10 Ways Ben Willoughby Has Ruined His Chances To Return To Below Deck

Summary Ben's behavior on Below Deck season 11 has been polarizing, stirring up drama and causing trust issues among the crew.

His boatmance with Sunny showcased his immaturity, struggling to navigate feelings and respect within the relationship.

Ben's feud with Captain Kerry and online drama with cast members have led to negative backlash from alumni and viewers.

Below Deck season 11’s Bosun Ben Willloughby has been working hard throughout the season to ensure he's at his best as with his new promotion, but after stirring things up and creating drama with his fellow cast members, he's unlikely to get asked back to the series. Ben was originally introduced on Below Deck season 10, working with the rest of the exterior team to provide exemplary service to the St. David guests. While Ben has been doing the best he can to work with his crew and create a luxurious experience for the guests, he's struggled to stay out of the drama.

In the past, Ben's relationships have caused him issues aboard St. David, especially during the most current season. During his time on Below Deck season 10, Ben's difficulty surrounding his relationship with deckhand/stew Camille Lamb was his biggest focus. Though he was excited to be learning about the job in a new way, Ben wasn't able to keep himself away from Camille and got sucked into a lot of the drama surrounding her and Alissa Humber. Once Camille was fired, Ben's knack for stirring up drama seemed to disappear.

After Below Deck season 10 ended, Ben chose to come back to the series for another charter season with the St. David crew. Working beneath Captain Kerry Titheradge this time around, Ben was able to learn from another seasoned veteran of the yachting industry and explained his excitement early in the season. Happy to be able to expand his knowledge, Ben shared that he was going to stay away from boatmances throughout the charter season, no matter how strong he felt connected to someone.

While Ben's inclination was to stay solo, his connection with Marie "Sunny" Marquis was stronger than his willpower. The pair connected quickly aboard the St. David on Below Deck season 11, and their romance seemed to be sweet and genuine for the first few charters. After adjusting to life aboard St. David and spending a large amount of their time together, Ben began to struggle with the expectations he felt Sunny was putting on him. His choice seemed to be to lash out and get involved in the drama of the season, which has become an issue.

Ben's behavior throughout Below Deck season 11 has been questionable, and the fact that he hadn't been able to let go of his issues with some of the rest of the crew since filming ended is concerning. While Ben appears to have some of the St. David crew on his side, his attitude and dramatic tendencies have become an issue throughout the Below Deck franchise. He may not be asked to return to St. David or the series any time soon.

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8 Ben’s Behavior This Season Has Been Polarizing

He’s Gone From Sweet To Sour

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Throughout Below Deck season 11, Ben's behavior has become polarizing to the audience and the rest of the St. David crew. Early on in the season, Ben was able to take direction well and worked hard to maintain his position as Lead Deckhand. He'd moved up from his original deckhand position in the time between Below Deck season 10 and Below Deck season 11, giving him new responsibilities to handle as a part of the superyacht crew.

Unfortunately, Ben's time aboard St. David hasn't proven to be all about the work, or even all about the romance he's engaging in. Early on in Below Deck season 11, Ben noticed that former Bosun Jared Woodin was struggling in his role, which made things more difficult for the entire team. Ben has gotten himself involved in the drama whenever possible, including in the incident with Jared, stirring the pot and keeping many from trusting him.

7 Ben’s Boatmance With Sunny Proved His Immaturity

He Wasn’t Ready For Mature Feelings

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While Ben shared that he wasn't interested in getting involved in a second boatmance aboard St. David, his relationship with Sunny was too difficult to pass up. With both of them working on the exterior team, they saw each other frequently and had to interact within their job functions, which made it easy for them to find each other interesting. Sunny was attracted to Ben and didn't take any issue in having fun sharing a bunk with her colleague. While Ben appeared to be taking Sunny's feelings more seriously, she was simply looking for respect.

Ben found it tough to figure out what Sunny really wanted, sharing that he wasn't interested in putting a label on their relationship until after the charter season. Sunny was fine with the pair remaining undefined, but when she noticed Ben flirting with some of the stews, she felt disrespected. Though she was clear about what she felt the disrespectful behavior was, Ben couldn't handle Sunny's criticism and ultimately called off their relationship.

6 Ben Threw Jared Woodin Under The Bus Early On

He Didn’t Like The Bosun’s Boatsmanship

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While Ben's main role on Below Deck season 11 was the Lead Deckhand position, he quickly realized coming aboard St. David that things weren't working with Bosun Jared. After seeing Jared make a few mistakes that left him confused about how the Bosun had gotten his role, Ben began going to Captain Kerry behind Jared's back to inform him of the issue he was seeing out on the deck. Captain Kerry had noticed Jared's lacking abilities, but he hadn't taken any action yet.

After Jared confronted Ben about his behavior, the Bosun began to work harder, avoiding some errors throughout his charters, but struggling to meet Captain Kerry's expectations. Ultimately, Jared made some mistakes that Captain Kerry couldn't look past, and Ben was there to help cushion the loss. After Jared was terminated, Ben stepped into the Bosun role, believing he could do better than Jared.

5 Ben’s Lingering Feelings For Camille Were Evident

He Wasn’t Over His Ex At The Start Of The Season

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While Ben and his former flame Camille had been sweet during Below Deck season 10, many were wondering what had happened between the two when Ben was adamant about being single on the current season. Ben explained the blowup in his and Camille's relationship in an early episode, sharing that though he and Camille hadn't made things official, Ben caught Camille cheating on him after they'd tried to define their relationship. It was a tough blow, and left Ben swearing he wasn't getting into any other boatmances.

Throughout Below Deck season 11, it's been obvious that Ben has given up on his dedication to abandoning all boatmances, but his time with Sunny has been colored by the fact that he's still hung up on Camille. Though it hadn't come up earlier in the season, it was clear that Ben didn't get the level of closure he needed in the relationship before boarding the St. David. In the most recent episode, Ben made it clear he wasn't over Camille, even FaceTiming her to chat before breaking things off with Sunny.

4 Ben’s Penchant For Drama Makes It Tough To Trust Him

He’s Always Stirring The Pot

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Although Ben's been focused on his work for the majority of Below Deck season 11, he's had time to dip into other crew members' drama and create a place for himself as the most dramatic cast member of the season. Ben's behavior started out fairly normal as he worked on the exterior team and didn't cause much drama, doing what he could to help out. Though he was noticing Jared's mistakes, Ben was still being mostly respectful about the issues others were facing.

As the charter season progressed, Ben inserted himself into the drama with Jared, as well as with some issues between the stews. When former Stew Cat Baugh approached Chief Stew Fraser Olender about her fellow Stew Barbie Pasucal giving her demands, Ben brought the information back to Barbie before Fraser or Cat could address her themselves. Stirring the pot, Ben's also gotten involved in Barbie's boatmance with Kyle Stillie this season.

3 Ben’s Feud With Captain Kerry Titheradge Is Uncalled For

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Ben's social media presence has caused a major stir this season, and his feud with Captain Kerry has been interesting for Below Deck viewers to follow online and on the show. While Ben's relationship with Captain Kerry seemed to be an easygoing, kind mentorship during their time on Below Deck season 11, their relationship after the charter season appears to be a difficult one. When teasing the second half of the season, Captain Kerry made comments about Ben potentially being fired from St. David, which hurt the Bosun.

Ben took to his Instagram, sharing that he was struggling in how to respond to the Captain's claims because they were so outrageous. He accused Captain Kerry of damaging his reputation, making it clear that he wasn't happy with the way he'd been spoken about. Though Captain Kerry had merely been doing some promotion to draw attention to the show, Ben felt he'd been slighted by the Captain.

2 Ben Chose To Drag The Rest Of His Cast Online

He Brought Below Deck Season 11’s Crew Into His Drama

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After dragging Captain Kerry online, Ben moved on to taking issue with many of his other Below Deck season 11 cast members. The Bosun took issue with his colleagues, calling them out on his Instagram stories and creating cryptic posts about his time on the series being problematic. After making a post just weeks prior with Barbie from a visit the two had shared, he dragged her in one of his Instagram posts.

The stew felt comfortable clapping back at Ben, telling him he needed to get over himself and put his phone away. While it's unclear where the real story lies, it's obvious that Ben's developed some bad blood with the rest of the Below Deck crew. His behavior throughout the season clearly led him to feel isolated from some of his fellow crew members, but the attitude he's exhibited post-show feels unnecessary.

1 Ben’s Getting Roasted By Below Deck Alumni

Others Are Jumping In To Drag Ben

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While Ben's attitude hasn't been widely beloved by Below Deck viewers, it's been even more greatly disavowed by alumni. Although many of the crew members who have been aboard St. David and other vessels have only been aboard the superyacht for a season or two, their experiences on the show give them the ability to talk about it from a unique perspective. While Ben has been part of Below Deck for two charter seasons, his time on the superyacht has been called out by some veterans.

Though he's allowed to post what he wants about his crewmates, Ben's attitude has been noticed and called out by some alumni. With people like Below Deck Med's Natalya Scudder calling Ben out for his treatment of his crewmates and Captain, the heat has been heavy on Ben. Many have noticed that Below Deck's Ben has been quiet since he started getting pushback.

Below Deck airs Mondays at 9 p.m. EDT on Bravo, then streams the following day on Peacock.