Former Below Deck star says working with Captain Lee was “horrible”

Below Deck Season 5 star Bruno Duarte has revealed that working with Captain Lee and Chief Stewardess Kate Chastain was “horrible.”

The Below Deck franchise has recently made headlines for terminating two crew members – Luke and Laura- after sexual misconduct incidents. Captain Lee even commented on the controversy, saying Luke and Laura’s was “despicable.”

Over the years, viewers have selected their favorite crew members, with some enjoying Captain Lee’s sense of humor.

However, former deckhand Duarte didn’t rave about working with Lee and Chastain. Here’s what he had to say about them.

Below Deck’s Bruno Duarte calls out Captain Lee

Duarte worked as a deckhand in Below Deck Season 5 under Captain Lee and Chief Stew Kate Chastain. Now, he has discussed what it was like working on the ship and even described Chastain as “dangerous.’

Duarte spilled the tea on an episode of John Arthur Hill and Marc MacNamara’s podcast, Discretion Advised. When asked how his Below Deck experience went with Lee and Chastain, he said “Horrible.”

“Do not recommend. And Kate Chastain? Just avoid her when you walk by her. She’s dangerous,” he laughed.

“Yeah, everybody likes Kate. I used to like Kate when I watched the show. But then being there and working with her? You just wanna run out … like, really fast, far away.”

Many Below Deck fans were quick to jump to Lee and Chastain’s defenses following Duarte’s comments.

“Kate and Captain Lee are my absolute favorites,” one user wrote.

“He changed his mind quick. He asked Lee for a reference letter. Whatever, Bruno,” another person remarked.

“Bruno was in over his head! He tried to be a sous chef more than a deckhand,” a third user exclaimed.

For fans of Captain Lee and Kate Chastain, check out Bravo’s Couch Talk to see their reactions to popular reality TV shows.