Below Deck‘s Ben Willoughby is speaking out after his offscreen falling out with Captain Kerry Titheradge, who speculated that “he thought he was the star” of the show.
“That was over two years ago, and I haven’t worked with Captain Kerry since,” Ben said of his former boss in a statement to Us Weekly. “I’ve moved on to new chapters, and I truly hope he’s doing well. I wish him nothing but the best.”
Ben’s response came after Captain Kerry told Us it was “very disappointing” to see what the bosun said about him during — and after — they filmed season 11 of Below Deck in 2024.
“I don’t quite get it because [his now-ex] Sunny [Marquis] worked for me. I had my own company in Florida and Sunny came to work for me after the season. And Ben was asking for work as well to come work for me,” Kerry recalled in an interview published on Thursday, June 3. “With everything that happened on the show, I believe in second chances for everybody. He was trying to get work. I was encouraging him and trying to give him guidance. Then he didn’t like something I said in an interview, which was factual.”
Kerry speculated on Ben’s behavior, adding, “I guess he thought he was the star and that he was trying to drag me down, so it had no weight. So it was very disappointing for him.”
According to Kerry, Ben’s shady commentary on the show also affected his career.
“It really affected his employment opportunities. He acted out against a captain and it was — regardless of a TV show or not — you act out against a captain, what do you think other captains are going to feel? They’re not going to trust you,” Kerry claimed. “So it’s very disappointing that he did that, because with his ego aside, he’s very good at his job, but his ego got in the way.”
Season 11 introduced Ben as a returning deckhand who then became bosun when Jared Woodin was fired by Kerry. After the onscreen promotion, Ben teased to Us that his professional relationship with Kerry changed the most throughout the season.
“Captain Kerry [has] very much of a military stance. [It is] more authority-based. So that was a bit of a learning curve for me,” he admitted in March 2024. “It doesn’t really work with the style that I like with my leadership. So we did have a little bit of friction there, and you might see a little bit of that coming up.”
Ben later took to social media to hint that he wouldn’t return to the show.
“I once used to love Below Deck. There’s too much that isn’t seen. I’m at a crossroads as [to] whether the truth needs to be told or I don’t let this consume me anymore,” he wrote via Instagram during a fan Q&A in April 2024. “[I’m] not enjoying this season due to a number of factors. I never wanted to step foot on St. David again under those circumstances.”
Kerry, for his part, was surprised not to receive an apology after watching season 11 back and seeing what Ben said about him as a leader, telling Us, “I would’ve fired him on ego [alone]. And he made the decision to act how he did after the fact, which is on him.”
Below Deck airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.
