It appears the Mustique is about to be down a deckhand.
Max Salvador reveals his plans to leave Below Deck Mediterranean mid-season in E! News' exclusive sneak peek at the Bravo series' Nov. 20 episode. While cleaning up after their latest charter, the Frenchman breaks the news to his deck team manager, Bosun Luka Brunton.
"You know, for me, I always say yachting is like a casino," Max explains in the preview. "Like a casino, you win money. You come inside, you make money, you make money, you make money. And, like the casino, you need to know to go out, to make the cash out, you know? Before it's too late and you lose everything."
Then, the deckhand drops the unexpected bombshell. "And now I just want to cash out," he adds. "I don't think I'm gonna finish the season with you guys."
Shocked, Luka replies, "What?! When?"
Max assures his boss, "I promise that I am going to do another charter."
And though his mind seems made up, Luka tries to persuade him to finish out season eight with the rest of the crew.
"No, you can't leave us mate," the bosun insists. "We've only got four charters to go."
In a confessional, Luka reflected on the surprising departure announcement. "The team was making so much progression and we were doing so great," he noted. "Like, what the f--k?"
The New Zealand native tries to convince Max one last time, telling him, "Maybe after this charter you'll change your mind. We'll see."
The Below Deck Med team has already been rocked by one shocking exit during season eight.
While trying to verify Bosun Ruan Irving's yachtmaster credentials on the Sept. 25 premiere, Captain Sandy Yawn was shocked to learn the papers allegedly belonged to someone else. After explaining that the entire ship could get detained over one crew member's falsified documents, the captain left the South Africa native at the dock in Genoa until she could verify his schooling.
Ultimately, Ruan decided to walk away from the job.
"Sorry about this captain, but I don't think I'm gonna get the tickets sorted in time and I don't want to hold the vessel up any longer," he told Sandy over the phone. "I'm just gonna go home and I don't think I'm gonna come back. I'm kind of just deciding to call it quits and just head back to South Africa."
Tune in to E! News tonight at 11 p.m. for an exclusive interview with Captain Sandy. Below Deck Mediterranean airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on Bravo.
And keep reading to relive the most shocking departures in Below Deck history.
If there's one thing to learn from Camille Lamb's Below Deck firing, it's to not slack off on the job. That's exactly why the season 10 stew was let go by substitute Captain Sandy Yawn, as Chief Stew Fraser Olender continued to criticize Camille's behavior on board.
From being caught drinking while preparing for a new charter to partying at late hours and more, Fraser informed Captain Sandy that he had reached his "last straw."
"She's the common denominator in all of this," said Captain Sandy. "Great girl, great personality, but at the same time, we have to do what's best for the boat."
Below Deck Adventure's Kyle Dickard was let go just three episodes into the reality franchise's latest series—which premiered in November 2022. After picking fights with his fellow deckhand Nathan Morley—as well as kissing crew mates in front of guests—Kyle was offered by Captain Kerry Titheradge the opportunity to resign so that his firing would not end up on his personal record.
Kyle took the Captain up on his offer and left the boat after just one charter.
Captain Sandy let bosun Raygan Tyler go during season seven of Below Deck Mediterranean, not only for causing the boat to take a small hit while docking, but also for not stepping up to the plate as a leader.
But Captain Sandy didn't want her firing to discourage the bosun, as she told Raygan, "If I had the time and I wasn't running a boat this size, I would train you. I would teach you."
In addition to onboard romances and failing to follow directions, one of the biggest reasons behind stew Elizabeth Frankini's Below Deck firing was her infamous laundry room accident, during which made a toxic mess when combining bleach and laundry soap.
"Unfortunately, I didn't know that was so toxic and I feel so bad about it," she told E! News of the incident in December 2020. "You know, I do feel really bad, especially 'cause Francesca [Rubi] did say, 'Take it outside.'"
The bosun and stew were both fired by Captain Jason Chambers for inappropriate behavior after a night of partying with their fellow yachties.
Luke Jones was let go after getting into Stew Margot Sisson's bed naked while she was drunk and unconscious. Laura Bileskaine also made unwanted advances on Deckhand Adam Kodra despite him telling her he was not interested in hooking up.
Jason made it known that consent was a must, and sent both crewmembers packing.
Tensions between stew Lexi Wilson and Chef Mathew Shea came to a head during an explosive dinner fight on season six of Below Deck Mediterranean, during which Lexi told Matt that his parents "should've aborted you." That was the last straw for Captain Sandy, who fired her not long after the incident.
Deckhand Tom Pearson said "bon voyage" to Below Deck Sailing Yacht after getting let go by Captain Glenn Shephard. Tom hit his last strike with the Captain after failing to report that the boat's anchor was dragging during heavy winds one night, causing a potential safety risk for everyone on board.
"It had to be done. It was such a grievous thing that he dropped the ball there, he had to go, and we had to just be man down and live with it, you know?" Captain Glenn said of the decision on Watch What Happens Live. "So, obviously, you don't want to do that, but yeah, it had to happen."
Some people are picky eaters, but Below Deck Down Under's Ryan McKeown was quite the picky chef, as he would judge guests' food requests and fail to take criticism from Captain Jason Chambers, as well.
Perhaps Ryan's Below Deck exit is one of the franchise's most memorable, as he mooned Jason and viewers on his way off the boat.
Below Deck Down Under stew Magda Ziomek's firing was another case of slacking on the job. After constantly being on her phone texting or video chatting with her boyfriend, Chief Stew Aesha Scott decided to replace Magda before the end of the charter season.
Below Deck Mediterranean's Peter Hunziker was fired from the series in June 2020 after he shared an offensive post on social media.
"Peter Hunziker of Below Deck Mediterranean has been terminated for his racist post," Bravo wrote in a statement at the time. "Bravo and 51 Minds are editing the show to minimize his appearance for subsequent episodes."
Chief Stew Hannah Ferrier was let go by Captain Sandy on Below Deck Mediterranean after boson Malia White discovered her co-star possessed undeclared Valium and a vape pen, the former of which Hannah claimed was for her anxiety.
"If I could do it all over again, I would've just declared them as soon as I came on board," Hannah stated in an August 2020 interview with E! News. "It was definitely not something that was intentional. I wasn't trying to hide anything.
Below Deck Mediterranean's Delaney Evans left just as quickly as she arrived. After initially being brought on during season six to help out Chief Stew Katie Flood, Katie determined that Delaney was doing more harm than good, choosing to let her go after just one charter.
"I think she was overwhelmed with the situation, and I think that, you know, in her mind, the best solution to the situation was just to go back to what they had before," Delaney told Bravo Insider of Katie's decision. "I think she was just overwhelmed with everything that was going on and all the feedback she was getting."
Deckhand Shane Coopersmith was a bit in over his head on season eight of Below Deck, as he was let go for failing to know basic skills, reporting late for duty and taking naps on the job.
Chaos in the kitchen led to Captain Lee Rosbach letting Chef Leon Walker go on season three of Below Deck. After an oven fire broke out, Lee placed the blame on Chief Stew Kate Chastain but was ultimately the one sent home.
Chef Mila Kolomeitseva was fired by Captain Sandy on season four of Below Deck Mediterranean after failing to use her cooking skills to produce top-quality food for guests—including some not-so-nice nachos.
"Of course it makes me feel awful," Mila said of her departure. "People like me who have big egos sometimes have to be put down to earth a little bit. But it makes me feel like I want to work even harder."
Sometimes people just don't work well together. That's exactly why Captain Lee fired Chandler Brooks during season six of Below Deck, telling the boson, "I don't think it's a good fit."
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