Elena “Ellie” Dubaich was quite the polarizing yachtie on Below Deck Mediterranean season 9, and there are signs she’s returning for season 10. She made her debut in the Below Deck universe during the seventh season of the Mediterranean-based spin-off as a replacement stew for Kyle Viljoen. After appearing on the show for two episodes, Ellie was gone and never heard from in the franchise until she joined the original crew of Below Deck Med season 9. At the head of the interior team was Below Deck Down Under alum Aesha Scott, whom Ellie reported to as a stew.
Aesha, Ellie, and Bri made up the team of stews in season 9, with Ellie notably serving as the second stew. As the charter season progressed, the pressure on the crew set in, and tensions arose. With the entire cast full of first-time franchise yachties except for Captain Sandy Yawn and Aesha, no one knew how demanding it would be to film the show and do their jobs. Ellie feuded with her co-workers, including Aesha, Bri, and the interior team’s late arrival, Carrie O’Neill. Despite much conflict, season 9 likely wasn’t Ellie’s last time on the show.
Ellie Brought The Drama To Below Deck Med Season 9
She Feuded With Bri Most Of The Season
Ellie may return for Below Deck Med season 10 because she knows how to stir up drama with the crew. She acted as a mentor for Bri at the beginning of the charter season, though their relationship took a swift turn when Bri hooked up with lead deckhand Joe Bradley. Ellie admitted she wanted to get to know Joe and the third stew didn’t feel she made a mistake by kissing him in the hot tub. Instead of moving past their drama about a man they didn’t know, Ellie and Bri feuded over him for most of season 9.
Their drama seeped into the success of Aesha’s interior department. The Chief Stew tried to not take sides and heard both women out. However, Ellie and Bri let their personal feelings about each other affect their working relationship on numerous occasions. There was so much tension among them that Bri broke down in front of Captain Sandy because of the intense stress they were under. It became clear something needed to change toward the mid-way point in the season, and the captain forced them to move out of their shared bunks. After they got some space, things slowly improved.
In the end, Ellie and Bri dumped Joe when they realized he didn’t care about either of them.
Unfortunately, the women sacrificed their friendship for the flirtatious lead deckhand. After Ellie and Bri’s beef was squashed, the second stew began feuding with Aesha after Carrie’s arrival. The Chief Stew admitted Carrie outranked Ellie and Bri in her confessional interviews but didn’t assign the new stew a rank in hopes of not hurting their feelings. However, Ellie grew upset when Aesha invited Carrie to work on service. She thought her job was being threatened and selfishly took out her frustrations about her performance as a second stew to Aesha who was looking out for the betterment of the team.
Ellie Wants To Grow As A Yachtie & Become A Chief Stew
Below Deck Could Bring Her Back As A Chief Stew
Despite letting the drama define her experience in season 9, Ellie revealed she wanted to become a Chief Stew in the future. Throughout her time working with Aesha, the second stew made it clear that she had dreams of moving up the ranks. Ellie took her rank as the second stew behind Aesha incredibly seriously, going as far as to take out her personal frustrations with Bri in the workplace. She overstepped many times as the second stew, something that Aesha called out before Below Deck Med ended.
Ellie didn’t have the skills to be a Chief Stew in season 9, but that doesn’t mean Below Deck won’t bring her back in the future.
Unlike other alum, she was incredibly vocal about becoming a Chief Stew one day. However, before she returned to the show, Ellie announced on Instagram in May 2023 that she was “officially retiring from my yachting career.” It’s unclear when season 9 was filmed, but her Instagram post hints that she unretired to join the cast of Below Deck Med. Ellie may have been a producer plant when she joined the crew but shifted her mindset after getting back into the swing of things. From her appearance in season 9, it seems like Ellie truly wants to be a Chief Stew.
| Crew Member | Job on Below Deck Med Season 9 |
| Sandy Yawn | Captain |
| Aesha Scott | Chief Stew |
| Iain Maclean | Bosun |
| Johnathan Shillingford | Chef |
| Ellie Dubaich | Second Stew |
| Bri Muller | Third Stew |
| Carrie O’Neill | Floating Stew |
| Joe Bradley | Lead Deckhand |
| Gael Cameron | Deckhand |
| Nathan Gallagher | Deckhand |
Ellie Admitted Her Faults After Watching The Show Back
Watching Herself On TV Shifted Ellie’s Perspective
After Below Deck Med season 9 aired, she admitted she didn’t have a great showing on the series. During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, she said she “had a lot of time to reflect on my actions” and admitted she was “glad I had this opportunity to see myself through somebody else’s eyes.” Ellie revealed that she had “ regret ” over how she treated Bri and said she “ should have been professional ” and “put my emotions aside and lifted her up.” With much development post-show, she could certainly return and redeem herself with the audience.
“I’ve realized that sometimes, in other people’s eyes, we are the villain in their story, and that’s who I was in Bri’s story.”
Ellie Feuded With Aesha & She Could Redeem Herself In Season 10
Ellie & Aesha Could Make Up In Season 10
Most of Ellie’s conflict during the end of the charter season stemmed from her working relationship with Aesha. She felt hurt when they brought Carrie onto the crew to assist the interior department. Ellie didn’t know how much Aesha was struggling by herself as Chief Stew and thought Carrie’s addition to the crew was unwarranted. However, she shouldn’t have made passive-aggressive comments toward the Chief Stew when Carrie was invited to help with service. Ellie felt like her job as second stew was being threatened, but she should have invited Carrie’s presence within the crew.
When Ellie tried to confront Aesha about Carrie being immediately put on service, the Chief Stew shut down her efforts. She told Ellie she had decided to place the new stew where she pleased. Ellie’s selfishness blinded her to the needs of the crew and led to her rift with Aesha. However, it appears she’s made a lot of progress since they wrapped filming. If Ellie returned for season 10, it’d be a great opportunity for her to mend fences with Aesha and learn from the mistakes she made during Below Deck Med season 9.
Ellie May Be A Producer Plant Due To Her Tendency To Be Involved In Drama
She Enjoyed Being At The Center Of The Storyline
There are signs Ellie is a producer plant due to her tendency to be involved in conflict. Instead of abiding by Aesha’s orders, the second stew took it upon herself to assert her dominance within the crew. She stepped out of line on numerous occasions and created unwarranted tension with the interior team. If Ellie wasn’t a producer plant, she may have bitten her tongue and listened to Aesha and Captain Sandy’s guidance throughout the season. Also, she wasn’t fired for her bad behavior, further hinting she may have been a producer plant on Below Deck Med season 9.
