Is Aesha Scott Captain Sandy's forever “Below Deck Med” chief stew?
"I think Aesha is a champion, honestly," Captain Sandy tells EW.
After four years of new Below Deck Mediterranean chief stews, has Captain Sandy Yawn finally found a keeper in Aesha Scott?
If it were up to Scott and Yawn, Scott would be the new chief stew face of the series.
"I think Aesha is a champion, honestly," Yawn tells Entertainment Weekly ahead of the Bravo show's season 9 premiere. "You know what defines a true leader? When everything is not going your way and you can still have a positive attitude and you manage without melting down. That's leadership and that's Aesha."
Yawn cycled through five chief stews after firing longtime Below Deck Med chief stew Hannah Ferrier upon learning she was working with unregistered Valium and had a vape pen. She replaced Ferrier mid-season with second stew Bugsy Drake but then worked with four additional chief stews until this season.
So why is Scott, who worked for Yawn as a second stew during Below Deck Med season 4 and joined the Below Deck Med season 5 crew after Ferrier was fired, the best yet? Yawn teases that the interior drama becomes extremely messy this season, but Scott handles it like a champ. Plus, conditions beyond the crew's control also present new challenges.
"We were given lemons and Aesha handled it and made wine," she jokes, hinting at some episode 1 drama.
Scott also brought "good energy" to the boat this season: "What I liked is Aesha always was a great barrier until she needed me. So she was able to hold the line, which I totally respect."
Fred Jagueneau / Bravo
Captain Sandy Yawn and Aesha Scott on 'Below Deck'The love is mutual for Scott. However, EW had to ask Scott if coming back to Below Deck Med put her in an uncomfortable position, since she and Ferrier are close friends and there was bad blood between Yawn and Ferrier.
Related: Below Deck Mediterranean's Captain Sandy says Florida builder went 'MIA with all of our money'
"Hannah's so far past it," Scott says of the season 5 fallout, which occurred in 2020 but filmed a year earlier. "She was just so happy for me because she knows what a great thing it is for me and my happiness and my career and all of that. So she's just so supportive. She's very proud of me."
Scott and Yawn formed a friendship on land in between seasons because they both lived in Colorado.
"When I worked for her, I always respected her so much," Scott shares. "And so I was always, I don't know if I was intimidated by her, but I very much treated her like, this is my captain and I'm the second stew, and respect your role and all of that."
She adds: "But then over the years, going to see her in Denver, we definitely did transform into more of a friendship. And it was really nice because that's what I brought with me into the season, and she just respected me and let me do my thing and was just such a wonderful support to me through the whole season."
While returning to Med was sort of a homecoming, Scott acknowledges that she was transitioning from a role she also loved as chief stew on Below Deck Down Under. Scott and Captain Jason Chambers formed a strong bond during seasons 1 and 2. According to Scott, Chambers and Yawn — believe it or not — have a similar captain style, which made her move "home" a lot easier.
"I don't know if a lot of people will see it, but they were very similar for me because when I was with Jason, it was very much like we were like this brother-sister type relationship. And he helped me out a lot and it was really cool," Scott says.
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She adds: "Actually the exact same thing ended up happening with Sandy and she just let me do my thing. She'd let me run my department how I wanted, and when she'd be in the bridge, I'd pop in and we'd have a little giggle and have a little hug, and it ended up being really similar and I really appreciated her for that."
Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 kicks off on Monday, June 3, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo.
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.
