Jeremiah Brent Insists There's 'No Drama' After He Replaced Bobby Berk on Queer Eye: 'It’s Really Healthy'

The Queer Eye cast is in a good place, if you ask the newest member of the Fab Five.

Jeremiah Brent, who will replace Bobby Berk as the Netflix series’ design guru, is ready to start filming season 9. And despite a recent report claiming there have been tensions among the show’s stars, Brent says he hasn’t witnessed any beefs in the group.

“I’ve got to tell you, there’s no drama with any of us,” Brent told House Beautiful for its first digital cover story. “We’re all in a group chat. We’re having the time of our lives.” 

“Everybody’s heads and hearts are in the right spot,” he added. “It’s really healthy right now, and I think we’re all really excited about this season.”

In fact, Brent was seen smiling alongside his new castmates, Tan France, Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowski and Karamo Brown, in a photo Van Ness posted on Instagram Thursday in honor of the grooming expert's 37th birthday.

"I love my friends," Van Ness wrote in the caption.

In a story published by Rolling Stone March 5, three unnamed sources told the outlet that France, the show’s fashion expert, “campaigned to replace Berk” with “alleged support” from Porowski. 

France disputed those allegations in an Instagram video posted later that week.

“My former colleague getting fired had nothing to do with me trying to get my friend hired,” France said. “Netflix, the production companies, did a full on casting. I didn’t pop my friend up for the job.”

While Berk previously admitted to Vanity Fair that there was a "situation" between the two costars and he’d unfollowed France on Instagram as a result, he said they’d moved past it.

Brent told House Beautiful that his new costars have brought him some needed moments of levity. 

“I haven’t laughed this hard in a long, long time,” says the father of two, who shares daughter Poppy, 9, and son Oskar, 6, with husband Nate Berkus. “In some ways, Queer Eye is connecting me to a part of myself that I had left behind, because I’m in dad mode and I run a business. With them, I get to be a little bit more free.”

And while the home renovations previously tackled by Berk mean that Brent has some big shoes to fill, he’s not worried about what’s ahead.

“I love an install. I love the stress. I love the pressure. And this is not my first rodeo—I know what I signed up for,” Brent says. “There is an amazing art department and team behind the scenes that are working hard around the clock. I’m excited to get in there, roll up my sleeves, earn my keep, and hopefully show people some really beautiful designs.”

Brent has starred alongside Berkus on HGTV’s Nate & Jeremiah by Design and The Nate and Jeremiah Home Project, and appeared on Netflix’s Say I Do, which was developed by the same creators as Queer Eye. 

Netflix revealed in February that Brent would be taking over Berk’s spot, three months after Berk first announced he’d be exiting the show — the first and only member of the Fab 5 to do so.

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Earlier this week, France told PEOPLE he can’t wait to see how Brent fits in with the Queer Eye cast.

“It’s going to be really interesting to see how this dynamic is with a new cast member," he said. "However, we all know [Jeremiah], we all love him, so we’re feeling really confident about this season. I think it’s going to be fab.”

“He’s the best,” France added of Brent. “Love him so much. We’re so excited about him. We haven’t all had a chance to get together, but we will next week, and I’m really excited.”