The old one Below Deck star Emile Kotze is suing NBCUniversal for $850 million after claiming the network engaged in a “concerted campaign of exploitation, harassment and manipulation” during her time on the show.
Kotze, who appeared on Season 3 of the Bravo series, was 23 years old when he worked as a deckhand on the original show. Now 34, Kotze is in a legal battle with Bravo’s parent network beginning in June 2025. Us Weekly can confirm.
Kotze said in her first lawsuit that she was “sexually harassed, abused and subjected to degrading treatment” during and after filming the show in 2015.
The yacht filed the first amended complaint on June 13, 2025, less than two weeks after it started the lawsuit in the Southern District of New York.
In October 2025, Kotze filed a second amended complaint, alleging that after the indictment. Below Deck, the runners decide they want him to be part of the “show” with a female team member Raquel “Rocky” Dakota.
One official is said to have pointed to Kotze’s South African background and “traditional values” as a possible factor in the case.
“We can get a lot of friction out of the water with him. Also, he’s not a union or anything, we can put a lot of pressure on him,” the official said, according to the court filing.
Kotze went on to say that once filming began, the production “loaded” him with alcohol when he wasn’t working and “encouraged him to ‘move in'” on Dakota, despite his alleged reluctance to pursue a romantic relationship with her.
Kotze revealed that during the night after filming, the producers encouraged them to shoot and do drinking scenes. One such night, he said, led to Dakota being “in a state of emotional distress” to climb the mast and jump ship.
Kotze said in the documents that he was “saddened to see this, as he feared for Rocky’s life.” He revealed that the production “took on like an incredible mess – the cameras kept rolling, and later they used the footage as entertainment.”
“After the filming, the Defendants defamed the Complainant by fraudulently editing images that show her identity and harm, misused her likeness for commercial gain without permission, and engaged in a campaign of cover-up and retaliation to silence and defame her when she sought redress,” the lawsuit reads, saying Kotepedz continues to roll the film.
NBCUniversal had no comment.
Kotze is seeking between $633 million and $850 million in damages, claiming in his lawsuit $123 million in lost future earnings because “his once promising fishing career was lost.”
Not always a perfect fit. Over the years, the Below Deck franchise has shocked viewers with surprising exits, including shootings and cancellations. Mathew Shea set a record for Below Deck Mediterranean when he sailed several times during season 6. The chef began traveling on the ship when he suffered a knee injury that required medical attention. […]
He said he is seeking damages of “not less than $10 million” for emotional distress and is proposing punitive damages be awarded at $500 million.
Kotze also asked the court to require the network to remove or delete any “intimate images or photos” of him from all platforms and to stop future distribution or airing of episodes of season 3 that “contain defamation or are not authorized.”
If the episodes go ahead, Kotze wants the network to add a disclaimer to the show “clarifying that certain portrayals of the plaintiff have been altered.”
NBC, on the other hand, filed a motion to dismiss the original amended complaint in October 2025, but the judge denied the motion on January 3. People report.
