Antoni Porowski says he’s “stepping down” from the unknown after nearly a decade on the same show, and feels he’s at a remarkable transition point in his career.
In his first post-“Queer Eye” adventure, he traveled the world to Mexico City, London, Paris and New York City as part of the new show he hosts and executive produces for National Geographic, “The Best of the World with Antoni Porowski.” The show will premiere on June 7th and be streamed the next day on Disney+ and Hulu.
Four months after the Queer Eye chapter of his life ended, Porowski admitted he still has more questions than answers after meeting legions of LGBTQ+ fans and foodies. Karamo Brown, who appeared on the Emmy-winning show with Porofsky since 2018, abruptly quit his “CBS Morning” segment in January over fears of bullying, saying in a statement that he felt “mentally and emotionally abused for years.” Brown’s actions fueled reports of behind-the-scenes tensions after a 2024 Rolling Stone investigation delved into allegations of emotional abuse by cast member Jonathan Van Ness. (Van Ness denies the allegations.)
“For those who were paying attention to how it all ended, it was disappointing because it felt like it served as a distraction when paying homage to the countless people who worked on the show from day one to the end, and those who came and went both in front of and behind the camera,” Porowski told Variety. “Honestly, I think there are more questions than answers, but my hope is that the people who celebrate this show understand the support we’ve given and the work we’ve done.”
Originally created for Bravo in 2003, Netflix’s reboot of Queer Eye began airing in 2018 after the core fave five of Porofsky, Van Ness, Brown, Tan France and Bobby Berk (who replaced Jeremiah Brent in Season 9) gave people a makeover. The show celebrates community and inclusivity, with many of its cast members meeting openly gay people for the first time.
Acknowledging that there are Queer Eye fans who felt that the drama and controversy overshadowed the previous season, Porofsky said, “I won’t let the consequences get in the way of the message, because I swear to you, the message is always true, and it’s always coming from a place of truth. That’s what I choose to take away from this.”
Left to right: Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, Jeremiah Brent, Tan France, Jonathan Van Ness
Provided by Bronson Farr/Netflix
For now, Porowski said he has only been in contact with “some” of the cast, though he declined to name them, adding rhetorically: “You never know what’s going to happen in the future.” When asked about continuing his former co-star’s own post-Queer Eye projects, he said he was impressed with Brent’s new Portuguese farm, which he renovated with husband Nate Berkus, saying, “He’s done a really great job. I know how obsessed[he is]with preservation and attention.”
The jump from ensemble to solo emcee happened quickly. About three months after production on “Queer Eye” season 10 wrapped in Washington, D.C., Porofsky began traveling the world.
“Best of the World” sees Porowski experiencing different cultures and, of course, sampling delicious food. He asks locals at all four locations he visits to explain the history behind every delicate dish he tries. This makes the show a clear expansion from his previous National Geographic work, 2025’s “No Taste Like Home With Antoni Porowski” and the 2022 Netflix cooking competition he hosted, “Easy-Bake Battle.”
Provided by National Geographic
During this period of transition, Porofsky said, “I’m interested in telling human stories. ‘Queer Eye’ taught me the importance of that: connecting with other people and understanding other perspectives and ways of doing things.”
Traveling around the world, especially the United States, during times of political unrest opened Porowski’s eyes to other lived experiences.
“As soon as I open my phone and see social media and all the atrocities that are happening[here]there’s no shortage of fear, anxiety, stress, both small and big, that I experience on a daily basis,” he says. “It doesn’t take away from the fact that all of that is very real and very happening. But when you’re traveling around the world and suddenly you’re on a local news station, you find out that there are atrocities happening everywhere. And there are people thriving everywhere.”
Netflix’s reboot of “Queer Eye” immediately resonated with a wide range of viewers, but especially those in the LGBTQ+ community. It won the GLAAD Award for Best Reality Program in 2019. Porofsky keeps his queerness and desire to find community in the Best of the World alive. A very memorable London episode ends in a motorized drug bar during a night out.
National Geographic/Courtesy of Richard Ing
“Part of my history and identifying as a queer person and being a public figure and the attention and the electricity that it brings to a room can make me anxious sometimes when I’m not completely at peace with myself,” he says. “But what emerged was something very beautiful and chaotic.”
“Some drag queens and kings were very sophisticated and had perfectly choreographed steps, while others were very quirky and all over the place,” he added. “There were a few moments where I forgot the cameras were rolling, and I didn’t conserve my energy and just screamed at the top of my lungs. I literally couldn’t talk the next day because I was screaming so much. That night, when I was passing out in a hotel in London, I drank a lot of honey and ginger chamomile tea.”
Looking back at the show that introduced the actors to millions of households around the world, Porofsky wants “Queer Eye” fans to remember that the Fab Five “were cast as complete strangers.”
“The only person I ever heard of was the guy on Gay of Thrones (Jonathan Van Ness) because I used to watch it a lot,” he says. “We didn’t know who we were. And we’re very different people and really navigate the world differently. We got into this together and we all dealt with things in very different ways. Yeah, I’ll leave it at that.”
