Secret Exes, Contestant Meltdowns and More — The Biggest Bachelor Nation Scandals Over the Years

‘The Golden Bachelor’ Truth Comes Out

Throughout ABC’s inaugural season of The Golden Bachelor, fans swooned over the sweet and heartbreaking backstory of bachelor Gerry Turner. After his wife, Toni, died in 2017, the widower was finally ready to find love again on the show. However, what fans didn’t know until one day before the finale aired was that Gerry had previously tried to find love almost immediately after his wife’s death.

In November 2023, an unidentified ex-girlfriend of Gerry’s, using the pseudonym Carolyn, told The Hollywood Reporter that she and Gerry began dating just one month after he lost Toni. Carolyn and Gerry dated for 10 months before they moved in together for another year and nine months.

Carolyn told THR she was “flabbergasted” to hear him imply that he didn’t have much of a love life after Toni died. She also noticed Gerry using some of the same exact lines and moves with the women on The Golden Bachelor as he did with her.

Carolyn also revealed that Gerry moved very quickly with her and exhibited controlling behavior. “The idea that I’d go out with a recent widower just mortifies me,” she said. “I just really didn’t see it. Until I went back and looked at my text messages, I never realized Gerry’s texts had turned hot and heavy so relatively soon.”

The report included other revelations about Gerry, including that he dated other women besides Carolyn after Toni’s death and that his job title wasn’t “retired restaurateur,” as said on The Golden Bachelor.

Chris Harrison Steps Down as Host

Former longtime Bachelor Nation host Chris Harrison was hit with a scandal of his own in February 2021 after defending past racist behavior from contestant Rachael Kirkconnell. As a result of the scandal, he permanently stepped away from his role as host of the ABC show after two decades. 

“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,” Warner Horizon and ABC Entertainment said in a statement to Life & Style in June 2021.

For his part, the former host said he was excited to start a new chapter after an “incredible run” as host of the franchise in a statement posted to his Instagram.

“I’m so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories we’ve made together,” he wrote at the time. “While my two-decade journey is wrapping up, the friendships I’ve made will last a lifetime.”

Taylor Nolan’s Tweets Resurface

The Bachelor in Paradise alum sparked backlash on February 28, when offensive past tweets resurfaced. The posts, which ranged in dates from 2011 to 2014, insulted minority groups, including Indian, Asian and Jewish communities, and contained fat-shaming and homophobic language.

Taylor released an apology the same day. “My tweets from 10 years ago are sh–ty, they suck, they were wrong and are hurtful,” she began during an Instagram video. “I want to be clear that they don’t take away from the work I do today, they are literally how I got here to doing this work.”

On March 24, Department of Health spokesperson Gordon MacCracken told Page Six Nolan is under investigation, but it “doesn’t necessarily mean that disciplinary action will occur, just that we are moving to the stage of an investigation.”

Rachael Kirkconnell Is Accused of Racism and Bullying

Rachael came under fire during season 25 when a TikTok user accused the contestant of “bullying” her during high school for “liking Black guys.” Then, another TikTok video alleged Rachael “liked” racist social media posts, including an Instagram photo showing the Confederate flag.

Pictures then began circulating that showed the Georgia native attending an Old South antebellum-themed party in 2018.

Rachael issued a public apology on Thursday, February 11, but an insider told Life & Style on February 9 Matt has been “supportive” of the graphic designer.

“He has to be careful what he says on social and to the media, but he definitely wants to protect her and will be there for her when she does release her statement,” explained the insider.

In his book First Impressions: Off-Screen Conversations With a Bachelor on Race, Family, and Forgiveness, which was released in May 2022, Matt reflected on his experience navigating the difficult situation. 

“She and I spent two days together, and then on the third day, we had the hard conversation,” Matt wrote. “I shared how it felt seeing her, a woman I loved, embody a role that had once so antagonized me. My emotions welled up, and she met me at their peak.”

Matt explained that Rachael apologized for the “pain” he felt and explained her experiences. 

“She’d only been in the sorority a short time; she left the semester following the party,” he continued. “She didn’t know about the context of the party when she chose to attend; it was just another college event in her mind. She didn’t offer her ignorance as an excuse. Just a fact—she paired it with the facts of her remorse and regret. Tears streamed down both our faces.”

“I forgave her,” Matt wrote.

Victoria Fuller’s Drama

Victoria Fuller had *a lot* of drama during Peter’s season. The contestant’s bikini modeling photo was pulled from the cover of Cosmopolitan after she won a group date because pictures of her posing in a “white lives matter” shirt began circulating online.

While some outlets reported that the fish logos on the clothing represent the White Marlin Conservation, where the slogans “white lives matter” and “blue lives matter” refer to the overfishing of white and blue marlins, the “nature of the organization” still didn’t align with Cosmopolitan’s views.

Victoria was also accused of having affairs with married men by multiple people on social media, which she said was “absolutely not true” during After the Final Rose.

Yosef Pops Off

The contestant from Clare Crawley‘s season was confronted during night one about allegedly sending flirtatious DMs to women on Instagram prior to appearing on the reality dating show. However, the real drama with Yosef didn’t start until after the leading lady’s strip dodgeball date.

Although he wasn’t even on the group date, he told Clare he was “ashamed to be associated” with her. He was booted off the show amid their explosive fight but still managed to yell about the hairstylist being the “oldest Bachelorette in history.”

Jenna and Jordan’s Disastrous End

The quirky pair got engaged on season 5 of BIP. They appeared head over heels on After the Final Rose. Shockingly, hours before the taped show aired, Reality Steve leaked alleged text messages between Jenna and a mystery man, whom she was reportedly cheating on the male model with. Some incriminating messages included the North Carolina native saying she and Jordan “aren’t together for real.” Jordan promptly ended things via a public statement.
Since then, Reality Steve formally apologized to the reality starlet when she appeared on his podcast after the texts were found to be fake. 

Garrett Yrigoyen’s Social Media Behavior

Becca Kufrin’s ex-fiancé got himself into hot water twice because of social media. On June 4, he received backlash after releasing a lengthy statement supporting police amid the Black Lives Matter movement and protests against police brutality. 
At the time, the season 14 Bachelorette called Garrett’s post “tone deaf” during her “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast with Rachel Lindsay. They announced their split three months later, but Becca was sure to note their breakup “wasn’t based solely off of one Instagram post.”
Prior to that, Garrett came under fire for “liking” offensive social media posts that were anti-trans, mocked undocumented immigrants and suggested the Parkland high school shooting was a hoax. He apologized and took “full responsibility” for the situation while appearing with Becca on After the Final Rose. 

Rozlyn Papa and the Producer

The contestant from Jake Pavelka’s season was booted off when she allegedly had an inappropriate relationship with show producer Ryan Callahan during filming. 
Rozlyn later took aim at Chris Harrison during Women Tell All and accused him of hitting on Ryan’s wife while the crew was in New Zealand. The ABC personality, who was still married at the time, also claimed during an interview with TV Guide at the time that Rozlyn “accused [him] of being gay.” In the end, Chris said she just “wants attention” and said her remarks were “desperate.”
As for Rozlyn, she later confessed she wished she “would have gone for it” with Ryan during an interview with Mix 103.7. 

The Biggest Spoiler

Whether you were pissed or excited over the spoilers — fans were shook when Kaitlyn Bristowe accidentally shared a photo in bed with season winner Shawn Booth one month before the finale aired.
“We were sending Snaps to one of the producers,” the fitness trainer told Jimmy Kimmel in July 2015. “[And then], I pick up my phone to go on Twitter and there’s hundreds of pictures of my stupid face laying in bed with her. I start having a panic attack. I couldn’t even breathe.” 
The pair split three years later. Kaitlyn is now dating Bachelor Nation alum Jason Tartick. 

‘Paradise’ Shuts Down

Production in Mexico completely shut down and the contestants were momentarily sent home after alleged sexual misconduct took place between Corinne Olympios and DeMario Jackson. No misconduct was found following an investigation, and the show continued filming.

Corinne and DeMario have no hard feelings and remain close friends to this day. 

Amanda Spills the Tea on Robby

Amanda Stanton and Robby Hayes’ love story had an abrupt ending when cheating accusations surfaced following their time on Paradise. The former professional swimmer released a lengthy statement saying Amanda put forward an “innocent persona” and he slammed the “malicious” attacks against him.
“Look what you made me do,” Amanda quipped on Twitter along with a photo of what appeared to Robby making out with another girl. 

Pulling a Mesnick

Jason got engaged to Melissa Rycroft during the finale, but changed his mind shortly after because he was still in love with Molly Malaney. Turns out, it was good he followed his instincts because the reality pair is still together. 
“It landed us both exactly where we’re supposed to be. That relationship was not going to last,” Melissa exclusively told Life & Style in January. “I mean, I don’t think anyone would be shocked to hear that now. I bet he probably regrets how it ended but … [I have] no regrets now, just a little embarrassing.” 

Chris Soules’ Fatal Accident

The former Bachelor was involved in a fatal car crash in 2017 that resulted in the death of 66-year-old Kenny Mosher. Chris rear-ended Kenny’s tractor while driving his Chevy pickup truck and sent the vehicle into a ditch. The farmer called 911, administered CPR and stayed on the scene until paramedics arrived but allegedly left before the police showed up. 
He was arrested and charged with a class D felony of leaving the scene of a fatality motor vehicle accident. He later pled guilty to a reduced charge of leaving the scene of a serious injury accident. In August 2019, a judge approved Chris’ plea deal, which imposed two years of probation and a suspended prison term.

Peter Weber’s Happily Ever After

Season 24’s leading man had a tumultuous journey to find love. He got engaged to Hannah Ann Sluss during his finale in Australia. However, they split a few months later because he still had feelings for his runner-up, Madison Prewett. Sounds familiar, right? Not quite.
Peter and Madi explored their relationship following After the Final Rose but announced they were done for good a few days later. In March 2020, a few weeks after the explosive finale aired, Peter was spotted in contestant Kelley Flanagan’s hometown of Chicago. Despite the lawyer being eliminated before hometown dates, they rekindled their love and are happily dating today.

Cassie’s Restraining Order

Unfortunately, the drama didn’t end there. In September 2020, Cassie filed a restraining order against Colton, claiming he had been stalking her, put a tracker on her car and sent her threatening messages.

The Huntington Beach native dropped the restraining order against her ex on November 3 and put an end to the police investigation. Colton said in a public statement at the time they were able to reach a “private agreement.”

“I do not believe Cassie did anything wrong in filing for the restraining orders and also believe she acted in good faith,” the former Bachelor wrote. “I appreciate everyone‘s respect for privacy regarding this matter.”