Chris Harrison is officially leaving the Bachelor franchise after 19 years following controversy over racist comments made earlier this year.
In February former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay interviewed Chris Harrison where she asked him his thoughts on the allegations against Rachael Kirkconnell, a contestant on the most recent season of The Bachelor. Pictures of her at an Antebellum themed party in college surfaced which led to people accusing Kirkconnell of being racist. "That's not a good look." Lindsay stated regarding the pictures.
Harrison's response was problematic and received tons of backlash online immediately after the interview aired. He was seemingly trying to preserve the reputation of the now winner of season 25 of The Bachelor, but his comments came off insensitive,
"You're 100 percent right in 2021. That was not the case in 2018. And you know, I'm not defending Rachael, I just know that I don't know, 50 million people did that in 2018...That was a type of party that a lot of people went to. And again, I'm not defending it, I didn't go to it."
After these comments, it was announced that Harrison would be taking a break for this season of The Bachelorette, and former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe would step in. It was then announced that David Spade would be hosting Bachelor in Paradise which will air later this summer.
Finally, this morning it became public that Harrison is leaving the franchise for good. He reportedly took an eight-figure deal in exchange for him to keep quiet, according to Deadline.
Although there are a few temporary hosts as of right now, we are still unsure as to who will become the official new host for the franchise.
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