Bachelor in Paradise alumni keep speaking out, but is it relevant at all?

It’s now been a couple of days since some of the first Bachelor in Paradise stories came online, and in this span of time, there have been countless reports. There are anonymous sources saying what happened, host Chris Harrison has already spoken out, and there are numerous contestants from past seasons of this and other editions of the franchise all talking about their experiences.

If you look across the vast majority of the comments that are out there from the alumni, one common thread appears to be support of production. This is the group spoofed by UnREAL so often, and this entire story plays like a terrible real-life version of one of those episodes. Two people get ridiculous drunk, reportedly engage in intercourse, and then after the fact there are questions of consent and whether or not production could have stepped in.

So much of the talk is speculation, people talking about their own experiences almost as though there is some correlation between what happened on a season of The Bachelor or Bachelor in Paradise a year ago and what happened now. The problem is simple: There is no correlation. It may be the same show and there may be some of the same crew, but it’s a different situation with different people at the center of it. There’s not anything to learn from what happened in the past here because so many comments are being made through a specific lens.

Most past contestants, at least the ones who make it to Paradise, do feel a sense of gratitude towards the show for allowing them to achieve fame, get them to a different place in their career, or be a great resource for actually finding love. (If nothing else, they meet good friends through filming.) Every now and then you do get people disgruntled with their edit, but they tend to stay a little more quiet either out of a desire to run for the hills or a fear of facing a lawsuit. It just seems better to think of the show positively as well, since carrying around negativity can be tough.

In this situation, though, there’s no other way to look at what happened, regardless of whatever the facts are. It’s sad that a situation got to this point; while this show may be viewed as ridiculous and a little seedy to some, it’s a source of great summer fun for some other people. It’s never meant to be taken all that seriously, hence the corny theme song and random animals / people becoming characters in it.

Hopefully, the reality of the situation can be handled, and depending on the results of that, we’ll see what the future for the franchise holds. Until that point, comments from anyone and everyone are just narratives, and regardless of if they have the best intentions, they hold little bearing to the situation at hand. You can’t ascribe someone’s experiences to be present-day facts.

Once there is more news to report on Bachelor in Paradise and the show’s future, head over to the link here. (Photo: ABC.)