Former star of The Bachelor Juan Pablo Galavis called out Chris Harrison and producer Mike Fleiss on Twitter, accusing them of villainizing his honesty on the show. His comments came after his season was re-aired September 7 on The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons—Ever!
Bachelor Nation first met the suave ex-professional soccer player on Desiree Hartsock’s season of The Bachelorette in 2013. Although he received little air time, the single father quickly became a fan favorite, wooing audiences with his accent and charming personality. Juan Pablo only made it to week six, but fans and Bachelor producers weren’t ready to let him go so soon. In an unusual decision, ABC announced Juan Pablo as the following season’s lead. His season aired in 2014, but it showcased a very different Juan Pablo than fans, producers, and Chris Harrison were expecting. The most controversial moment of the season came when Juan Pablo infamously told Clare after their final one-on-one that he didn’t love her, but “loved f—king” her. Clare called him out on proposal day, leaving runner-up Nikki Ferrell to accept Juan Pablo’s final rose, even though he refused to tell Nikki he loved her and asked her to be his girlfriend rather than his fiancé. The pair split shortly after the finale aired.
Fast forward to September 7, 2020, and The Bachelor has re-aired Juan Pablo’s infamous season. The former Bachelor has since moved on to marry and then divorce Osmariel Villalobos, but he can’t seem to keep his “honesty” out of Bachelor Nation. In a series of tweets, the 39-year-old slammed producer Mike Fleiss and host Chris Harrison for villanizing his personality on the show. He wrote, “In this SHOW @fleissmeister TOLD me to be MYSELF and then he didn’t like my HONESTY … @chrisbharrison DIDN’T like it either, got FRUSTRATED when he TRIED me to say WORDS I didn’t mean …” He went on to add, “You either PLAY their GAME or are TRUE to yourself … Yeap, I decided to be TRUE to myself …” Check out his tweet for yourself below:
Juan Pablo continues to blame the show for his portrayal. In response to a tweet that called his edit on the show “evil,” the former pro soccer player said, “Thanks, some people LIKE honesty, some people DON’T.” This isn’t the first time Juan Pablo has spoken out against The Bachelor. In recent news, he also had something to say about the new Bachelorette promo for Clare Crawley’s season that showed their heated breakup on the finale back in 2014.
Juan Pablo’s season has become the black sheep in the franchise, with its unexpected turns and the lead's refusal to subscribe to The Bachelor formula. The once-ignored season has again become a topic of conversation thanks to Clare Crawley’s upcoming Bachelorette debut. Although it’s clear Clare has put this trainwreck of a season behind her, fans will have to see how her season, which is shaping up to be as atypical as Juan Pablo’s (although for very different reasons), will play out in the fall.
Source: Juan Pablo Galavis