This post contains spoilers for the season finale of The Bachelor
Disclaimer: While I don’t watch The Bachelor, I do watch UnReal, so I understand the concept and the (often) manufactured drama.
In the three hour finale of the show’s 22nd season, race car driver (and Bachelorette season eight alum) Arie Luyendyk, Jr., took the two remaining ladies vying for his affections off to Peru to meet his family. Arie made his choice, proposing to Becca Kufrin and leaving Lauren Burnham rose-less. After the proposal, Arie and Becca spent time together making pizza and lounging around on a hammock, but something wasn’t right. In an interview segment with show host Chris Harrison, Arie confessed, “I go to bed and I think about Lauren, I wake up and think about Lauren.” Ruh-ro.
Becca’s “happy couple weekend” turned into her getting her dreams crushed on national television. The show aired an “unedited” 30-minute segment filmed with two cameras – one forced on Arie, one on Becca. It was real-time “break-up p0rn,” if you will. When Arie told Becca he wanted to see if he could make it work with Lauren, she responded with “Are you [expletive] kidding me?” Audiences were then treated to all of the gory details of the breakup, including tears and guilt.
Fans of the show were up in arms, and of course took to social media to express their disapproval – and make some pretty funny jokes.
This is how you knock on a bathroom door when someone is throwing up or has diarrhea, not when you just broke off your engagement #thebachelor pic.twitter.com/gWMoujfWfL
— Michelle Collins (@michcoll) March 6, 2018
The moment you realize Bekah M is more mature than Arie #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/Y13Im4Ed87
— Gemmy Au (@shagemgem) March 6, 2018
I was hoping the unedited footage would be more like… #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/6CxADo4m4o
— FormulaReed (@FormulaReed) March 6, 2018
Now that it’s the “#YearOfTheWoman” can we finally cancel #TheBachelor ?
— Tammy Pescatelli (@TammyPescatelli) March 6, 2018
Hear, hear on that last one. Some former Bachelors and Bachelorettes also weighed in on the finale.
I get it. It’s a TV show. But why must you make the soon-to-be-broken-hearted vocalize just how in love they are full well knowing just how much those very words are going to slap them in the face @BachelorABC? 👎🏼👎🏼 #itsnotnatural #itsnotcool
— Trista Sutter (@tristasutter) March 6, 2018
Not only is this unfair to Becca, it makes Arie look bad. But hey, it’s never been done before! #TheBachelor
— Sean Lowe (@SeanLowe09) March 6, 2018
STOP.FILMING.HER.
— JoJo Fletcher (@JoelleFletcher) March 6, 2018
To be ambushed on a happy couple's weekend is both nauseating and violating. Cameras did not need to be there. She showed him so much grace.
— Jade Tolbert (@jadelizroper) March 6, 2018
For his part, Arie admitted in an interview in this week’s issue of PEOPLE that, “There’s been a lot of guilt and a lot of shame. I know it must have been extremely difficult for Becca. But I only had one foot in that relationship, and that wasn’t fair to her.” He went on to add, “I didn’t want to let anyone down. But I needed more time to make that decision. I made a huge mistake. I went with my head, and I shut down those feelings for Lauren. The relationship with Becca was great, but my heart wasn’t with her.”
27-year-old publicist Becca shared her side of the story with PEOPLE. She insisted that “[Arie]’s a good person, I don’t think he’s a monster and purposely did this to hurt me and make me feel this way.”
Of the somewhat excruciating finale, she said, “It was embarrassing the way he broke up with me with the full cameras and crew around.” You think? She went on to say that “there was a better and more tactful way” to handle the demise of the relationship, elaborating, “A breakup is hard enough, and to have it all filmed and have to re-watch it and know that people all across the country are watching you get your heart broken, it is embarrassing. It’s not fun. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. It was like a slap in the face.”
Lauren took Arie back and they got engaged on the live after special last night. Sienne, a contestant eliminated in week seven, revealed during the special that Arie made sure Lauren would get back with him before he dumped Becca. “One thing that probably wasn’t seen was the fact that he had confirmation from Lauren going into it that she was going to get back together with him before he broke up with Becca. And I think that makes a huge difference.” Of course it does. He’s scum.
Becca has already been named the next bachelorette.
💍#TheBachelorFinale pic.twitter.com/JvP0ZXgpND
— The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) March 6, 2018
Photos: WENN.com
She dodged a bullet.
as much of an a-hole as he was to break up with her as he did and hurt her so publicly…I TOTALLY AGREE.
better now than 5 years down the road.
I have to wonder…would he have broken it off with Becca if Lauren had told him to get bent?…
Good question!
Dodged a bullet is exactly what I came here to say. How did they choose derp face as a bachelor to begin with. Here’s another stable genius derping his way through life. This is all so crazy to me; these people go on a few dates and think they’re in love when they’re just caught up in the competition and t.v. fever. He and Lauren are perfect for each other actually. They will both have nothing much to say to each other for the rest of their t.v. career relationship and Becca will probably be the next bachelorette.
As the derp turns.
hahahahahaha briliant
LOLOL
He has the body mannerisms of a 12 year old girl. His weird side hugs!
Becca dodged a bullet in many ways, in my opinion. Lauren will get to watch him sell real estate in AZ until she gets a clue and flees.
Definitely, she should be thankful he revealed his true colors. Good luck to the other girl.
Being the next Bachelorette will be way better for her in the long run. Most of these people seem to do these shows to raise their profiles so in the end he did her a favour by getting her a much bigger gig.
Do any of them end up doing anything with these raised profiles? I know the real housewives make skinny cocktails…
I think a lot of them make money via instagram with ads. So they’ll get paid more for that the longer they’re on the show, I assume.
@hellosunshine. Ah, got it. Thank you.
I believe that if you play it right you can make a fair bit of money in endorsements and parlay the show into other C or D grade opportunities. In Australia the winning couples from the first and third seasons are minor celebrities, they shill various brands and products and their various businesses have benefited from the extra exposure (fitness businesses, etc.). The first Bachelorette (dumped by the second Bachelor after the finale in favour for the second runner-up) got a breakfast radio gig and a bunch of minor TV gigs as well as shilling for brands. The second Bachelorette was a minor news presenter and the show increased her profile and enabled her to go for bigger and higher-paying things. The third Bachelorette was actually already quite famous and the show renewed and increased the public’s love for her and got her a fresh bunch of high-paying gigs instantly and made her one of the most talked about people in the country. So yeah, it doesn’t work for all of them but it’s pretty effective for certain people.
Her name is Bethany Frankel and she is a boss B. She created the skinny girl company and then sold it for around 100 million. She also sent plane loads of food and supplies to those in Puerto Rico. Not a “housewives” thing. Hers. I dont even like this show but i respect a woman who can create a company and sell it for 100 mil. That’s pretty awesome.
Yeah, Bachelorette has a much better success rate too – most of the girls are still with the guys they picked. The Bachelors? Not so many (I don’t think Arie and Lauren will last either).
“(I don’t think Arie and Lauren will last either).”
nor do I. this guy sounds like a flake. he’ll dump Lauren for the next person he “can’t stop thinking about”. or he’ll just cheat.
The Bachelor had it produced one marriage over 20+ seasons, Sean and Catherine. Two if you count Jason and Molly (the first guy to break up with the winner and go back to the runner up but he did it a lot better).
The Bachelorette has produced three marriages in 13 seasons, Trista and Ryan, Ashley and JP and Desirée and Chris, but Rachel and Bryan, Kaitlyn and Shawn and JoJo and Jordan are still together. The Bachelorette has a much better track record.
What an awful man and Lauren is an idiot for standing by him.
ITA. That won’t even well either.
All I have to say is, good for ratings.
I have a hard time believing that all of this wasn’t planned in advance.
Yeah, I tend to agree. Look at how much attention it got. Well played, ABC.
Could be but is she really that good an actor? I assumed she was in on it until I saw the clips. That footage is unnerving.
it’s a tv show. not surprised she was the next bachelorette. it’s all about ratings.
Arie sounded like a full on sociopath the last two days. He sat there while she cried for 25 minutes (so probably longer IRL) with no emotion at all. What an unfeeling man baby.
Also Lauren is an idiot and said he handled the situation respectfully but he made sure she didn’t watch the episode. So she probably doesn’t know.
I give them 6-9 months before they break up. His last gf predicted it would be a mess and she was right. Something about “its all good until he has to pick just one”
Ugh. Yeah I feel like he sat there while Becca cried because he wanted her to reassure him. He’s selfish and gross.
Yea he wanted to be absolved. and lauren was all “he messaged me and i felt weird because he was engaged yet still talked to him”
Okay girl so if he could do that to becca he could do that to you
Yeah he really gives me the creeps.
Wish we would have gotten Peter as the Bachelor instead of him more than ever after this sh-tshow.
“Okay girl so if he could do that to becca he could do that to you”
Okay girl so if he could do that to becca he WILL do that to you”
FIFY… 😉
He looked like he wanted a hug, but my husband kept yelling, “Don’t touch him! Make him leave.” Then I wondered if the camera people had told him to keep her on camera as long as possible and he didn’t know what to do.
I only saw one episode this season. The one he brought a contestant/prospect to a date in a winery?! I knew something was off with him and didn’t watch again.
I just have one word: gaydar.
Never watched a full episode of this show ever but gaydar goes off on every single guy I have seen on there. And I mean all of them.
LMAO. i hope so. they all are horrible but usually hot so it would make a great hate f*ck for me…… i’m so going to hell.
Really? LOL! How can you tell?
Not sure how to feel about Lauren. She likely doesn’t know the whole story. I don’t know what A tie was thinking.
how is his last name pronounced? is it lying d!ck?
in all these years I have watched maybe a handful of episodes. just gross how women and men cheapen themselves by sucking on someone’s face one after the other on national tv. i’ll pass
Yeah, it is kinda rich how Becca complained about their breakup being shown on national TV…um, isn’t that exactly what they signed up for?
Not really. They signed up to be on the show, and Becca won the show. They got engaged, and the show ended. Filming was completely over. Becca thought they were going to live happily ever after.
Arie got Becca to agree to be filmed on what she thought was a “happy couples weekend” after the fact. But then he dumped her on camera. Arie humiliated his fiancé on national television for more airtime and better ratings. ABC didn’t have to film that. Most couples break up after the show, and the bachelor never calls up a camera crew to film the pre-planned breakup. Arie is the worst.
I get that but the cynic in me thinks they added this new twist to create more drama and attention. It seems like it worked. Even if Becca was heartbroken on camera she’s likely better off in the long run, opportunity and sympathy wise.
Yes, actually you are correct. They are under contract for a while after the show, and Becca even said she understood that. Still, the unedited version was just a sh*t show.
And she had great waterproof mascara on. I think the couple is under contract to stay engaged for at least three to four months to do appearances before they can quietly break it off. The producers may have changed the contract though.
@noodle: yes, that’s exactly how it’s pronounced!
I’ve always thought the whole Bachelor(ette) franchise was creepy in that way — set-up for someone to sample potential mates like a box of chocolates. Take a bite, put ’em back. Ew.
this show and every spin off is ridiculousness.. unless it’s carly and evan, they’re kinda otp.
as soon as I saw the headline I was going to comment that I don’t watch The Bachelor nur recommend UnReal to everyone! love that show
UNReal is FANTASTIC! HIGHLY recommend it to everyone! Be sure to start with season 1 though!
Arie. From day one looked like a creep.
Lauren and him are perfect for each other. Dull and soulless.
I watched part of an episode during the early years, not really my cup of tea. The whole premise seems ridiculous to me and beyond realistic (especially since it’s a “reality” show). This guy seems like a real douchebag, though, even if a lot of it is staged.
Lauren is a trump supporter so that said everything i needed right there. i dont even watch the show and i was so mad watching these last two eps
Blech. And Becca is very liberal. I saw a photo of her in a Joe Biden shirt, and there’s some other proof out there, too. How could Arie be interested in 2 women with such opposite views? Obviously he has no convictions of his own on anything! So empty.
Reality Steve (who posts spoilers of the Bachelor/Bachelorette) called this one…..Arie has been a playboy for years and someone like that doesn’t just miraculously change into a married man overnight. I give him and Lauren a matter of months…..unless there was a ton of footage that production didn’t show, it seemed like these two barely had two words to say to one another. I get that he is probably attracted to Lauren B., but attraction only goes so far. I thought the whole segment of him breaking up with Becca on camera was tasteless and classless on Arie’s part. While I’m sure production tried to manipulate him into it, he did have the final say, and that makes him look like a douchebag. One of the worst seasons of the Bachelor for sure. And the ratings apparently reflected that as well.
Trash television with trashy ppl. Love does not exist on these shows and the fact watch it religiously and believe it is hilarious.
My daughter and I hate watch The Bachelor. Arie is such a complete dud and Lauren can’t string two sentences together. They deserve each other.
The producers have to keep manufacturing drama, otherwise viewers will bail. The whole premise of these shows is just sketchy as all get out. Not a viewer, so if the posters here who watch don’t think the jilted one was in on this, that is one classless exercise in cruelty. And, a big dollop of misogyny on top.
I’ve always thought these shows are ridiculous. Entertaining, but so farcical and bottom-barrel scraping. But yes, hate watching. Dunno if that’s a good or bad indictment..
I had never watched these shows and vehemently chastised anyone I knew watching them lol. BUT, after watching Unreal which is really good, I wanted to see a few lol. It really is a pile of garbage…on so many levels. It’s nothing but a steady stream of cringe-worthy moments sewn together for an appalling display of the worst in us. Oh yeah, the show where all the shunned go to lobotomize themselves with drink and sex? That island? Omg. I must have picked the worst episode to watch because this one dude, this man, got so drunk he pissed or crapped his pants I can’t remember which, but he was disgusting. They must have a checklist of sick character traits contestants must possess to be a part of their orgy.
She’s now the Bachelorette. She knew something was off, she has stated. He admitted to thinking about the other one. So this wasn’t something out of the blue that she was hit with.
I’m like Whoopi Goldberg in her reaction to this, eye rolls, and that these people are on there to raise their profiles. It’s entertainment. She agreed to be told something on camera. It wasn’t a shock she has said but still hurt. She angled to become the next Bachelorette, and she’s got it.
So gross. Why any woman would want to vie for his attention is beyond me. This show is the exact opposite of everything I teach my daughter.
I read somewhere that Arie and Lauren had met prior to the show. If that’s true I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if this was planned all along. I thought at first that Becca was in on it too but once I saw the breakup footage I’m starting to think she wasn’t. It would explain Lauren’s weird breakdown at the rose ceremony a few weeks ago–she knew she is supposed to be the final pick and it was getting to be too much.
Regardless, Arie sucked and seemed like a giant douche. He was intimidated when any woman had a shred of intelligence (Sienne, Jacqueline), and on top of it all he wasn’t cute and all these women were way out of his league. Lauren can have him.
Becca can’t feel that violated her breakup was aired unedited if she has decided to be the next Bachelorette. If she were that pissed, she would have refused to go any further with ABC or Bachelor production. No one is forced to be the Bachelor/ette. A bit hard for me to feel sorry for any of these people.
It’s almost as if a show with one guy dating 25 women on TV while everyone is drunk all the time and just out for attention isn’t designed to lead to true love…
A friend of mine watches all this religiously, and not even as a guilty pleasure – she gets SOOOO invested. She believes it’s all 100% real. I don’t understand it.
None of it is real. Molly Mesnick hosts a radio show here and really early on talked about how the show really works. Literally none of it is real. The producers feed them lines they want heard and they craft storylines. However, she also talked about how this weird competitiveness takes over and you do genuinely want to win.
Someday it’ll hit her, she was number 2. I don’t see it lasting.
How he chose to dump Becca, which was on National TV in front of millions says so much about who he is as a person, no matter if the show was pushing him in that direction to sensationalize the whole thing to get higher ratings or not. I get that people make mistakes in relationships and have aha moments, but to be kind & sensitive he could have chosen to break off the engagement with Becca privately and then moved onto Lauren, gotten to know her and then “privately proposed”. Dumping one fiance and then immediately turning to the other woman within a couple of minutes and proposing again just cheapens everything about the relationship.
“Cheapens the relationship.” LOL In reality, Becca barely knew him when she accepted a marriage proposal. That relationship was already cheapened, when a woman accepts a marriage proposal from a man that she literally spent, when hours added up, probably 48 hours with in total.
I think most everyone agrees that it is a cheap, tawdry and shameful format for a show. Everyone who does watch probably feels a bit squeamish about their viewing. I do feel bad about contributing to the bottom line of shows like this, yet I will watch sometimes.
Given that, I think it’s still OK to judge and comment on degrees of awfulness about the characters. I only saw a couple of this season’s shows, so didn’t have much opinion about the guy until watching the last two nights. When he said last night that he felt he should have a “fairy tale ending”, I thought……what kind of a twerp-man says that!? Then when he made a spectacle of proposing on the stage, then kissing and slobbering all over her at the end…what a douche.
I keep saying – he kisses and hugs like he has only seen it done in videos they showed him back on Mars.
And he has weird childlike cheer camp side hug movements. What the hell. Creepy.
I admit I only saw the last two episodes because a very sick friend wanted to watch and her get mind off things, and I agreed to come there and watch with her and laugh. But I was horrified by this bizarre tool of a man. Weak, yet clearly manipulative, a player hiding something. That proposal to Lauren was absurd.
I think Bekah M is awesome and had him totally figured out. She should be a future Bachelorette to update this crappy series, in my opinion.
LOL.
Staged like wrestling matches.
FAKE.