No rose to give! Kaitlyn Bristowe open up about his friendship with him Chris Harrison – and why it stuck after he was offered the hosting gig for season 17 of The Bachelorette.
“He gave me a position to come in and what the Bachelor franchise says is a mentor Katie [Thurston],” Bristowe, 37, said during the Tuesday, January 31, episode of the “Not Skinny But Not Fat” podcast. “[They said] I would never replace Chris. And then all these articles started coming out, saying, ‘Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe replaced Chris Harrison.’ So I messaged Chris about 10 times without him responding. I just want him to know that I think he’s irreplaceable and I don’t want to walk away.
The Canadian native explained that he “doesn’t know” what his “role” will be, but swirling rumors about replacing Harrison, 51, have left him “disgusted” about the situation. After running into him Wells Adams and Sarah Hyland married in August 2022, in Dance With The Stars alum realizes that it will never be the same.
“Then I was like ‘OK, he hates me.’ And we were best friends and now he hates me,” she said. “Then I saw him at Wells and Sarah’s party and I walked up to him and I was like, ‘I miss you,’ and he was like, ‘Well, I’m always here.’ … So yeah, that’s hard.”
Harrison, who hosted the dating franchise for 19 years, quit in 2021 amid allegations of racism. Once a native of Texas defended the photo from Rachael Kirkconnell plantation-themed party, he was asked to resign from his post.
“I have opened really extraordinary as a host from Scholar franchise and now I’m excited to start a new chapter,” Harrison wrote via Instagram at the time. “I’m very grateful to Bachelor Nation for all the memories we’ve made together. When the two-decade journey is over, the friendships I have made will live on.
Bristowe, for his part, reached out to Harrison to offer his support – while still remaining loyal.
“When this all went down, I reached out to Rachael and I reached out to Chris and I said, ‘What you are doing is wrong and you know it. I know there’s more, but what do you want me to do to support you while also standing up for what I believe in,'” he explained. “Then he called and we talked and said he didn’t want anyone involved. [He said,] ‘It’s hard and I know you have to be happy, say what you have to say.’”
However, when Bristowe and Tayshia, 32, took over the hosting gig for seasons 17 and 18 The Bachelorette and being the frontrunners to take over the role permanently, the friendship with Harrison hit a snag. (The host of the “Off the Vine” podcast ended up not accepting the gig and said the network wanted a more “consistent” host, opting out Jesse Palmer to change.)
When Bristowe revealed that he was “balled” he “eyes out” after the duo’s assurance that he “just felt like it went down the toilet,” he added that he had tried not to take the snub personally.
“I don’t think I can get rid of my ego. I think he’s been through so much in his life. He’s lost 20 lbs. He’s depressed,” he explained, noting that Harrison was “probably very crushed” because he had to leave the series so soon after wanting to “come out on top.”