Queer Eye's Karamo Brown Breaks His Silence on the Show's 'Toxic' Drama and What Really 'Broke' the Fab Five (Exclusive)

Brianne TracyTue, June 2, 2026 at 12:00 PM UTC

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Karamo Brown shot for PEOPLE in Los Angeles on May 4, 2026
Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn -

Karamo Brown reveals why he did not participate in Queer Eye press six months ago due to years of toxic dynamics within the show

Brown shares that he relapsed during season 3 after 12 years of sobriety. Today, he says he's been sober for over a year

He recently launched a wellness app Kē, plans to release a self-help book and hopes to reconcile with his former castmates in the future

Inside his Hollywood Hills home in early May, Karamo Brown mirrors the sunny mood outside. Music blaring, the Queer Eye alum is dancing in his kitchen, surrounded by the people who know him best: his mom Charmaine, son Jason and longtime best friend Tré.

As he settles into a living room chair for his first interview since drama erupted publicly amid the premiere of the show's tenth and final season six months ago, Brown underscores that his palpable joy is hard-won.

“I did a complete 180 in my life,” he says in this week's PEOPLE cover story, on newsstands Friday. “This new chapter feels safe and it feels triumphant because it has been a year-and-a-half of real work on myself.”

For 10 seasons of the feel-good Netflix reality show, Brown, 45, projected positivity as he helped guide “heroes” — everyday people chosen to undergo emotional, life-changing transformations — as its culture and lifestyle expert. But off-camera, “I was depressed,” he says. “It felt shameful because I was teaching people that they could be better, but in my own life I was trapped.”

Karamo Brown shot at his home in LA, CA on May 4, 2026
Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn

In January, as the rest of his costars — Antoni Porowski, 42, Jonathan Van Ness, 39, Tan France, 43, and Jeremiah Brent, 41 — promoted the show together, Brown shocked fans by pulling out of all press appearances.

“I hope everyone remembers the main theme I have tried to teach them over the past decade, which is to focus on and to protect their mental health/peace from people... who seek to destroy it,” he wrote in a cryptic statement to CBS Mornings to explain his last-minute cancellation.

Brown explains now that he and his castmates "had always come together because of the fans, but because of the work I'd done on myself, I asked, ‘If I stay quiet right now and pretend I'm sick or something, whose peace am I protecting?'”

Brown's decision to draw boundaries came after years of toxicity with several of his Fab Five costars, which was exacerbated by what he describes as bullying and unchecked bad behavior by executives and members of production.

“Everyone would just say, ‘Well, that's just that person,' instead of saying, ‘This behavior does not fly in a professional environment,'” he says. “It impacted me negatively, consistently.”

Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowski, Tan France, Bobby Berk and Karamo Brown
Credit: Austin Hargrave/Netflix

In a statement, the show's production company ITV America and Scout Productions said, "We strongly disagree with any characterization that concerns raised during the production of Queer Eye were ignored, dismissed or allowed to continue unchecked. Throughout the series' run, any issues brought to production leadership were taken seriously and addressed appropriately. Production consistently fostered a respectful and professional environment for the cast and crew — which included ongoing training, coaching and other support for the cast — maintaining clear workplace policies and practices throughout filming."

They added: "We remain incredibly proud of Queer Eye's lasting impact and the community the series helped build over more than 20 years.”

A show insider acknowledges Queer Eye “helped a lot of people,” but the environment was “toxic as hell in reality."

Karamo Brown shot at his home in LA, CA on May 4, 2026.
Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn

The final straw for Brown — who says he relapsed during the show's third season after 12 years of sobriety — came after his mom overheard several of his costars speaking negatively about him while she visited the set in 2025. (Multiple sources confirm Van Ness, France and Porowski were involved in the conversation.) Embarrassed, Brown says he never pushed her for details of exactly what had been said.

“The thing I know is the tears I saw in my mother's eyes,” he recalls. “[She kept repeating], ‘I thought they were your friends.' It made me realize I can no longer stay silent about how often I was made to feel like an outsider.”

Brown's former costars did not respond to requests from PEOPLE for comment.

When Queer Eye — a reboot of the early 2000s series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy — premiered on Netflix in 2018, it was an instant hit, picking up 12 Emmy wins and 40 nominations over the course of its run.

But just as quickly as the Fab Five's fame grew, so did their drama. Brown says he, Van Ness, France, Porowski and Bobby Berk (who exited the show after eight seasons and was replaced by Brent in 2024) first became divided after a sexual harassment complaint was filed against him in the first few weeks of filming.

Brown claims he and one of the Fab Five — whom he declines to name publicly — had a “fun and flirty” relationship during the show's casting phase. Brown, who says he was cleared of any wrongdoing, initially accused his costar of filing the complaint but later learned an anonymous third party was responsible.

“It broke us,” he says of the group. "We all knew the divide between us."

(A source inside production disputes Brown's “characterization of events,” but confirms an investigation was conducted and says “all parties wanted to move on with the show.”)

Contributing to the strained relationship among the Fab Five was the unsustainable pressure Brown says they faced. In the show's early days, he remembers a senior leader telling him bluntly, “You are not a star. I will get rid of you tomorrow.”

The show insider adds that threats about employment were a frequent occurrence between the Fab Five and the senior figure in the first season amid creative differences.

“[They] wanted them to come in and rip the heroes' houses apart and tell them how ugly everything was because that's what the original Fab Five did,” the insider says. “That catty gayness worked in the early 2000s, but that's not who the new cast was.”

Fearing retaliation, Brown says he put on a brave face for years because he had long dreamed about being “on television” and changing his family's life. Plus, “when I saw the transformations that were happening because of the five of us, I was like, ‘Baby, okay, I can put up with this.'”

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Karamo Brown with Hero Tom Jackson in season 1
Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Multiple sources say Brown's relationships with France and Van Ness, who previously denied allegations of emotional and verbal abuse on set in 2024, were especially fraught.

“Jonathan was someone whose frustrations were often expressed openly,” explains a source familiar with the cast's dynamics. “Others were more likely to create tension behind the scenes.”

While he and Van Ness haven't spoken directly, Brown feels no hostility.

“The work I have seen Jonathan pouring into himself is commendable and inspiring,” he says. “Growth isn't always public-facing, but I respect him for how he's currently moving through life.”

He's also careful not to paint himself as blameless and says "there were times I was hurt and would lash back out. I recognize my part and how things I did impacted people."

Karamo Brown shot at his home in LA, CA on May 4, 2026
Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn

It's taken Brown two decades on TV to finally land in this peaceful new era. He got his start at 23 when he was cast in MTV's The Real World: Philadelphia, making him one of the first openly gay Black men to appear on a reality series. After the show, the Coral Springs, Fla., native helped youths as a social worker in L.A. while wrestling with sudden fame and an estrangement from his father, Lucky. (He and his dad, a Jamaican immigrant, have since reconciled.)

“I was being bombarded with people saying I was amazing and others saying I was the goddamn devil,” he recalls of being thrust into the spotlight. “I wanted to die.”

Brown attempted suicide in 2006 but survived after Tré intervened.

"Producers don't prepare you for when you leave these shows," he says. "I did not see a purpose of living. I felt like, 'I don't have my daddy and half the world hates me, so why not?' Thank God Tré came back home and called the ambulance."

That same year, he learned he had fathered a son, Jason, now 29, when court papers seeking back-child support arrived at his doorstep.

“The minute I saw [Jason], something in me healed,” says Brown, who got sober at the time. “I understood my purpose.”

With the support of Jason's mother, a high school friend, Brown was granted full custody within months. “My son saved my life, 1000 percent,” he says. “Because he existed, it made me realize what was bigger in life.”

Still, he struggled with his addiction in the years that followed. After his 2018 relapse, “a drink would lead to weed, cocaine, pills,” he says. “I wasn’t coping right, but I pretended like I was. I was so broken.”

He says he's now sober again. "I've not had a single drink, cocktail — nothing,” says Brown, who follows a 12-step program and regularly attends meetings.

His syndicated daytime talk show Karamo was canceled in March, but Brown isn't seeing it as a setback. He recently launched a new wellness app, Kē, and he plans to release a self-help book and a celebrity interview series.

Karamo Brown at home in L.A. for PEOPLE
Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn

"I've worked alongside Karamo for more than a decade, and what's always stood out to me is the loyalty and trust he builds with the people around him," says his manager, Tyler Kroos. "In an industry where teams constantly change, Karamo has kept many of the same people by his side through every chapter of his career, which says everything about his character."

"I've seen him navigate both incredible highs and very difficult moments, and through all of it, he has remained thoughtful, grounded, and deeply caring toward the people closest to him," Kroos continues. "As he steps into this next chapter, I think people are going to see the most honest and fulfilled version of Karamo yet.”

Brown is also holding out hope that he and his former castmates can work out their differences.

"I think we all deserve a bit of grace for how we handled ourselves and one another," he says. "We were just doing our best. It may not have felt like that in the moment, but it's very clear to me now."

He is sure they all have at least one thing in common: none of them want the legacy of Queer Eye to be tainted.

“I needed all these experiences to grow into my best self,” he says, “and I want to spend these next chapters of my life doing good.”

For more from Karamo Brown, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE on stands Friday.

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

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