The Unseen Incident That Led the Below Deck Crew to Walk Off the Show
The Bravo series continues to enjoy success. However, behind the scenes, issues have taken place, and that dates back to Below Deck’s first time shooting. Reality TV can be stressful, and this was especially true over a decade ago, given how new it still was. Crew members had a hard time adjusting to cameras, and it resulted in a walkout, which threatened the show’s future.
We will take a closer look at what took place behind the scenes, and the moment that prompted the show’s producer to turn all the cameras off. The event took place during the second day of shooting, and threatened to end the show. We’re going to reveal what took place, and the reason Below Deck was allowed to continue. In addition, we’re going to reveal other problematic moments that caused the production team to “overstep” and get involved.
A Walkout Took Place On Below Deck After The Crew Thought The Show Planted Drugs On The Yacht
Over 170 episodes have aired of Below Deck. However, at the start, it was unsure if the reality series would get past one. Mark Cronin, the creator of the series revealed the horrible details of the first episode that resulted in one crew quitting. Things got off to a rocky start after the crew had trust issues with the cameras following their every move, especially given that this really wasn’t a norm over a decade ago. Privacy was another issue, according to the producer. Those on the boat just wanted to be left alone.
Reality Blurb recapped the biggest disaster in the show’s history. Cronin explains, “That was a disaster. That was a real disaster. And the reason it was a disaster was that the cast of the show, the boat crew, they didn’t trust us anyway.”
“A lot of these people, they didn’t even have TVs, like they didn’t even know what reality TV was really,” he continued. “They’re just yachties, really. Yachting is very important to them and keeping their yachting certifications and their licenses. And it wasn’t a joke. So they were looking at us like, ‘Well, what is this? Are you setting us up? Are these guests coming on here to make our lives difficult on purpose? And are you like to what extent are you messing with us?’”
With trust issues already in the air, things went from bad to worse after drugs were found on the boat.
“Then when Johnny Eyelash came on, it was OK, everything was going OK until they found the drugs. And then the cast was like, ‘Oh, it is a setup, and these guys don’t know how serious what they’ve just done to us is. Meaning us. Meaning the TV show.”
Let’s just say it wasn’t an ideal start for the series. Soon after, the cameras were completely turned off, and the entire crew walked off. It wasn’t looking good for Below Deck…
The Walkout Finally Settled Down After The Cameras Stopped Rolling
The wise decision was made by Cronin. Cameras were all turned off, and he explained that the drugs were not part of the show. Including this moment would have contributed to the plot, but the producer understood that putting the crew at ease was more important than anything else.
- “I stop all the cameras, and we all had to come into the main saloon of the boat,” he shared. “And I had to sit everybody down and said ‘We did not put drugs on this boat.’ Those guys, unbeknownst to us, brought something on this boat that’s not cool.”
- “I get it. And it’s a disaster. And I didn’t want to end this charter early. I didn’t want this to happen. I didn’t know. It’s no good to me if we could shut down in the first episode either.”
It all worked out in the end, but the producer understands the second day of shooting almost derailed the entire series.
“They calmed down, and we, of course, went back to shooting the show. And the rest is history,” he noted. “But that the fact that that happened the second day of shooting was probably the biggest disaster that’s been on the show. Truly threatening the existence of the show, that was the biggest thing we overcame.”
Moving forward, there were other times that the show’s production team had to step in. It was deemed as necessary, especially in certain cases.
It Wasn’t The Only Time Production Had To Intervene On Below Deck With The Crew
Executive producer Jill Goslicky gave fans some extra details about the behind the scenes. She explained that putting together the show isn’t easy. “Everything on the water is harder,” she said. “Everything about working on a boat is harder. It requires you to put together a puzzle every day.”
In addition, the production team had to intervene in certain instances. One example took place on Below Deck Down Under season 2. The moment saw two crew members fired. Luke Jones snuck into Margot Sisson’s room while she was sleeping. Thankfully, a producer intervened, and removed Luke from the boat.
- Below Deck Down Under’s Captain Jason Chambers understood the outrage, looking back at the episode.
- “I’ve had a flood of messages over the last 24 hours from people in similar situations. Some not so lucky of the outcome, so my heart goes out to them.”
- “I’d like to thank the production team for breaking the fourth wall and stepping in. Then, reforming and allowing Aesha to come to me in an authentic manner,” he added.
“Where should we meet that has no cameras.” Fans want to see every moment, but we can completely understand the blurred lines between TV and reality, especially for those on the show working their job.
