Reality TV fans will be disappointed to hear that The Bachelor star Courtney Robertson once turned down an opportunity to go on Dancing With the Stars — and $150,000 plus bonuses. The model, author, and Arizona native won season 16 of The Bachelor and got engaged to Ben Flajnik in 2012, but the couple split after just a few months, resulting in one of the messiest Bachelor Nation breakups ever. Three years after the show premiered, Courtney published a tell-all book about her experience called I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends: Confessions of a Reality Show Villain. The book upset Ben, and the pair reportedly didn't speak for years afterward. But Courtney, now 38, has said that the two have since repaired their relationship.
During Courtney's time on The Bachelor, she quickly became known as a villain. Courtney would frequently insult the other contestants, and broke a few rules, such as when she went skinny dipping. Many fans were dismayed when Ben picked her at the end of the season, and she was booed by the live audience at the show's reunion. But things have changed for Courtney since her bad girl days. In December 2019, Courtney got engaged to Arizona lawyer Humberto Preciado. The couple had their son Joaquin in June 2020, and were married in October 2020. In June 2021, the couple announced they are expecting a daughter.
This week, US Weekly reported that on the "She's All Bach" podcast, Courtney revealed that she was contacted by many reality TV shows after her stint on The Bachelor. “Dancing With the Stars, I had a meeting with them right after my season [of The Bachelor]. That was one I would have loved to have done.” Courtney told the podcast hosts that she had been offered $150,000 to go on the show, plus tens of thousands of dollars for each week she remained on the show. But apparently, Ben, who she was engaged to at the time, didn't like the idea. “He was like, ‘If you do it, you won’t have a fiancé,'” she said. Still, Courtney clarified, Ben wasn't the reason she turned down the show. She said the cast was almost entirely set at that point.
The Bachelor fans can only imagine what could have been if Courtney had gone on Dancing With The Stars. Perhaps fans would have come to like her more? Perhaps Courtney could have shown a different side of herself? One would imagine she would have been a draw for the show, if only for fans who wanted to watch her fail. It seems doubtful that it would've changed the course of her and Ben's relationship though.
But even more intriguing is what other shows might have contacted Courtney after The Bachelor. Perhaps another dating show? Maybe a game show? And why didn't she return to reality TV after the split with Ben? Would she be open to returning now? There may still be fans that would enjoy seeing her back on the small screen.
Source: US Weekly