Bobby Berk 'lost money' during first two Queer Eye seasons
Bobby Berk has claimed that he "lost money" during the first two seasons of Queer Eye as he was "never really" paid well for his work on the Netflix show.
Bobby Berk "lost money" during the first two seasons of Queer Eye.
The 43-year-old star served as the interior design expert on the popular Netflix programme for eight seasons until leaving in 2023 and has revealed that the show wasn't particularly financially rewarding.
Bobby told the latest episode of the Networth and Chill podcast: "The first two seasons I definitely lost money being on the show. Because, I mean, they were paying us basically nothing. And the amount of money I was losing from not running my company and being gone - we were gone for five months and we were on constant press tours."
Bobby did eventually "break even" during the third and fourth season of the show but claims that he "never really" paid well for his work on Queer Eye.
He said: "To be frank, they never really paid us well. You know, compared to what they pay scripted stars, we made single digit percentage. Obviously what it did though was open up doors for working with brands, working with companies."
Berk says it was amusing when fans got "annoyed" when he and his co-stars engaged in brand partnerships to supplement their income.
The interior designer joked: "We're like, 'Well, girl, we don't make money off the show.' How do you think we continue to do the show?"
Despite his financial gripes, Bobby has fond memories of his time on Queer Eye and felt that the series came along at the perfect time during Donald Trump's first term as US President.
He said: "It was tough the first few seasons, but the door it has opened for other things? You can't pay for that type of exposure.
"We got really lucky to find lightning in a bottle.
"Trump had just become president for the first time and people were really distraught and at each others' throats. We were this happy feeling of five gays walking into red states and getting along and meeting humans instead of political affiliations. It really became a cultural phenomenon. I never regretted doing it."
Bobby revealed last year that he often used to go home and cry after filming Queer Eye and leaned on his husband Dewey Do for emotional support as he had to reflect on his childhood traumas to help the programme's makeover guests.
He told Us Weekly: "There were a lot of times where I had to deal with some demons. I had to deal with some trauma from childhood and adolescence that I didn’t want to and so he was always there to hold me when I come home and literally cry."
