Yesterday, an alleged cast list for Netflix docu-soap Byron Baes leaked, revealing which local famous folk would be taking part.
Included on the list, which was shared by Confidential, was musician Billy Otto, but the bloke has just called BS on that in a post aimed at Netflix.
Addressing the streaming giant directly, he begins: “Dear @netflixaustralia, this is to let you know that the rumours aren’t true, and I won’t be appearing on your Byron Bae’s TV show.”
“I’m not anti-Netflix, and I’m not anti-influencer, I just don’t believe that your show is a true representation of the soul of Byron,” he continued, adding that the show “doesn’t align with my values – and the local Indigenous Elders and long standing community do not give their blessing for you to host this series.”
“Yep, I feel embarrassed to have been associated with this show,” he said. “This is no hero speech, I just want you to hear the story from me.”
He went on to reveal that he was approached to be in the show as they “loved my story” but after realising what the show was really about, he said hell fucking no.
“I was asked from a media representative that there was a new show being filmed about interesting people living in Byron Bay,” he added. “And I (like a copious amount of my friends in Byron) was asked if I was interested. They told me they loved my story, that they loved how I talked about men’s mental health & vulnerability. And they even said they loved my music!”
“I began to understand later the true nature of the program, and it became clear to me that I didn’t align with the ethos of the show,” Billy Otto said. “I don’t consider myself a Byron local, I don’t consider myself a “hot instagrammer”, and I don’t believe that the world needs a show like this right now.
“I’m a Surfrider foundation ambassador and I want to help preserve the local ecology here in the shire. And I’m not stoked about the heightening hyper-gentrification that would occur from a program of this nature.”
Finally, he writes that “this project isn’t for me and I want to hold to my integrity. I’m interested in contributing to things that bolster community and a deeper connection to country. I would honestly love to see a platform like Netflix making a film series about the real stories of Byron, working alongside Bundjalung Elders and capturing the dreamers, creatives and custodians that help make this place special.”
He signs off, “With love and heart. Billy x.”
This low-key throws the rest of the list into question, but considering several of the so-called “blow-ins” that feature on the list (as angry locals have been calling them) have just touched down in Byron, I’m betting that at least some of them are accurate. Perhaps Confidential got their mitts on an early list and some are legit while others have backed out?
Peep the full (alleged) Byron Baes cast list here.
Matty Galea is the Entertainment Editor at Pedestrian who also dabbles in woo-woo stuff like astrology and crystals and has been penning horoscopes since the start of his career. He also Tweets about pop culture and astrology and posts spicy content on Instagram.
