Blake Preston:Jonathan Van Ness denies 'overwhelmingly untrue' toxic workplace allegations on 'Queer Eye'

2025-05-02 18:44:28source:Phaninccategory:Invest

Jonathan Van Ness is Blake Prestonbreaking their silence on a report that claimed the hairstylist was a "monster" on the set of Netflix's "Queer Eye."

In March, Rolling Stone published a report citing anonymous production sources that claimed Van Ness had "rage issues," was a "nightmare" to work with and emotionally "abusive."

The hairstylist, 37, said on Wednesday's episode of the "Table Manners" podcast that some of the quotes in the report were "taken out of context" and that the article "isn't based in reality."

"There was this article that was written about 'Queer Eye' and myself in March, but our whole 'Queer Eye' family had first learned about this article in like December," Van Ness recalled. "So from January to March, I was walking on eggshells being like, 'When is this going to happen?' And then it finally did happen."

They added that the article was "overwhelmingly untrue and done in bad faith."

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Netflix and the stars of "Queer Eye," which included Van Ness, Tan France, Antoni Porowski, Karamo Brown and former castmember Bobby Berk, did not respond to Rolling Stone's requests for comment.

Van Ness didn't address which specific quotes about their behavior was false, however, they acknowledged "there were times where I could have been better" and may have been short due to "stress."

"I think a lot of people were looking for a reason to hate me or looking for a reason to be like, 'See, I always knew that they were a fake…'" they added of the public's reception to the report.

The hairstylist admitted they did "internalize" some of the backlash, but it "forced" them to "really learn how to slow down, disengage, and then really love myself" in the process.

They credited their family and husband Mark Peacock for supporting them following the article.

'Queer Eye' star Tan Francesays he didn't get Bobby Berk 'fired' amid alleged show drama

Tan France, Bobby Berk address their alleged drama

Three sources in Rolling Stone's report also alleged that France and Porowski used "mean-girl antics" and plotted to get Berk axed from "Queer Eye" to make way for new co-host Jeremiah Brent to replace the show's interior designer, a friend to France.

France addressed the claims in a video shared to Instagram days after the article's publication.

"My former colleague getting fired has nothing to do with me trying to get my friend hired. Netflix and the production companies did a full-on casting. I didn't put my friend up for the job. They ended up getting it because they were the best person for the job," he said.

Netflix replaces Bobby Berkwith Jeremiah Brent for 9th season of 'Queer Eye'

When Berk announced his departure from the show in November, rumors swirled about there being friction among the effervescent and seemingly close-knit Fab Five. Berk confirmed what fans noticed: that the interior design expert had unfollowed co-star France, the fashion guru, on Instagram.

"I want people to know that Tan and I — we will be fine," Berk told Vanity Fair in January.

"Tan and I had a moment," he said. "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."

Berk added, "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."

Contributing: KiMi Robinson

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