Rachel Lindsay Reveals What ‘The Bachelor’ Producers Told Her After Matt James Announcement
There was a big change made to The Bachelor with the casting of the first Black lead. Rachel Lindsay previously called out the franchise for needing to change. Find out what producers said to her after they made the big announcement.
Rachel Lindsay called out ‘The Bachelor’ for terrible track record
Lindsay was the star of The Bachelorette back in 2017. There hasn’t been another Black lead in the franchise since then. She talked about this terrible record on AfterBuzz.
“In 40 seasons of [The Bachelor], you’ve had one Black lead,” she said. “We are on 45 presidents. And in 45 presidents there’s been one Black president. You are almost on par to say you’re more likely to become the president of the United States than you are a Black lead in this franchise. That’s insane. That’s ridiculous.”
She also threatened to leave the franchise if this continued. “It’s been asked of me, will I continue in this franchise if it continues in this way,” she said. “I can’t. I have to see some type of change. It’s ridiculous. It’s embarrassing. At this point, it’s embarrassing to be affiliated with it.”
Matt James is the new star of ‘The Bachelor’
The Bachelor won’t air until 2021 and we are still waiting for Clare Crawley’s season. But producers made the surprising decision to announce the star early.
Matt James was picked even though he was cast as a contestant for Crawley’s season that hasn’t aired. He is a favorite already with fans because he is close to Tyler Cameron from Hannah Brown’s season.
Producers responded to Lindsay’s public statements saying it’s hard to not feel bad. They also privately talked to her after the announcement.
Lindsay said producers told her they heard her
The former reality star was on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen. Lindsay revealed producers reached out to her after the announcement.
“They told me that they heard me and that they’re wanting to do more and make changes,” she said. “And they actually did release a statement after they announced him saying that they’ve been on the wrong side of this and they’re vowing to make changes internally and to have more contestants of color.”
She doesn’t know what to expect with James’ season. “The only reason people are into Matt James is because people are into Tyler,” she said. “We don’t know anything about Matt James other than the fact that he’s affiliated with Tyler. So, I can’t say I’m sold on him, because I know nothing about him.”
Only time will tell what James will be like as the star. Hopefully, the promises of change in the franchise will happen.
