Rachel Lindsay Reveals Shocking New Details About Chris Harrison ‘Bachelor’ Controversy
What To Know
- In 2021, Chris Harrison was removed from The Bachelor franchise after making controversial remarks during an interview with Rachel Lindsay.
- On Jon Lovett’s December 2 podcast, Lindsay revealed the interview was unplanned, resulting in Harrison’s unfiltered comments.
- Despite receiving significant backlash for “cancelling” Harrison, Lindsay revealed who had the final say in his departure from the franchise.
Four years ago, during Matt James‘ season of The Bachelor, Chris Harrison rocked Bachelor Nation to its core during an Extra interview with former Bachelorette star Rachel Lindsay, as they discussed resurfaced photos of then-contestant Rachael Kirkconnell at an antebellum plantation-themed fraternity formal in 2018. During the interview, the longtime franchise host defended Kirkconnell, asking, “Well, Rachel [Lindsay], is it in 2018 or is it not good look in 2021? Because there’s a big difference.”
On December 2, Rachel Lindsay appeared on Jon Lovett‘s podcast, Lovett or Leave It, to discuss the fateful interview that ultimately led to Chris Harrison’s departure from The Bachelor franchise. In the episode, titled “Rachel Lindsay SPILLS on The Racism & Manipulation of The Bachelorette,” Lindsay recounted how right-wing media perceived her role in Harrison’s departure and took listeners behind the scenes of what really happened that day. Below, you can find out everything Rachel Lindsay shared about Chris Harrison’s controversial departure, including who had the final call on his removal.
Why did Rachel Lindsay interview Chris Harrison about Rachael Kirkconnell?
During her interview with Jon Lovett, Rachel Lindsay spilled some massive tea: She wasn’t even supposed to interview Chris Harrison that day. Instead, Lindsay was scheduled to speak with Tyler Cameron, a franchise veteran and close friend of the current Bachelor, Matt James. Around the same time that Rachael Kirkconnell, who ultimately won the season, started facing social media backlash, Cameron “pulled out” of the interview. In her opinion, this was likely because he “didn’t want to be asked a question” about the controversy. Lindsay shared, “I’m known for asking direct questions, relevant questions.” Instead, Harrison filled in to discuss a new product.
ABC
Was Chris Harrison supposed to talk about the Rachael Kirkconnell controversy?
Generally, celebrities are accompanied by PR teams who flag sensitive or confidential information during interviews. According to Lindsay, “Chris [Harrison] was there to promote, nobody even knows, some drink, maybe?” She explained, “It was the perfect storm. ABC PR wasn’t on the call. Warner [Brothers] PR wasn’t on the call. It was the PR of that drink company.” That means, “There was no one on the call to say you’re going the wrong way. It was 15 minutes of him ranting and raving.”
Lindsay later confessed, “I have always known how Chris is. He doesn’t even like me.” While Lindsay requested that Extra only air the portion of their interview about Harrison’s product on TV, she told her executive producer to put the full, unedited interview on YouTube. By the next day, everyone had seen it — including ABC executives.
What did Chris Harrison say about the Rachael Kirkconnell controversy?
Harrison began his discussion of the controversy by telling Lindsay, “I saw a picture of her at a sorority party five years ago, and that’s it. Like, boom. I’m like, ‘Really?’” When Lindsay told him, “The picture was from 2018 at an Old South antebellum party… That’s not a good look,” Harrison doubled down, asking her, “Well, Rachel, is it in 2018 or is it not a good look in 2021? Because there’s a big difference.”
Hitting the nail on the head, Lindsay, who was the franchise’s first Black lead, asked Harrison, “If I went to that party, what would I represent at that party?”
Harrison then proceeded to tell her, “You’re 100% right in 2021. That was not the case in 2018. And again, I’m not defending Rachael [Kirkconnell]. 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.” Check out Chris Harrison’s full 2021 interview with Rachel Lindsay below.
According to Lindsay, Harrison called her after the interview. “Before it went on YouTube,” she revealed, “he called me after, and he’s like, ‘I thought that was a great conversation.’ Swear to God.” Her response? “I didn’t really agree with what you had to say, but okay.”
How did the Chris Harrison interview impact Rachel Lindsay?
After the interview, both the women from James’ season and the men from previous seasons put out joint statements “standing with” Lindsay after her interview with Harrison went viral. Lindsay explained that, from that point, the public sentiment became Rachel Lindsay vs. Chris Harrison, when the truth was that, as a reporter, she was just doing her job.
“Then it shifts into conservative right-wing media [saying], ‘This girl trapped him and asked these questions that made him answer a certain way, and she cancelled him,'” she recalled. After people like then-Extra host Billy Bush and conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro got wind of the story, Lindsay faced major backlash for “cancelling” Harrison. During her interview with Lovett, she revealed that she had to “hire someone” and temporarily left social media. That being said, she was not the person who had Harrison removed from The Bachelor franchise.
Why was Chris Harrison replaced?
Following Harrison’s absence from the Bachelor Season 25 After the Final Rose, he was replaced by former leads Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe, who served as hosts for Season 17 of The Bachelorette, before Jesse Palmer became the franchise’s permanent host. According to Lindsay, “it was the next Bachelorette” who got Harrison removed from the franchise.
While Katie Thurston and Michelle Young were announced as consecutive Bachelorette season leads during the finale of James’ season, Lindsay claims it was the next Bachelorette, Thurston, who put her foot down. “That’s how he ended up getting let go,” Lindsay revealed.
