Gary King is at the forefront of sexual misconduct allegations that have several layers to them. Gary has been the First Officer to Captain Glenn Shephard on Parsifal III since Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 2. His playboy antics, questionable leadership, and pot-stirring behavior have been traits he is most known for.

34-year-old Gary is from South Africa and has 13 years of experience in the yachting industry. Every season he's been on Below Deck Sailing Yacht, Gary has claimed he is looking to settle down and find a partner. However, his conduct and attitude have been far from that projection. Gary has been at the center of many boatmances over the years and caused drama among his fellow crew. Known for being childish and self-serving, Gary has developed a bad reputation that seems to worsen.

Why Was Gary King Accused Of Sexual Misconduct?

Gary Had An Incident With Below Deck's Makeup Artist

Samantha Suarez of sexual misconduct stemming from an incident that allegedly occurred during filming in the summer of 2022. Samantha was tasked with escorting cast to and from their rooms for production in between interview segments. She also kept the crew isolated before and after the interviews.

Samantha claimed that she brought a boozed-up Gary back to his hotel room following filming for a confessional interview. Gary had been in isolation after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis kept him from ing the crew. Per Rolling Stone, Samantha stated Gary "was behaving erratically" and eventually grabbed her from behind and physically restrained her from leaving before she was able to get away. Samantha stated that production never limited Gary's alcohol consumption. Samantha worked on previous seasons of Below Deck, including Below Deck season 10, where she accused Bosun Ross McHarg of making inappropriate comments toward her.

Below Deck Is Being Criticized For An Alleged Cover-Up

No ability is Being Taken

Below Deck production issued a statement about the incident. They remarked, "Bravo is committed to maintaining a safe and respectful workplace for cast and crew...We require our third-party production companies to have appropriate workplace policies and trainings in place...The concerns Ms. Suarez raised in July 2022 were investigated at that time and action was taken based on the findings." However, Below Deck is now being criticized for not holding Gary able for his actions and allegedly trying to cover his bad behavior up by letting him continue on.

Gary Responded To (And Then Deleted) Comments About The Allegations

Gary Doesn't Think He Did Anything Wrong

On August 24, 2023, per US Weekly, Gary took to Instagram in the comments section of one of his posts to defend himself. When responding to a er about the allegations, Gary wrote a pointed response.

"It’s so weird, it’s also so far from the truth. She always wanted a platform and unfortunately I’m the unlucky target." Gary continued, "I’m not going to let some lying girl get to me… read that article fully, multiple times, and this happened to her on multiple seasons … seems odd."

Gary probably knows his comments were inappropriate since he chose to delete them.

Gary May Continue to Be in the Below Deck Spotlight

Gary Filmed BDSY Season 5

Gary was supposed to attend BravoCon in 2023 but was pulled from the event following the blowback. So far, that's the only real consequence he's had.

The Below Deck production team stepped in during Below Deck Down Under season 2 and removed the fourth wall when the filming crew stopped Luke Jones after he tried to get in bed naked with a drunken and unconsenting Margot Sisson. However, they seem to be dismissing Gary's alleged misconduct and history of impropriety. Below Deck Sailing Yacht was filmed in August 2023, and it should have aired after Below Deck season 11, given the usual schedule that the Below Deck franchise follows.

But what happened was Below Deck Med season 8 finished airing in January 2024, and instead of BDSY premiering after Below Deck season 11, Below Deck Med season 9 premiered in early May 2024, which meant that BDSY was skipped over in the lineup entirely. This means a lot for the future of Below Deck Sailing Yacht.

BDSY season 5 was likely almost scratched entirely, or the network was trying to edit Gary out as much as possible.

If the first option is true, that means Gerry's misconduct allegations greatly affected his future in the franchise. Having to make an entire new season would be very costly for the network, but it would show that they are taking the pushback about Gary seriously. If that latter option were true, they would likely have to do a lot of editing, which would be time-consuming and take away greatly from the entertainment value of the season.

One of the only Below Deck franchise alum to seemingly take Gary's side in all this drama has been his friend, hook-up buddy, and BDSY Chief Stew Daisy Kelliher. Daisy recently made an Instagram post with Gary in it, and the pair seemed as smitten and friendly as ever. Gary's fate in the franchise seems in chaos after the allegations, but there's signs he's making a come back from them. Despite that, Below Deck Sailing Yacht is a massively popular show that likely will not get canceled altogether.

Gary Is Appearing In BDSY Season 5

Like Nothing Ever Happened

In late summer 2024, Bravo added Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 5 to its fall lineup. At the time, little details were given. It was only when the trailer was released, and Gary smiling face was front in center, did fans truly get to know whether Gary would be in the spinoffs next season. So far, four episodes of season 5 are out, and Gary has had a big role to play in all of them. Gary has reprised his role as First Officer and second in command under Captain Glenn.

While Gary has not openly stated whether he plans on trying to start a boatmance with anyone on board, he has delved into the topic of who everyone finds attractive on the yacht. Thus far, Gary has only escalated and then quieted his tensions with Daisy, and is largely staying out of most boat drama. He has focused on his bromance with Chef Cloyce Martin. It's possible that the Bravo network has edited out Gary's flirtations so as to avoid more blowback regarding his behavior.

Gary has stated in season 5 that he has ambition to be a captain one day. He thinks himself fit for the role, and is obviously disregarding anything negative said about himself.

"I want to be a captain one day, and training people in any circumstance. So I'm going to use this to prove that I am a good leader."

Gary's self-discussion during an interview about his captain dreams means that he has no intention of taking responsibility for how he's come accross to his crew and the Below Deck audience.

Based on how Gary feels about himself, he might even be eyeing a captains position in the Below Deck franchise, and the Bravo network might go for it given there continuous forgiveness and propulsion of Gary's on-screen career.

What Gary's Continued BDSY Casting Means

Below Deck Doesn't Care About Gary's Transgressions

Not only is Gary's role in Below Deck Sailing Yacht apparently ed by the Bravo network and Daisy, but it is also ed by Captain Glenn. Captain Glenn has dropped a thumbs up comment on an Instagram post exonerating himself from any wrongdoing. Captain Glenn also shares pictures online with his besite Gary, and it's unlikely "Glennjamin," as Gary calls him, will want to give up his First Officer of four seasons.

Given Glenn's sway as a top figurehead in the franchise, if he wants Gary to stay on the show, there is a strong notion that that could be the case.

Gary's official casting position in BDSY season 5 means that the network intends on keeping Gary around. They may be trying to change his image for the positive this season in the hopes that viewers will see more of a good side from him. His continued position on the show also means that the network has forgiven the sexual misconduct allegation and intend on having his dismissal from BravoCon 2023 be his only form of punishment.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht fans are over Gary, but it looks like they will have to get used to see him on the show, at least for this season. It is true that Gary has a big personality, and one that is suited for reality TV, but having him continue in the franchise is a liability, sinc he's proven that he can turn fans against him. In any case, Gary has a checkered history both on and off camera, and fans should be prepared for him to appear well into the spinoff's future.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo and the next day in Peacock

Source: Rolling Stone, US Weekly, Bravo/YouTube, Bravo/YouTube