Chris Harrison revealed that he was rooting for Wells Adams to take over his job as The Bachelor host after stepping down from the position.
Chris was the original host of The Bachelor back in 2002 and continued to lead every series in the franchise until his departure in 2021.
Chris’s decision to exit his longtime gig came shortly after he received an ample amount of backlash for his standpoint on contestant Rachael Kirkconnell’s controversial photos, which he has kept quiet about since his public apology nearly two years ago.
On Monday, the OG host released the first two episodes of his new podcast, The Most Dramatic Podcast Ever… With Chris Harrison.
While Chris went in-depth for the first time about his experience leaving the franchise, he also told listeners that there was one person he had in mind to take over his job — Wells Adams.
Wells Adams has surely become a Bachelor Nation favorite over the years, with his first appearance on JoJo’s season of The Bachelorette and now as the official Bachelor in Paradise bartender/therapist/matchmaker.
With the two having a strong friendship over the years, Chris admitted that he believed Wells would be the best person for the job.
Chris Harrison opens up about Wells Adam hosting The Bachelor
Chris first said that he was aware of the fact that other Bachelor franchise members were inquiring about hosting the show once he stepped down.
“I knew about certain cast members who were calling in. And the funny thing is, the people who were calling in I knew had no chance to get the job,” he revealed.
He admitted that Wells would have been his pick, although he knew he was in a very difficult position.
“Wells has always been a very good man and a good friend of mine,” Chris said. “Wells was in a very difficult situation because obviously he was still kind of connected to the show and he was doing stuff on Paradise, but he was one of the first to reach out to me and just say, ‘Look, I’m staying out of this. I love you and respect you.'”
He continued, “I thought, to be completely candid, that Wells was going to get the job… I even told him, I said, ‘Hey, man, I won’t speak out publicly because I don’t think that will help you at all. In fact, it would do a lot more harm than good. But I really hope you get the job. I think you’d be great at it.'”
Wells himself also admitted that he was bummed to have not been chosen as the host of the series, although he understood that his never being the Bachelor may have played a role in the decision.
Former Bachelor Nick Viall was also interested in hosting The Bachelor
As a well-known face of the Bachelor franchise and a successful podcast host, Nick Viall was also interested in taking over as the host of The Bachelor when Chris announced his departure.
On their relationship, Chris said, “Nick wasn’t really strongly against me or said anything. But, you know, I think Nick was one of those among many who probably saw the blood in the water and saw the opportunity of a job that would be really phenomenal. And I had no doubt he wanted that job.”
While Nick may have remained neutral on Chris’s devastating situation, Chris said that he saw him at Wells and Sarah Hyland’s wedding last year, and they “gave each other big hugs,” showing there was no animosity.
Chris made no remark on his podcast about The Bachelor’s current host, Jesse Palmer, although he did note that the ratings have gone down in the past two years.
The Bachelor premieres on Monday, January 23 at 8/7c on ABC.