Karamo Brown Pulls Out of 'Queer Eye' Press, Explains 'Bullying' Is a Factor as Co-Stars React Live (Video)
Gayle King announced live on CBS Mornings that one member of the Queer Eye cast – Karamo Brown – would not be able to join them live after pulling out at the last minute.
Antoni Porowski, Jeremiah Brent, Jonathan Van Ness, and Jeremiah Brent were there for the appearance.
Gayle read the following statement on air: “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 or a world who seek to destroy it; which is why I can’t be there today.”
Gayle then mentioned that Karamo‘s assistant mentioned bullying was a concern.
His co-stars reacted live on the air to this news.
Keep reading to find out more…
Antoni said of Karamo‘s absence, “Surprised is a fair understatement. I will say, our Queer Eye family, we’ve been doing this for almost a decade — which is pretty wild to believe — and families are complicated and we’re definitely not excluded from that. But I think two things can exist at the same time. And while that is definitely true, we’re also here to showcase these incredible heroes we have and really honor the legacy of this past decade of our lives and all these wonderful heroes that we’ve had the blessing of getting to meet and have conversations with.”
Karamo Brown, one of the “Fab Five” of Netflix’s “Queer Eye,” did not participate in this morning’s interview with the cast, writing to CBS Mornings that he hopes people remember to “protect their mental health/peace.”
Brown’s assistant told CBS Mornings that the expert was… pic.twitter.com/oDDtlo8Y7v
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) January 20, 2026
Jeremiah, who joined in season 9, said, “My experience in this group has been transformative. To see the way that they move through the world, the way that they have taught me so much about life and friendship and love. I have felt safe and supported by the people up here.”
Later on, they also appeared on the Today show where Karamo said in a video message that he “has felt mentally and emotionally abused for years,” and his therapist told him “to protect himself and his peace by not attending.”
Antoni once again made a statement, saying, “I think, definitely a little surprised, but at the same time, look, we’re so sorry that he’s not here. We fully support, I think as a collective unit, him taking care of himself and I think to echo what he’s saying, we’re here to honor the legacy of a decade, which is so wild to think about and all the heroes we’ve helped. And to just really put a spotlight on the incredible heroes we have this season in D.C.”
The final season debuts tomorrow on Netflix. Watch the trailer.
