Jonathan Van Ness has been accused of being “emotionally abusive” and having “rage issues” on the set of Queer Eye, which allegedly played an integral role in the Fab Five’s rift.
In an exposé published Tuesday by Rolling Stone, a number of production sources claimed that making the show was difficult due, in part, to the popular hairstylist’s behind-the-scenes behavior. Van Ness, who uses they/he/she pronouns, was described by production sources as someone “terrible to work with.” These same production sources also described JVN as a “monster,” “nightmare” and “demeaning.”
ET reached out to Netflix, but the streaming giant had no comment. ET has also reached out to a rep for Van Ness and the rest of the cast — designer Bobby Berk, fashion expert Tan France, culture and lifestyle coach Karamo Brown, and food and wine guru Antoni Porowski — for comment.
The accusations also include JVN allegedly lashing out to crew members and exploding on the crew “at least once a week,” and that the vibe on the set largely depended on JVN’s mood. What’s more, production sources told Rolling Stone that JVN’s public persona — warm and charismatic — was “largely a charade.”
Things got so intense, those same sources told the magazine, that JVN’s alleged behavior contributed to the group’s rift — which allegedly resulted in certain members of the group being reluctant to shoot scenes with JVN, who is accused of not wanting “to ever share the spotlight with anyone.”
What’s more, Rolling Stone reports that JVN’s alleged troubling behavior led to Netflix executives having at least one meeting with the beauty maven over their behavior and treatment of the crew.
The exposé comes exactly one week after Netflix announced that Jeremiah Brent would replace Berk on Queer Eye. Brent will join Van Ness, France, Brown and Porowski for season 9 when the show visits Las Vegas.
As for Berk’s surprise departure, Rolling Stone reports he was “blindsided” after learning that there was a member of the Fab Five allegedly campaigning for Berk’s replacement. The magazine claims that it was France — with alleged support from Porowski — who allegedly campaigned to replace Berk with Brent.
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