So… Let’s talk about what’s happening between the members of ‘Queer Eye’s Fab Five, which includes Bobby Berk, Tan France, Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowski, and Karamo Brown.
In November 2023, Berk announced that ‘Queer Eye’ Season 8 would be his final one. The latest season was then released in January of this year, and the 42-year-old interior designer also revealed the reason why he left the show.
Basically, the Fab Five members signed a seven-cycle contract that lasted through September 2022, and they thought that the reality series would be over after. With that in mind, Berk planned for what’s next for him after ‘Queer Eye’, only to find out that the rest of his co-stars decided to continued with the show.
“And with only one of us not coming back, Netflix felt [it] could recast one person,” the celebrity interior designer told Vanity Fair.
As for how he felt after finding out the rest of Fab Five’s decision, he admitted:
“There were definitely emotions. But each one of us had our reasons why we did what we did. I can’t be mad—for a second I was.”
“All the plans that I had made when I thought we weren’t coming back, I just wasn’t willing to change those. I would have had to pump the brakes on multiple other projects that are already in process. We had mentally just prepared ourselves to move on—that’s why I left,” Berk further shared regarding his departure from ‘Queer Eye’.
Somewhere along his January interview with the outlet, he also revealed that he had a little falling-out with France, stating:
“Tan and I had a moment. There was a situation, and that’s between Tan and I, and it has nothing to do with the show. It was something personal that had been brewing—and nothing romantic, just to clarify that.”
The two of them were reportedly in conflict with each other while filming Season 8, which led to them unfollowing each other on social media.
“Should I have unfollowed Tan? No. Maybe I should have just muted him. But that day, I was angry, and that’s the end of it. We became like siblings—and siblings are always going to fight,” Berk expressed with regards to his situation with France.
He then continued, sharing about the status of their friendship as of recent, disclosing:
“[At the Emmys ceremony,] we both embraced each other, and we both said congratulations. And that’s where we are right now.”
Meanwhile, Rolling Stone released an exposé about Fab Five. The outlet claimed that France and Porowski allegedly plotted and campaigned for Berk to be replaced by fellow interior designer Jeremiah Brent in Season 9, which was recently confirmed.
Related: Jeremiah Brent Officially Joins ‘Queer Eye’ for Season 9!
Moreover, the outlet’s sources revealed that Van Ness has alleged “rage issues,” and other insiders also described them as a “monster,” “nightmare” and “demeaning.” Not to mention, a production source shared:
“There was absolutely tension between everybody else, especially from Jonathan Van Ness. He didn’t want to ever share the spotlight with anyone. There were times when we couldn’t even shoot scenes with certain members of the Fab Five together because it got so bad.”
“How is it not obvious to everybody that none of these people are friends? None of them. They don’t hang out socially. They live very different lives,” another insider disclosed.
Brown, on the other hand, seems to be supportive of his Fab Five members, even commenting on Berk’s Instagram post, writing:
“We are #ForeverTheFab5 no matter what. I’m about to be at Netflix’s door & e-mails telling them you can’t leave! Who is coming with me? I love you!”
The 43-year-old TV host also expressed his understanding about him, Berk and Van Ness not being invited at Porowski’s bachelor party.
“Listen, I’m all about being real and being upfront. We weren’t invited. Here’s the thing, when it comes to family things like that — family things, weddings — it costs money so I don’t take offense to it,” Brown stated during his appearance in ‘Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen’ in September 2023.
So yeah, that’s the tea on the Fab Five members. Thoughts on them and their alleged conflicts?
Sources: salon.com, vanityfair.com, rollingstone.com, pagesix.com
