So, here’s exactly why Malia left Below Deck Med and this is what she’s up to now
She is now training to become a chief mate
With the new season of Below Deck Mediterranean came the departure of Below Deck royalty Malia White from the show. Malia joined the Bravo spin off Below Deck Mediterranean in season two of the show, where she was a green deckhand, green meaning she had never worked on a super yacht before.
Throughout the season, Malia got to grips with the job quickly whilst leaving a string of broken hearts in her wake. She left the show in seasons three and four before making a tumultuous return in season five where she was now serving in the rank of Bosun.
Season five saw Malia sabotage her fellow yachtie and fan favourite Hannah Ferrier by disclosing to the yacht’s Captian, Sandy, that Hannah had valium on board the boat. This ultimately lead to Hannah’s dismissal from the job, much to the dismay of her colleagues and fans alike.
After quite literally rocking the boat in seasons five and six, Malia announced that she would not be returning to the show for season seven. Here is everything you need to know about why Malia White left Below Deck Mediterranean and what she is doing now:
Why did Malia leave the show?
Malia announced that she wouldn’t be returning for season seven of Below Deck Mediterranean, despite already starring in three seasons of the show. Malia told the Metro part of her decision not to return to the show was because she been involved in a scooter accident shortly before the filming of season seven was due to begin.
Malia posted about the accident to her Instagram in June last year, sharing before and after photos of the scooter and selfies in hospital. The accident resulted in Malia having broken toes, fracturing her elbow and enduring “severe” road rash. She outlined the role her helmet had played in preventing further injuries and urged others to always wear one.
On Instagram, she said: “I’m sharing this to express the importance of always wearing a helmet. Mine quite literally saved my life.
“Accidents happen when you least expect them. Luckily, I was able to walk away with a few stitches, fractured elbow, broken toes, severe road rash and a very sore body. I don’t want to imagine what the case would have been without my helmet!”
What is Malia up to now?
Despite deciding not to appear in the upcoming series of Below Deck Med, Malia has confirmed she is still working full-time as a yachtie.
Malia was the first female Bosun on the Below Deck franchise and has not been shy at expressing her desires to climb the ranks, all the way up to Captain.
She told Vulture: “Currently, my next goal is to become a chief officer. That would be pretty much the right-hand woman to the captain. It’s quite a bit of schooling, so I’m ticking them off one by one. And that means I can be on bigger boats, as a chief officer.”
On her Instagram, Malia posted stories where she revealed that she is currently training to be a chief officer, disclosing that one of the reasons she is not returning to the show was because she had exams.
Malia has also started a podcast called Total Ship Show, where she discusses the yachting industry outside of the Below Deck series. Despite trying not to focus on the Bravo show, Malia does plan to interview some of her Below Deck co-stars on the podcast, with Bosun Eddie Lucas and Chief Stew Kate Chastain already making an appearance.
Malia told CheatSheet: “It’s such a cool, fascinating industry. I didn’t even know about it five years ago, and now I’m like, obsessed. So I just wanted to kind of share other parts of the industry that you don’t really see on this show.”
You can listen to Malia’s podcast Total Ship Show on Apple Podcasts.
Will Malia ever return to Below Deck Mediterranean?
Despite choosing not to appear in the seventh season, Malia has left the door open on potentially returning to Below Deck Med one day.
She told the Metro: “I haven’t left. It’s not that I might never come back to the show. I’m just not on the next season.”
So there is still hope for all Malia fans out there that we might see her on a future series of Below Deck.
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