Larsa Pippen Is Ready to Backstab BF Marcus Jordan on 'The Traitors'

Larsa and Marcus

On The Traitors, you really can't trust anyone, and in the case of Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan, that means knowing that your significant other may be conspiring to murder you. Season 2 of The Traitors has ditched the newbies and brought in a crop of 21 celebrities to duke it out in the Scottish mansion for $250,000. Among the lineup of mostly reality TV stars is The Real Housewives of Miami's Larsa Pippen and her current beau Marcus Jordan.

If the Pippen/Jordan combination is striking any chords that's because the pair is one of the more interesting celebrity matches in recent history. Larsa Pippen married  Chicago Bull starter Scottie Pippen back in 1997 at the height of his fame. The pair had four kids and were married more than 20 years before finalizing their divorce in 2021. Marcus Jordan is the son of Pippen's longtime teammate Michael Jordan. After the Pippens' divorce, Larsa was spotted with Marcus in September 2022, after which she vehemently declared they were just friends until the pair became official in early 2023. Since then, Marcus has been all over Larsa's Instagram timeline and the pair filmed scenes together for the most recent RHOM season.

Now the lovebirds are taking on a new type of reality TV, one in which lying, backstabbing and murder all play a part. On The Traitors, a group of Traitors are selected and must pick off the Faithful while remaining undetected. That means that if either Larsa or Marcus are selected as a Traitor, they'll be tasked with murdering the other. How will that impact their relationship and how did they prepare for the game? Prior to filming, Parade sat down with Larsa and Marcus to ask just that.

Related: Six Big Changes Coming to 'The Traitors' for Season 2

What drew you to The Traitors? Why did you accept the offer to come on this show? 

Marcus Jordan: I'm a big murder mystery fan and so watching Season 1, I got hooked and then all the content around The Traitors is strictly focused on the game, and it doesn't dwell too much into your personal life. So that was a big draw for me

Larsa Pippen: For me it was more of the challenges. I wanted to push myself. I feel like all the stuff I've done on Bravo has basically been safe, and this was a place that was far and unsafe. I didn't know what the outcome was gonna be or if I was gonna be good or evil. So I was really excited about the challenges.

What was your strategy coming into The Traitors? 

Marcus: My strategy is to be a sponge. Watching Season 1, if you come in too hot, it might work against you, and so I felt like the first couple of days getting to understand everybody and learn everybody's personality really helped me develop my strategy moving forward.

Larsa: I feel like my strategy keeps changing. I started off thinking I was going to be super quiet and just taking in all the information. Now I'm friends with everyone, open to everyone, and I don't know, hopefully I don't get into a situation where I have to pick sides or throw anyone under the bus.

How did you prepare for the show and the challenges? Did you watch any other seasons of the show? 

Larsa: Marcus and I work out every day. So once we knew we were gonna do The Traitors, we were like, "Hey, we gotta step up our cardio. We gotta get used to not having our phones," which is a whole other aspect of this. But I think when you're doing the challenges, your adrenaline really does pick up and propel you to the next level because I definitely feel stronger when we're doing the challenges than I normally would.

Marcus: I think the missions are both physical and mental, so you have to bring your A-game at all times. You know me. I'm a Jordan by DNA. Winning is in my blood, so it wasn't too much of a difference for me.

You two are coming in as a couple, which is unique. How did that affect your strategy? Do you think its a pro or a con? Does it put a target on your back?

Marcus: I definitely feel like there's a slight target on our back. One, for me, being a rookie at reality TV and competition shows, but also having my girlfriend here. I feel like the other players wish they had their significant others here.

Larsa: But I do feel like our relationship has changed. We had to have this conversation, and we're basically like, "Hey, once we get to the castle, I'm Larsa and you're Marcus, and we're not necessarily a duo anymore. You're on your own. I'm on my own." It has changed our relationship being here, but it's in a good way, you know? I feel like we're both growing individually. This is our path, and I think it's super fun to be able to experience this with someone you care about and at the same time be challenged in your relationship.

Related: Meet the Full Cast of 'The Traitors' Season 2

So if one of you is the Traitor and murders the other, will there be forgiveness or will you hold a grudge? 

Marcus: I think we came into the game both wanting to win but we talked about it before and there's no hard feelings. But I definitely feel like if I get stabbed in the back by Larsa it will sting a little bit.

Larsa: Whoever does win The Traitors I will be their biggest supporter of, because I feel like everyone is so amazing on this cast.

Do you feel like there's a camaraderie among the Bravo folks who are on the show? 

Larsa: So, twofold: I want to cheer for the other housewives, because we do have a bond, and we definitely know what it's like to be under pressure on our show, but at the same time, I do want to win. I'm competitive. But I'm hoping I can align with them and not have to be against them. I'm definitely cheering for them.

Did you know any of the other Housewives before The Traitors?

Larsa: I knew Tamra. I did Tamra's podcast before, but that was basically it. I just know of the other girls because we have the same production company. I feel like because we're all on the same platform, and we've all been on TV for so long, that we know each other, respect each other, and we do have a little bit of a camaraderie...so far.

Marcus: Yeah, I feel like collectively there's this bond that we all have. I was talking to Johnny Bananas and CT about their time on The Challenge because I watched them when I was a teenager just growing up. They spoke about how each season they develop these "trauma bonds" is what they call them, with their castmates. And I feel like right now, we're all going through that.

Are you prepared for the emotional highs and lows of this experience?

Larsa: I'm used to doing our cast trips, and it's very similar. We work 10-hour days, it's five days of mental and physical work, not necessarily challenges, but it is hard. Normally when I do Housewives, we drink and we're not drinking on this show. So I'm definitely sleeping better, waking up happier, but yeah, I feel like I'm emotionally prepared for this.

Marcus: Yeah, coming in as a rookie, the first roundtable was super intense. I just feel like having played basketball before, you kind of deal with the emotional highs and lows of a basketball game, and so I'm coming into this with the same approach.

How are you two feeling experiencing the reality TV show circuit for the first time? 

Marcus: I filmed with Larsa for The Real Housewives of Miami this past season and so that was kind of my introduction to it all, but this is definitely different. You don't have your phone. You're not filming at home. But I think I'm doing all right. I grew up playing basketball and doing press interviews like this, so I feel like I have proper training for it. It's just when you're filming TV, you're always on. You've got this mic, and need to be mindful of what you say, but that's kind of always been my mentality anyway.

Does being here together help you to focus on something outside of the game and gain perspective? 

Larsa: No! We don't even hang out. We don't see each other.

Marcus: When I get back to my room after after filming, you take that time to decompress, but the isolation gets you after a while. They give us these headshots of everybody just to understand everybody's name, and I find myself picking up the headshot looking at Larsa. As soon as the morning comes, I'm racing downstairs because we travel in the same car, and so that's how I take my mind out of the game, trying to get back to her.

Larsa: I gotta admit one thing. Marcus asked me for a nail file, and you know they go through everything. And then I was like oh, there's a banana because he said he wanted a banana, so I put "I love you" on the banana and sent it to him with the nail file.

Marcus: We made a pact too. Whoever has to go home first has to wait for the other one. So if I end up getting eliminated first, I'm gonna go play some golf.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About 'The Traitors' Season 2