Former Below Deck star Emile Kotze is suing NBCUniversal for $850 million after claiming the network perpetrated a “coordinated campaign of exploitation, harassment and deceit” during his 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 reality show. Now 34, Kotze has been embroiled in a legal battle with Bravo’s parent network since June 2025, Us Weekly can confirm.
Kotze claimed in his initial lawsuit that he was “sexually harassed, manipulated and subjected to degrading treatment” during and after he filmed the show in 2015.
The yachty filed a first amended complaint on June 13, 2025, less than two weeks after he initiated the lawsuit in the Southern District of New York.
In October 2025, Kotze filed a second amended complaint, claiming that after he was cast on Below Deck, the showrunners decided they wanted him to be part of a “showmance” with female crew member Raquel “Rocky” Dakota.
One executive allegedly pointed to Kotze’s South African background and possible “traditional values” as something that would help with the story line.
“We can get some fish-out-of-water tension with him. Plus, he’s not union or anything, we can push him harder,” the executive allegedly said, according to the court filing.
Kotze further claimed that once filming began, production “piled” him with alcohol during his downtime and was “encouraging him to ‘make a move’” on Dakota, despite his alleged hesitation about pursuing a romantic relationship with her.
Kotze alleged that during cast nights out after charters, the producers would encourage them to take shots and do drinking games. He claimed that one such night led to Dakota “in a distraught emotional state” climbing the yacht’s mast and jumping overboard.
Kotze claimed in the docs that he was “traumatized witnessing this, as he feared for Rocky’s life.” He alleged that production “treated it as a dramatic plot twist – cameras kept rolling, and they later used the footage as entertainment.”
“After filming, Defendants defamed Plaintiff by deceptively editing footage to portray him in a false and damaging light, misappropriated his likeness for continued commercial gain without consent, and engaged in a cover-up and retaliation campaign to silence and discredit him when he sought redress,” the lawsuit read, claiming that Kotez’s alleged mistreatment continued once filming wrapped.
NBCUniversal had no comment.
Kotze is seeking between $633 million and $850 million in damages, claiming in his lawsuit that $123 million was lost in future earnings because his “once-promising yachting career was destroyed.”
Not always the perfect fit. Over the years, the Below Deck franchise has shocked viewers with dramatic exits, including firings and resignations. Mathew Shea set a record for Below Deck Mediterranean when he made several departures during season 6. The chef initially left the boat when he suffered a knee injury that required medical attention. […]
He said he is seeking “no less than $10 million” in damages for emotional distress and proposed for punitive damages he be awarded $500 million.
Kotze also asked the court to demand that the network remove or delete any “intimate images or photos” of him from all platforms and stop future distribution or streaming of season 3 episodes “containing defamatory or unauthorized content.”
If the episodes remain up, Kotze wants the network to add a disclaimer to the show “clarifying that certain portrayals of the Plaintiff were manipulated.”
NBC, meanwhile, filed a motion to dismiss the first amended complaint in October 2025, but a judge denied the motion on January 3, People reported.
