Mar 11
Tan France Says He Had 'Nothing to Do' with Bobby Berk's Replacement on 'Queer Eye'
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
"Queer Eye" star Tan France pushed back on rumors that he lobbied for his friend Jeremiah Brent to be interior design expert Bobby Berk's replacement as the show heads toward its ninth season.
Taking to Instagram, France declared in a March 8 video, "Yes, I've heard what's going on, and I just want to address one point real quick: My former colleague getting fired had nothing to do with me trying to get my friend hired."
"Netflix and the production companies did a full-on casting," France went on to say. "I didn't prop my friend up for the job. They ended up getting it because they were the best person for the job."
"Am I so happy that they have the job? Uh huh! I really am," France continued, "I think they're going to be incredible on the show. But I didn't get them hired by getting rid of somebody else."
France captioned the post: "And that's all I wanna say on this matter."
France referenced "a comment on a gossip blog," but Variety cited another source for the rumor.
"In a recent Rolling Stone article, sources claimed that France (with alleged support from co-host Antoni Porowski) 'campaigned' for Berk to be replaced with new hire Jeremiah Brent," Variety reported. "Brent is set to join the cast for Season 9."
That claim seems to be in line with rumors that the two former co-stars were having some kind of "feud," which was fueled by fans noticing Berk not tagging France in a promotional "Queer Eye" post and taking note of the two unfollowing each other on Instagram.
The rumor of France lobbying to replace Berk with Brent also does not seem to contradict a report from Us Weekly last November that, according to unnamed sources, "there was a loss of interest from Bobby filming the show," that his "heart was not in it," and that he was "not vibing" with the rest of the cast.
But Berk explained in comments to Vanity Fair that framed his departure as a matter of the cast's contracts expiring, then being renewed as the show was picked up for a ninth season. Berk, with other projects already lined up, chose not to continue with the show.
Brent's addition to the show was reported late last month.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
