Kaitlyn Bristowe Recalls Getting Ghosted by Chris Harrison After Bachelorette Hosting Gig
Kaitlyn Bristowe's relationship with Chris Harrison may have wilted.
The reality star shared that when she was offered to host season 17 of the The Bachelorette—Katie Thurston's season—alongside fellow former contestant Tayshia Adams, Chris completely ghosted her as headlines started swirling.
"They offered me the position to come in," Kaitlyn recalled during the Jan. 31 episode of the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast. "And what the Bachelor franchise said was to mentor Katie. I wouldn't be replacing Chris. Then, all these articles starting coming out saying, 'Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe Replacing Chris Harrison.'"
So, Kaitlyn reached out to her close pal but didn't hear back.
"I messaged him like 10 times without him responding," Kaitlyn continued. "And that is so not like him to me. And I know it's not about me. I just wanted him to know that I thought he was irreplaceable, and I didn't want to step on toes."
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After continuing to text him and let him know that she "didn't know what my role was," and seeing articles that said she was replacing the 51-year-old made her "feel icky," she still got no response.
"He didn't write back and then I was like, ‘OK, well now I'm panicking. Why didn't you write me back?'" she recalled. "And then he didn't write me back and I was like, 'I'm on my period. Am I being emotional? But, like, do you hate me?'"
And as the story goes... ghosted. Kaitlyn even offered for Chris to call her, which she said she got zero response to as well.
"I was like, ‘OK, he hates me. We were best fiends and now he hates me,'" the former Bachelorette star added. "And then I saw him at Wells [Adams] and Sarah [Hyland]'s wedding and I walked up to him and was like?, 'I miss you.'"
To her surprise, Chris allegedly said, "Well, I've always been here," to which Kaitlyn replied, "No you haven't! You haven't responded to me in forever!"
Kaitlyn tried not to take the lack of communication personally, noting that Chris was "going through so much in his life." However, the loss of their friendship as it once was still hurt the influencer.
"I bawled my eyes out about it," the 37-year-old confessed. "That friendship just felt like it went down the toilet."
Chris, who hosted the Bachelor franchise for almost 19 years, exited in 2021 following accusations of racism. The TV personality had defended Rachael Kirkconnell during Matt James' season after 2018 photos surfaced of her attending a plantation-themed party—before permanently departing the show.
The Most Dramatic Podcast Ever host addressed his exit in an Instagram statement, writing, "I've had a truly incredible run as host of The Bachelor franchise and now I'm excited to start a new chapter. I'm so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories we've made together. While my two-decade journey is wrapping up, the friendships I've made will last a lifetime."
Kaitlyn said that, at the time, she reached out to Chris and told him what he did "was wrong" but wanted to support him "while standing up for what I believe in."
E! News has reached out to a rep for Chris and has not yet heard back.
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