Former contestant on The Bachelorette Chase McNary regrets his time on MTV reality shows Ex on the Beach and The Challenge. Although McNary was a favorite among Bachelor Nation during his prime, he took a long step out of the spotlight before reappearing on the latest season of Bachelor in Paradise. In the interim, he took a short and apparently unfortunate detour through the two MTV installments.
McNary first appeared on JoJo Fletcher's season of The Bachelorette. He was sent home third behind runner-up Robby Hayes and winner Jordan Rogers after Fletcher rescinded her invitation to the Fantasy Suite. Her sudden decision to send him home left McNary feeling bitter and betrayed, though he apologized to JoJo for his initial harsh reaction. Despite the drama surrounding his exit, McNary was actually in the running to be the next Bachelor. In fact, he claimed that he had already accepted the offer and signed the contract. However, in a shocking twist of events, the role went to Nick Viall. After that, McNary fell out of the public eye completely until he suddenly appeared on the first season of MTV's Ex on the Beach in 2018. Following his drama-filled appearance on that show, McNary also appeared on The Challenge: War of the Worlds, though he was eliminated in the second episode. Now, he's opening up about his time in the MTV world, and his loyalties definitely lie with Bachelor Nation.
In a recent interview with Us Weekly, McNary made it clear that his time on MTV wasn't something he was proud of. "It was definitely something I learned from and if I went back, I probably wouldn’t do it again," McNary said of his decision to join the MTV casts. The 30-year-old Denver resident explained that he was pulled in by the financial benefits of the MTV shows, but that the network itself didn't represent him well. He felt that MTV represented a "different feel" and a "different following" - one that he wasn't entirely on board with. "It crushed me for a while," McNary continued. "So it feels good to get back with ABC and have a little touch back into Paradise and to show the world who I really am and not let MTV, kind of, define me."
However, the reality star isn't swearing off TV shows in general. He came back to his roots this summer with a brief appearance on season six of Bachelor in Paradise where he tried to form a relationship with Angela Amezcua. Although things didn't work out between the two of them, McNary expressed that he'd definitely return to the beach again, if asked. Although he's focusing on his business ventures at the moment, he's open to finding love on TV again in the future, as long as it's not airing on MTV.
McNary's low opinion of his time on MTV is likely the result of the vastly different nature of the networks. ABC doesn't shy away from drama, but they tend to keep their content more family-friendly, often cutting elements of the narrative that would be considered overly crude. MTV, on the other hand, thrives on risqué content. In addition, MTV intertwines many of their shows with real-life occurrences, whereas ABC prefers to keep the narrative within the Bachelor bubble as much as possible. When portrayed in the MTV world, McNary's past activities and relationships were put on display for all to see, painting a very different picture from the sweet, uneventful character we see in Bachelor Nation telecasts. The experience was a new one for McNary, and one that didn't pan out quite like he hoped.
Source: Us Weekly