I actually agree with Barbara that this won’t work and that Peter made the wrong choice, but there’s a way Barb could have expressed that gracefully without publicly humiliating her son and the woman he loves. Her behavior at ATFR made her look like a huge bitch. Which is unfortunate, because she does have some valid points.
Would you be interested in having Barbara, Peter’s brother Jack, or Madison’s dad on your podcast at some point? Do you think any of them would do it? I would love to hear more about why the Webers hate Madison so much and are so unwilling to give her a chance (there has to be more to the story), and I also want to know what Madi’s family thinks of Peter and the whole situation. Congrats on successfully spoiling another season!
Comment: I’d have them on, sure. Would they do it? I’d be shocked if they did. Look, I’d have almost anyone on from this season. But we know how this is going right now with the franchise. They are dictating to these people who they can talk to and when. And their list right now looks like this:
1. Rachel and Becca’s podcast
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78. Any other podcast anywhere.
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1,289,876. Maybe you can go on Reality Steve’s.
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Hi:
Isn’t there a monetary incentive to staying on the show, the more weeks on the show the bigger the payday? So my thought about Hannah Ann was that she stayed for the paycheck even though the ending was embarassing, we didn’t see any discussion between Peter and the girls. We never got an indication of why Peter and Hannah were together, vs. any other girl. It had to be for exposure and the cash. What do you know about the payments for the lead and for the girls?
Travel also seems to be a reason why girls sign up, but with the travel ban I am not sure what motivates people other than fame?
Do you have any idea how the people are compensated?
Comment: Contestants don’t make any money to appear on the “Bachelor/ette.” Their sole reason is for opportunities that can arise afterwards.
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Hello, Steve,
You’ve mentioned that Bach casts, for the most part, are assembled before the actual bach/bach’ette is announced. So I get that. But still, I’m a little shocked by the seeming lack of effort on the part of TPTB to get more age-appropriate men for Clare’s season.
Even for Rachel, IIRC, it seems they at least scrambled to get more men of color, once they determined she was going to the Bachelorette. (Although she also had very few age-appropriate men to choose from, and her final two were both older than she was.)
Not sure if it’s just that Clare was a very last-minute choice, and there was no time to look for older guys, or what. Frankly, I don’t care. If you’re only going to do it half-assed, don’t do it at all.
For me, the optics of it at this point, whether I’m right or wrong:
The choice of Clare is merely a sop to all the viewers who complained about the annoying and unlikable young women in recent seasons of Bachelor (especially Peter’s) and BIP. Casting her is the franchise’s way of saying to disgruntled viewers “See, we listened to you.”
But the fact that TPTB also seem perfectly fine giving Clare a ridiculously young group of suitors shows how disingenuous they are.
I mean, come on–Clare’s chances of finding love (or something like it), when most of the cast is significantly younger, seem super slim at best. But who cares, because all those young guys will provide new blood for the upcoming Bachelor and and BIP seasons. And that is more important to the franchise’s long-term strategy than Clare’s pokey “one-off” season.
It’s called “having your cake and eating it too”. The Bachelor Machine gives the illusion of being woke and having listened to viewers, because hey, older Bachelorette! But yeah, it’s just an illusion upon closer examination. After Clare’s season, it’ll be back to business as usual. (And I suppose if Hannah Ann is not already involved with someone by then, she’ll be the next Bachelorette after Clare.)
Thanks for letting me chime in with my opinion. As you always say, they don’t care if the lead finds romance or not. But seriously, could they try just a little harder to not make it so blatant?
Comment: I agree with all of that IF her season would’ve started filming this past Friday. Now that we know it won’t and there will be some re-casting done, lets see who her final list of guys is.
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Hi Steve!
Loved your podcast with Sharleen. I’m also curious as to why Peter’s family’s disdain for Madison is so massive, and I just have this gut feeling that it’s because they didn’t get their way. They wanted Hannah Ann from the start and they didn’t get it. If there was something “missing” that we as the audience didn’t see, I have a feeling Barb would have had NO problem putting it out there in the finale since she had no problem ripping on her son and a 23 year-old girl on national live television. It’s honestly really sad and I feel badly for Madison. There is no proof whatsoever that she did anything personally to hurt Peter or his family. I think his mom didn’t get her way and the result was her throwing a “temper tantrum” so to speak. Thank you for the spoilers all season long! I follow your updates daily!
Comment: It’s very possible that could be it. But they clearly didn’t like her for a reason and until they give specific details as to why, we’re all just left to guessing.
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Hi Steve,
Quick question!
So we know that Hannah Ann was on BHH’s podcast this past week and what we saw on the finale. It seemed that she didn’t hold back when cutting down Peter or calling him out on his BS (which I was proud of her for!), my question is though, per contract, are there things she can’t say about Peter? Or Production? I was actually surprised that she was that candid with the viewers/podcasts about her situation. I’m curious your thoughts on that. Yes, everyone basically doesn’t want to bite the hand that feeds them who goes on the show. For the most part. I didn’t listen to her interview but have been told enough snippets to know she seemed to talk a lot about her relationship post-show, or lack thereof. Which I think is fine in that case. But the main thing almost all contestants really don’t do is tell what really goes on behind the scenes and how much of a hand production plays in how the show gets made.
Another question/observation I have is I think there is something more to Peter not doing the media rounds! We saw even last season that Hannah Brown made the rounds, so did Jed! They weren’t together then, and there was no status to talk about. But they still made the rounds to talk about the season and how they felt at that point. So why can Peter make the rounds himself? There is still plenty to talk about besides his and Madison’s relationship status! Things about the season etc. Do you think there is more to him not making the rounds than just he doesn’t know his status? Maybe Peter will talk eventually. But he’s really such a producer puppet, I don’t think he’ll say anything that noteworthy.
Anyways, sorry to hear about your trip pretty much being canceled! I could hear the disappointment in your voice and I know it’s something you look forward to every year. I also hope Luca has figured out the ramp now. Would love an update soon about that. Have a good weekend! Thank you for all you do!
Comment: Thanks. Considering the circumstances, yeah, it was a no-brainer. But being a sports fan, just in general not having that escape during times like these is tough. And March Madness to me will always be the single greatest sporting event every year. Nothing comes close. I don’t know any of these kids playing, but to know they’ll be denied a chance of just playing in the NCAA Tournament is not easy. Those are stories and opportunities that can be told for years down the road. And to have it taken away by the virus, while being the right call, still doesn’t make it any easier. It sucks.
Do me a favor. Google “One Shining Moment” on YouTube and just watch any of those 3 minute videos they show at the end of the championship game in any given year and tell me you don’t feel for kids and schools that don’t get to participate in that this year.
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Hi, Steve!
I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the things that Rachel Lindsey has been saying regarding this season and The Bachelor in general? I know she’s had several interviews in the last several months and shared opinions including that Madison is just after followers and that the Bachelor franchise will end if they don’t change representation? Thanks!!
Comment: Well, if she looks at the ratings, she’ll clearly see this show isn’t going anywhere. She might not like the look of the show or the way it’s done, but plenty of others do, and the ratings bear that out. I think it’s a stretch to say that because this show doesn’t reflect what her life is like then the show is basically doomed. Honestly, MOST network television shows don’t reflect that view. It’s just fact. So I don’t agree with her on that one. This show is healthy and thriving despite all of it’s issues.
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Hi! I read that Barb thinks Madison owes Hannah Ann an apology. Sorry if Im confused but Madison left to give Peter a happy ending and find what hes looking for. She never came between them. She didnt involve herself until after peter and hannah ann broke up. Am I missing something?
Comment: I have no idea what Barb was saying with that.
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Hi Steve,
I’ve never written in before but I am an avid reader and listener. I love all of your columns and podcasts.
My question is that now we have seen how Peter’s “dumpster fire” of a season ends, do you think he over takes Juan Pablo or Jake Pavelka as the worst bachelor? We can’t really add Arie into the mix since he married Lauren and has a baby. I feel like he complete surpassed them all as a complete and utter failure.
What are your rankings for the worst bachelors?
Thank you for all the hard work
Comment: I’d say Juan Pablo is still the worst because he didn’t seem empathetic towards anything. I do think Peter realizes he was a giant screw up who couldn’t make a decision. Juan Pablo still probably just looks at the show like he didn’t do anything wrong.
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Hi RS.
First thanks for all the hard work that you do. My question is regarding Madison. Peter’s family claims that the show gave her a really good edit, and that she wasn’t what the show portrayed her to be. I just wondered if you ever heard anything really negative about Madison. I just don’t see it.
Comment: I hear negative stuff about practically every contestant every season. So I did, but whether it was legitimate or not, I don’t know.
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Random, but we need some levity these days…you thought Madison’s eyelashes were glued-on extensions, I am almost certain they are not. There is eyelash growth serum out there that can make your lashes grow and grow–Rodan and Fields makes a popular one. A telltale sign is when the lower lashes are as long as hers–that isn’t normal without growth serum, and women don’t get extensions on their lower lashes.
Also, I never remember mics picking up the sounds of heartbeats as much as they did in the last couple episodes…added to the drama I suppose. Yeah, and plenty of people have hugged on this show for a long time, and I’m guessing their hearts were beating just as fast. So I’m sure this season was done for effect.
So for all the drama from the Webers, what was the point when Madi and Peter break up so quickly? Was it all staged (them being together) so Madi could have a career in Hollywood? Did Bachelor producers put them up to it (feigning being together) to have a better finale? I smell something fishy…
Thanks for entertaining my random thoughts.
Comment: There’s definitely something that wasn’t right about that finale, but unfortunately, I don’t think we’re ever going to get a real solid, honest answer as to what it was.
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Hi Steve I’ll keep It short, I’m sure you have listened or got a summary of the two most recent Bachelor Happy Hour podcasts (Hannah Ann interview Part 1&2) Maybe I’m late to the party but WOW. Rachel defends Barb the entire episode and even into the second one and has nothing but shady shady things to say about Madison, do you think these are actually her opinions and she just likes to have the unpopular opinion or is abc in someway putting her up to It? Is this podcast sponsored/endorsed by abc?
Comment: Yes, it is the “official” podcast of the “Bachelor” and “Bachelorette.” I didn’t hear what Rachel said, but, you’d have to ask her why those are her opinions. I have no idea why she defended Barb and goes after Madison. Maybe she knows something others don’t. Or maybe she just doesn’t like Madi.
