Jonathan Van Ness is speaking out against accusations that he was a “monster” to work with on the set of “Queer Eye.”
The accusations in question came from several members of the “Queer Eye” production team, who told Rolling Stone that the beauty guru known for her on-screen warmth was actually a “nightmare,” “degrading,” “ abusive” and had “anger issues.” ” Van Ness, who uses they/him/her pronouns, reportedly lashed out at others on a weekly basis, creating a hostile work environment and potentially contributing to fellow host Bobby Berk's departure from the series.
“They're really focused on having warmth and love and care for other people,” an anonymous source told Rolling Stone. “There is a real contrast between that and the way they treat the people closest to them across the board. It is the opposite of what this person is promoted and paid.”
Van Ness responded to the allegations, which were published in early March, on Wednesday's “Table Manners” podcast, saying things were “taken out of context” and that the journalist wanted to “make [Van Ness] look as bad as possible.”
Still, Van Ness “didn't even get on social media… for about three weeks, and every time I tried to dive into it, I immediately saw something that was very painful.”
The JVN hair care founder said the Queer Eye team found out in December that the article was being written and were “walking on eggshells” for months, waiting for it to be published.
“I think a lot of people were looking for a reason to hate me or a reason to say, 'Look, I always knew they were fake assholes,'” Van Ness said.
The reality star acknowledged that the story inspired self-reflection and encouraged them to step away from the spotlight to process what had happened.
“One thing it taught me was that I had gotten so much self-esteem from social media and from my job that I really didn't think I got that much self-esteem from it,” Van Ness said.
“My family supported me a lot, my husband and my team.”
