"He kind of enjoyed tormenting me": Below Deck's Fraser Olender opines on tension with Ben Willoughby

Below Deck season 11 set sail on Monday, February 5, with tensions rising on deck. Fraser Olender, the returning Chief Stew on the show, has prompted viewers to brace themselves for the impending drama about to explode in the brand-new season.

In an interview with E! News, Fraser reflected on his feud with the deck crew in season 11, speaking at length about the tension between him and Ben Willoughby, the lead deckhand. Though Fraser confirmed much of their issues are resolved, viewers will get to see them butting their heads multiple times during the season. The cast member teased:

“I think Ben kind of felt like he kind of enjoyed tormenting me this year. Working so close with each other as heads of departments, you're going to have your differences. We work through those but there's definitely some tension there."

Meanwhile, cast members are taking their time adjusting to the orders of Captain Kerry, who has replaced beloved Captain Lee, the veteran sailor who had held the reins of the ship for a decade.

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Ben Willougby comments on the conflict with Fraser Olender in Below Deck season 11

The lead deckhand believes both of them were fighting for nothing but “attention” throughout the new season. He then referred to Fraser as his brother and told E! News:

"We're brothers and brothers are very competitive. There's always one brother who wants to be a bit more centre of attention. I think we were just fighting for that the whole season."

Fraser confessed that it took him some time to adjust to the “new captain, whole new team, and a new location”, but after facing the challenges together, he shared that he left the season feeling “confident.” Besides Ben, working with Stew Barbie Pascual was apparently tricky for him. In addition to this, the Chief Stew also implied that season 11 will feature more crew firings than the last one.

“There's a significant turnover this year. I don't go anywhere though, so thank God for that."

When it comes to the number of crew departures, Ben added:

“You're probably gonna see more than season 10."

Naturally, their revelations have heightened fan expectations, and viewers are waiting eagerly for their journey to unfold.

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Below Deck Captain Kerry butts head with his chain of command

In the Below Deck season 11 premiere episode, Captain Kerry called for a crew meeting in the lavish Sky Lounge. While his priority was to confirm his crew’s physical and mental health after everyone checked in, the new captain also warned them not to take his kindness for granted. With his address, Captain Kerry made it clear he wouldn’t want anyone slacking while doing their job.

“Don’t take my kindness for weakness. I will f*ckin’ turn in a heartbeat if you start taking the piss.”

According to the captain, his rulebook remains simple—the crew gets rewarded for hard work and punished for mistakes.

“You work hard, you’ll be rewarded. You f*ck around, you’re off the boat.”

The cycle of never-ending drama has already begun with the miscommunication between Ben Willoughby and Bosun Jared Woodin over the shots of the anchor chain in the water. The amount ordered by the captain was not conveyed to Jared, which led to a mishap that could potentially end up hurting someone.

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The other crew members joining aboard on Below Deck season 11 are Chef Anthony Iracane, stews Cat Baugh, Xandi Olivier, Barbie Pascual, and deckhands Sunny Marquis and Kyle Stillie.

Below Deck season 11 releases new episodes every Monday at 9 pm ET on Bravo.