It’s the end of an era.
I really can’t even fathom watching The Bachelor without Chris Harrison, but he is officially leaving franchise for good. He hosted every season of the show since 2002, as well as The Bachelorette and Bachelor In Paradise.
Warner Horizon and ABC Entertainment issued a statement to CNN, saying:
“Chris Harrison is stepping aside as host of The Bachelor franchise. We are thankful for his many contributions over the past 20 years and wish him all the best on his new journey.”
Back in February, he took a step back from the show after setting off a firestorm online for defending former contestant Rachael Kirkconnell when pictures surfaced of her in college at an antebellum-themed fraternity formal party in 2018.
He later apologized for his comments but was kept on leave.
Harrison took to his own Instagram page to confirm the news that he was leaving:
“I’ve had a truly incredible run as host of The Bachelor franchise and now I’m excited to start a new chapter. I’m so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories we’ve made together.
While my two-decade journey is wrapping up, the friendships I’ve made will last a lifetime.”
There were lots of former contestants commenting on the post wishing him well in his next endeavor.
It remains to be seen what his next move will be, but during negotiations for a severance package, Chris’ lawyer Bryan Freedman threatened that if they didn’t get the figure they wanted, they would:
“Unleash the Shiva of lawsuits exposing a swath of The Bachelor’s alleged dirty laundry.”
Selfishly, I kinda wish it would’ve gotten to that point because now that’s all I want to know about.
For Katie Thurston’s season that’s just getting under way, former Bachelorette’s Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe have been tapped as co-hosts.
For Bachelor In Paradise that’s set to premiere in August, comedian David Spade will be hosting. That should go really well… as if Paradise wasn’t already a dumpster fire (that I thoroughly enjoy watching).
No permanent hosting decisions have been made at this point, though.
But, I kind of think Chris is getting the last laugh here because he’s walking away with a $50 MILLION severance package.
Now, he can buy all the roses his heart will ever desire (sorry, I had to).
