Bustle Exclusive
The mother-and-son duo reveals a scene they wish had made the final cut.
She whispered for him to cover his mic, which wouldve violated the games rules, but he refused.
I was like, Trey!
You have to stop following all the rules all the time!
LeAnn recalls to Bustle.
You have to beg for forgiveness, not ask permission.
Neither were favorites in Red Light, Green Light.
Six months before filmingSquid Game, Trey, a25-year-old Chicago-based delivery driver,had experienced a collapsed lung.
Spoilers ahead.They survived until Episode 6, when Trey eliminated his mom in agame of marbles.
His luck ran out in the following episodesGlass Bridge game.
He stuck to the original game plan, which led to his elimination.
Many fanslabeled Ashley the villain,especially since she reinstated the strategy soon after.
(She was eventually eliminated inEpisode 9.)
Today, Trey has no lingering hard feelings against her.
In the game, of course, I was upset.
Everybody is so nice and almost conflict-averse untiltheirelimination is on the line, he tells Bustle.
I just have to stand here and say nothing.
Ashley was sure that Trey was going to do something stupid, and she was right, she jokes.
It was a villainous move, but shes not a villain.
Trey, yourSquid Gamebiosays you convinced your mom to come on the show with you.
How did you sell it to her?
Trey: There wasnt much convincing.
When I sent in my tape, they asked if I knew anybody who wanted to apply.
I suggested my childhood best friend and another close friend.
My childhood best friend told my sister I was applying, who then told my mom.
She sent me a text, like, Im right here!
LeAnn: Im like, Im doing nothing!
I hadnt watched the show…
Trey: It didnt take any convincing whatsoever.
LeAnn: I didnt know what I was doing, so it was good.
If you didnt know what you were getting into, why did you want to sign up, LeAnn?
LeAnn: It seemed so fun.
This is an opportunity to expand what your universe is.
It was so amazing.
In terms of strategy, did you consider hiding your relationship, or separating during games?
Episode 3s Warships was such a close call!
We also didnt know how many people would have relationships coming into the game.
But once Red Light, Green Light happened, we decided it was a stupid idea.
There was such an emotional catharsis.
No one was going to buy that.
LeAnn: Especially when hes crying at the end while Im trying to get across.
I was like, Well, I guess that cats out of the bag.
Trey: There were moments when we thought we should separate.
I wanted to go in Line 3 for Dalgona, but she was adamant on Line 1.
I also didnt want to be in the same boat as her for Warships.
LeAnn: He was mad that whole game that we were in the five-person boat.
Im like, I dont know, it seems random, so…
Trey: I was so mad.
LeAnn: He was so mad.
Trey: But ultimately, we decided our strategy was to play together.
LeAnn, you played it so cool during that big moment with Lorenzos 3-0-2 or three-hundred-and-two line.
What did you make of his retaliatory nomination in the dormitory?
LeAnn: I was really calm.
I remember thinking, Cmon, Lorenzo, you couldve come up with a better line than that!
I dont blame Lorenzo.
It came out of left field.
So I didnt feel entirely safe.
Trey was confident because he didnt vote for Lorenzo, which blew my mind.
It still does a little.
You stillcomplimented Lorenzos crocheted interview outfit on social media.
LeAnn: I dont have any hard feelings whatsoever.
I loved that outfit so much that I immediately said, Oh, I love this guy!
Everybody at my house watching was like, What?!
Trey: That outfits crazy.
LeAnn: I kind of want the hat?
Trey: The bag.
LeAnn: Oh, my God, I loved that handbag.
Did you get a chance to tell Lorenzo any of that after filming?
LeAnn: I went into his DMs and just said, Hey, I loved your outfit.
He said, I have zero hard feelings.
You were playing the game.
That made me so happy.
So we had a little back and forth.
Starting out with 456 contestants, Im sure you filmed plenty that ended up on the cutting room floor.
Whats one thing you wish fans could have seen?
Trey: We did a talent show in there with the Top 70.
Eric[215], whos from Donegal, Ireland, was the emcee.
It was like eight or 10 acts.
I juggled with Roland.
We did a few tricks, and he did a backflip.
I pretended to do a backflip.
LeAnn: It didnt bring down the house quite like the fake striptease.
Who did the striptease?!
Trey: It was a guy named Chad [210].
LeAnn: Hes a stripper!
Trey: He dances in Vegas for Thunder Down Under.
Ive seen fans nominate you forSurvivor,The Amazing Race, andThe Challenge.
Would you sign up for another reality competition?
Trey: Oh, 100%!
LeAnn:Amazing Racewould be great!
I could not doSurvivor;he could.
Trey: Yeah,The Traitors.
Those would be my Top 3.
How can you not love that guy?
This interview was edited and condensed for clarity.
