‘The Bachelorette’: Relationship Therapist Says Tino’s Parents Were ‘Hostile’ Toward Rachel
Tino is Rachel’s only remaining contestant on The Bachelorette, but that doesn’t mean a happy ending is a sure thing. Teasers for the season finale show drama emerging between Rachel and Tino. Additionally, Rachel received a less than warm welcome while meeting Tino’s parents during hometowns. A relationship therapist recently shared her thoughts on this interaction.
[Spoiler alert: The Bachelorette Season 19 spoilers regarding Tino Franco ahead.]
Tino’s parents grilled Rachel during ‘The Bachelorette’ hometowns
During The Bachelorette 2022 hometowns, Rachel received a less than warm welcome from Tino’s parents. In particular, Tino’s dad Joe was extremely skeptical. “I just have a hard time believing that what you can do on a whirlwind fairytale trip is really gonna prepare you for marriage,” Joe told Tino. “And I just want to make sure your head is in the right place.”
Rachel got the sense that Tino’s mom Sandi was also skeptical while speaking with her. “She grilled my ass,” Rachel told the cameras. Her conversation with Joe didn’t go any better. “I don’t know how I made it out of that house alive,” she added to the cameras at the end of the night. “I almost cried.”
A relationship therapist discussed Tino’s parent’s behavior toward Rachel
Relationship therapist Dr. Darcy Sterling discussed Tino’s parent’s reaction to his relationship with Rachel from The Bachelorette 2022 while speaking with US Weekly. “It almost felt like they were sabotaging it,” Dr. Darcy said.
“It almost felt like they were trying to make it — whether consciously or otherwise — that they really didn’t want this to work out. There’s a difference between wanting to make sure your kids’ eyes are open — as open as can be under these circumstances — and creating a hostile environment where a person doesn’t feel welcome.”
Dr. Darcy added that she felt Rachel handled herself well during the awkward hometown date. “At the end, when she was like, ‘Thank you for welcoming me.’ I was like, ‘That was so generous and undeserved.’ I almost wondered if it was a little passive-aggressive to underscore just how unwelcoming they were — they were so unwelcoming that [it] felt so hostile. I wanted to hug her.”
Dr. Darcy thinks Tino’s dad ‘went too far’
Dr. Darcy continued to talk to US Weekly about Tino’s hometown date with Rachel. “One of the things that I’ve taught parents over the years is we can’t pick our kids’ partners or friends. So don’t alienate them because you need them. And I worried that the father went too far,” she told the outlet.
“What’s he going to do if Rachel picks his son, right? And the son steps up and does propose, and this woman, even if they don’t get married, if they are together for any length of time, he’s going to have to deal with her?” she wondered. “And then she’s going to have a lot more power than she did. He wasn’t generous with her.”
The Bachelorette Season 19 finale airs Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
