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Rachel Lindsay Is Over ‘Mean’ Contestants on ‘Bachelor’: ‘I Don’t Like the Direction the Show Is Going’
Honesty hour. Bachelor Nation star Rachel Lindsay is over the “rude and mean” contestants on Bachelor Matt James’ season, she exclusively tells Life & Style. “I don’t like the direction this show is going when I see stuff like that.”
The former Bachelorette, 35, says she “absolutely” thinks the “cattiness” between Bachelor contestants has “gotten worse” through the years.
“We thought Peter [Weber]’s season was bad … There was a lot of cattiness going on with Peter’s women, which is why I think you didn’t see a Bachelorette come from that season,” the Extra host explains. “Now I’m watching this season, and I’m seeing it again.”
The Ghosted star notes Matt’s women “don’t seem catty … as a whole,” but there are “certain people” who are eating up a lot of time each episode for negative reasons, specifically contestant Victoria Larson.
“We understand there has to be drama. We understand there’s always going to be that one person. But we also watch the show for the love stories,” says Rachel. “I’m not seeing that displayed right now … We’re seeing and connecting with certain people, but it’s only for a split second. Because the next thing you know, we’re back in the house dealing with Victoria.”
Rachel is particularly concerned about the future of the franchise, and what this means for upcoming seasons. “You have to wonder, what kind of audience are you trying to attract? And what kind of contestants are you attracting?” she says.
The ABC star notes the current state of the show might encourage prospective contestants to bring the drama, especially because chances are “slim” to actually receive the final rose. “If my goal is to stand out and get attention and to make it on the beaches of Paradise, then I’m going to do what Victoria is doing because Victoria was on Good Morning America,” Rachel says. “That type of behavior is being rewarded, and that’s a problem.”
Victoria, 27, has stirred up a lot of drama along with contestant Anna Redman, who accused Brittany Galvin of “entertaining men for money” in Chicago, where they both reside. Brittany denied the claims while on the reality dating show and released a statement on Instagram about the situation. The tension got so bad among the women that Katie Thurston took Matt, 29, aside and called on him to address the mean girl behavior.
That being said, Rachel hypothesizes “there are women who are standing up” in the house, but fans are “not seeing that on our end” during the two-hour weekly episodes. “I just think that they’re only giving us Katie, and then you have to think of why,” says the Texas native. “I like Katie … I enjoy watching her on the show, but I find it hard to believe that she’s the only one speaking out. I’m sure there are other women.”
When asked if Victoria or 24-year-old Anna’s storylines were a result of “editing,” Rachel, who married husband Bryan Abasolo after season 13, pulled from her own experience in the franchise.
“When I was on the Bachelor and I was on the Bachelorette, what you saw was that person,” she divulges. “There might’ve been more. Victoria may have had a vulnerable moment … That very, very well may be, but it doesn’t mean that the side we’re seeing is also not her. So, I don’t think that that’s editing. I think that is Victoria, and nobody made Anna bring that ridiculous rumor into the show.”
As far as how the ladies could redeem themselves post-show, Rachel says, “Own your mistakes, own what you did, recognize that.”
Don’t miss Rachel in season 2 of MTV’s Ghosted: Love Gone Missing with cohost Travis Mills. The investigative docuseries is returning nightly with five new episodes kicking off February 8 through February 12.
