For five seasons, Gary King has been the heartthrob on Below Deck Sailing Yacht. The South African bosun has been involved in a love triangle and multiple boatmances. Viewers often watched as he drank a lot on crew nights out. However, after Season 4, Gary’s position on the series has been up in the air since a production assistant accused the First Officer of making unwanted sexual advances.
What happened to Gary King?
Not long after Season 4 came to an end in August 2023, Gary was accused of misbehaving. A woman on the production team spoke out to Rolling Stone and implied the show and network covered up Gary’s sexual indiscretions. Samantha Suarez shared about Gary crossing the line with her more than once when she worked in the makeup department. She went as far as to allege that during Season 4, Gary tried to force himself onto her. Season 4 was filmed in Sardina back in 2022.
The cast and crew were put up in hotels, and Samantha was in charge of assisting the talent manager. This included keeping the cast sequestered in their room due to the COVID-19 rules. Samantha also revealed she was asked to walk an intoxicated Gary back to his room. She told the outlet, “There is no limit to alcohol consumption whatsoever, which I think poses a really big problem.” Once in his room, she shared that Gary asked her to climb into his bed. Samantha claimed she said, “I was like, ‘I have to go — I need to go bring other people water and food,’ and he’s like, ‘No, no, please.”
Gary King has a checkered past
The assistant said she told the Below Deck Sailing Yacht star “that she would sit outside his door to make sure he wouldn’t leave his hotel room.” As Samantha tried to leave, she claimed Gary went behind her and “grabbed her and pressed her against his body, and refused to let go even though she says she tried to kick and elbow him.” In his defense, Gary took to his Instagram, writing, “Sad to see this has all been edited out of tonight’s episode. Scary how ones persons lies can ruin someone’s career and livelihood.” Additionally, the network chose to cancel Gary and remove him from the BravoCon lineup in 2023.
A year after the allegations, it was revealed that Gary, Bravo, NBCUniversal, and production companies 51 Minds and Endemol Shine are being sued. Samantha and camera operator Grey Duddleston have filed a lawsuit with the Superior Court of California. The lawsuit accuses the defendants of 16 claims, including sexual battery, assault, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and emotional distress. The complaint noted that on July 3, 2022, Gary allegedly held Samantha “hostage” as he restrained her from leaving the hotel room.
The lawsuit is a part of Bravo’s Reality Reckoning
In the suit, Samantha shared she was “sure she would be raped” and that Gary kept rubbing her back and “smirking.” The defendant claimed she reported the incident to production, but Gary only received a warning. Then Grey reported seeing Gary “untie the bikini tops of two female cast members without their consent, make lewd remarks to a female audio technician, and grab the genitals of two male camera operators,” the complaint states. Grey reported what he saw over the crew’s walkie-talkie system, 51 Minds allegedly opened an investigation into inappropriate walkie-talkie use by Grey “rather than imposing consequences for King.”
Gary, a “well-known drunkard and serial harasser,” was welcomed back to the show while Samantha and Grey were fired. The lawsuit claims that both women were placed on “do not hire” lists. These are “well known among the cast. And was typically reserved for crew members who had been kicked off the show for inappropriate behavior.” Since reporting the incidents, the two have claimed they have been unemployable. And their production careers have come to an end. Samantha and Grey are represented by Bryan Freedman and Mark Geragos. The lawyers have filed a series of similar suits as part of the “Reality Reckoning.”
Below Deck Sailing Yacht is available to stream on Peacock.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK SHOULD HAPPEN TO GARY? IS BRAVO COVERING UP ANOTHER LAWSUIT?
