either ignore her in favor of the more fiery competitors or really root for her as someone who had been heroic in real life as a nurse, and it's possible she would have made it to the end (and maybe even helped stop traitor Cirie Fields from winning!). As such, it was especially shocking when Cumming told the remaining contestants and audiences that "Amanda has had to leave the castle for reasons beyond her control." That's all anyone was able to say publicly for at least a few weeks, though eventually Clark-Stoner explained exactly what had happened.

In a post on her now-private Instagram account in late January of 2023, Clark-Stoner revealed exactly why she had been forced to "leave the castle" (even if contestants actually stay at an airport hotel). It turns out she had COVID-19. As she explained: 

"What really happened was that I tested positive for COVID, and I was no longer able to participate in the competition. I took every precaution: I wore an N-95 and a surgical mask on my flights. I quarantined before and after I got into Scotland, and I was vaccinated. And I still tested positive and couldn't continue."

Some of the theories about Clark-Stoner's sudden departure included that she was pregnant or had simply quit, though she also clarified those were not the case in her post. She said that she and her husband were actually going to start fertility treatments soon, and that she would not quit. "I could have broken both my legs," she said. "I would have been hobbling around that castle trying to figure out who the Traitors were." 

In the same post, Clark-Stoner also shared her feelings about being unable to finish playing things out, expressing her supreme disappointment. She said that when she found out she "felt like total s***" and that "all my hopes and dreams and this amazing opportunity that I will probably never get again just was taken away from me in an instant," which is pretty brutal. It's hard to imagine going from ER nursing to competing with reality TV stars (and a few other first-time reality contestants) in something as big as "The Traitors" to being sent home because of an infectious illness you tried your best to prevent. Still, she handled it with a great deal of grace. 

Her post ended with her choosing to focus on the positive aspects of her experience, like the fact that she wasn't banished by the faithful or murdered by the traitors, which means she has "unfinished business in Ardross Castle." However, she did say that she might be interested in getting a bit of revenge, so it's possible she could show up in a future season of "The Traitors," if that's something that works for her and the producers alike.

As much fun as it would be to see Clark-Stoner return to "The Traitors" and find out how she would do if she could play the game without her time being cut short, it's pretty unlikely we'll see her on the show anytime soon. In an Instagram post from January of 2025, Clark-Stoner shared that she was "exhausted" but "grateful and blessed" to be a mother, along with a photo of herself and her month-old child. Her focus will likely be on her family and the farm for the immediate future, but I wouldn't count her out entirely. After all, revenge is a dish best served cold.