Below Deck- Who Is Samantha Suarez? (She Accused Gary King Of Sexual Misconduct)
Samantha Suarez worked on the set of Below Deck Sailing Yacht when she had her encounter with Gary King. Even though Gary’s behavior on the show has always been questionable, nothing he did ever seemed quite as bad as what Samantha had to say about him. The first officer loves having a boatmance, and his relationships are always consensual on screen.
During Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 4, Gary had a relationship with Mads Herrera that many found off-putting. While Mads seemed content with her romance with Gary, there were times when he took things too far with her. Who could forget Gary accusing Mads of being on her period while they were hooking up? This incident should have been enough to get Gary fired from Below Deck Sailing Yacht. Now that a former crew member has spoken up, Gary’s time on the show may be over soon.
Samantha Worked As A Makeup Artist
While working for Bravo, Samantha was a makeup artist. In her interview with Rolling Stones, the 27-year-old mentioned that she did the makeup for the cast for the talking-heads interviews. This is how she met Gary and the rest of the Below Deck Sailing Yacht crew.
Samantha Worked On More Than One Below Deck Series
Before her gig on Below Deck Sailing Yacht, Samantha initially worked in the makeup department on the original Bravo series Below Deck, set in the Caribbean. She did the makeup for the season 10 crew, which included Ross McHarg. Samantha claims that during one of the car rides back to the hotel, Ross was making inappropriate comments toward her that made her uncomfortable. They were so bad that some of the other men in the car had to yell at Ross to be quiet.
Samantha’s Incident With Gary Happened In The Summer Of 2022
Samantha joined the behind-the-scenes crew in 2022 for Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 4. She alleged that when she brought a drunk Gary back to the hotel following one of his interviews, Gary pushed himself against her, not letting her go. Samantha claims she was distraught and immediately got out of there when she had the chance. While she brought this to Bravo’s attention, they didn’t fire him. Bravo put out a statement claiming they investigated the situation and “action was taken based on the findings.” Gary has since spoken out against Samantha in the comment section of his Instagram, claiming she “wanted a platform” and that he’s an “unlucky target.”
Gary Has Returned For Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 5
Despite the immense backlash from the misconduct allegations last summer, Gary has returned as the First Mate for Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 5. So far, after only a few episodes, there has been no mention of the Rolling Stone piece or Samantha. Everything allegedly went down while filming the new season, so there is a chance it could be mentioned later on in the season. However, there is also a possibility that most of Gary’s scenes will be removed from the season and won’t mention this scandal at all; at least, that’s what Gary thinks.
In an Instagram post from October, right after episode 2 aired, Gary shared an image of himself and Chef Cloyse Martin wearing masks for one of the guests themed dinners. In the caption, Gary said,
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 […] most of me will probably be edited out of this season […] I will try post as much as possible to show you all what you’re missing out on.
According to Gary, he believes many of his scenes will be cut throughout the season after a lot of them were already removed by episode 2. However, Gary has been shown a lot this season, so he will likely still get a lot of air time.
As for Samantha, she has yet to speak out following the premiere of Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 5. She could be laying low after the backlash she received, or maybe she can’t say at all. Nonetheless, this season of the Bravo series may be the last time fans see Gary as the First Mate. Not only are there serious allegations against him, but he isn’t doing himself any favors by calling out the network,
