On “The Mole,” the hidden saboteur among the contestants is called The Mole.
The format places a group of contestants in missions designed to earn money for a shared prize fund. Secretly working against them is one participant selected by the producers: the Mole. The saboteur tries to reduce the group’s earnings without making their identity obvious.
The contestants must observe one another and identify suspicious behavior. At the end of episodes, they answer quizzes about the Mole. The player with the poorest score is eliminated, or “executed,” leaving the remaining contestants to continue the investigation.
The term can cause confusion because “mole,” “spy,” and “traitor” all describe someone operating secretly. In this show, however, The Mole is the program’s official title for the hidden role, not merely a generic description. The American series began in 2001, returned for a fifth season in 2008, and was revived by Netflix in 2022.