Below Deck Mediterranean star Kyle Viljoen came under fire after he received a tip from a recent charter, even though he didn’t deserve one. Below Deck is no stranger to having a wide variety of entertaining and dramatic crew members. During Below Deck Med season 8, one of the most controversial cast members by far has been Kyle. He originally joined during Below Deck Med season 7 but departed early due to an accident that left him with a sprained ankle. During Below Deck Med season 8 when he returned, Kyle had numerous instances in which he was unable to complete his duties.
Kyle’s latest illness (a migraine) made it impossible for him to help out for the majority of the charter. The guests on this particular charter trip ended up leaving the crew one of the largest tips they had received on Below Deck Med, a massive $32,000. When the tips were passed out to each crew member, fans (taking to the comments section of a recent Below Deck Instagram post) were frustrated after he accepted a tip they did not believe he had earned.
When it came time to celebrate, Kyle was suddenly much better and able to participate in the festivities, causing controversy on Instagram among fans of the show. One fan exclaimed, “Does Kyle work at all?? How can he actually accept any tips from any of these charters??” Another viewer said Kyle should have refused the tip and sarcastically called him a “class act.” Someone else said they would be “pissed” if they were one of Kyle’s co-workers.
Kyle Viljoen’s Below Deck Med Drama Explained
Kyle started off his time in Below Deck Med season 8 with a bang, which did not come as a surprise after his antics the year before. In a previous episode, Kyle told his chief stew Tumi Mhlongo that he was not feeling well. Kyle told her that he was feeling dizzy before collapsing to the ground. Tumi, who had originally asked Kyle if he was just being dramatic, became worried when Kyle fell down and immediately sought medical attention for him. This incident, which ended up being caused by “stress,” left Kyle unable to complete his duties but not unable to collect his tip.
Then with a charter full of difficult, repeat guests looming, Tumi was made aware that Kyle was having a migraine and could not work. Captain Sandy Yawn even came down to check on Kyle herself to see how sick he was, since it was a problem that he was not going to be able to do his job. While having a conversation about how he was feeling, Kyle told Captain Sandy, “It’s just my head that’s bulging.” Captain Sandy ended up having to tell Kyle that he needed to go to the hospital, telling him that this was “not normal.”
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The most infuriating part of this is that even though he did not do any of the labor himself, he still showed up to the tip meeting and tried to take credit for how well the charter went. However, Tumi stepped in and redirected the praise to where it truly belonged: with the staff who were working the entire time. Then after the tip meeting, Kyle seemed to have made a full recovery just in time to go and celebrate their enormous tip. Kyle should have given up his tip to be redistributed to the other crew members since he spent the majority of the charter in bed.
Kyle’s outrageous and dramatic behavior does not seem to bother him. However, it is becoming clear that he has become a very divisive cast member on Below Deck Med. Since he has been unable to work due to a sprained ankle in Below Deck Med season 7 and two separate illnesses in the current season, Kyle’s future on the show seems uncertain.
Below Deck Mediterranean airs Mondays at 9 p.m. EST on Bravo.
Source: Below Deck/Instagram
