Chris Harrisonis defendingThe Bachelor‘s decision to chooseColton Underwoodas its next leading man. “If we had picked Jason, if we had picked Blake, it doesn’t matter — you’re going to catch some heat. And Colton caught heat and so did we,” Harrison, 47, toldPEOPLE Now. Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic In early September, the football star, who competed for love onBecca Kufrin‘s season ofThe Bachelorettebefore heading toBachelor in Paradisethis summer, was announced as the newest face of the franchise....

While he certainly is lovable,Joe Amabilemight not have the moves win the mirrorball trophy onDancing with the Stars.The BachelorhostChris Harrisongave his season 27 predictions onPEOPLE Now, saying he expects Amabile to be hilariously “terrible.”“He’ll go far,” Harrison says. “It’s a little bit like the Emmys, it’s a popularity contest. He is lovable, likable, he’s going to give it his all.”And despite not having much talent on the dance floor, Amabile will still be fun to watch, Harrison says....

Chris Harrisonis explainingthoseBachelorpromosthat showHannah Brownreuniting with her exPeter Weberon his season ofThe Bachelor.In a recent interview withE! News, theBachelorhost said Brown’s appearance was a “mutual” decision meant to give them both closure.“I think it’s something that needed to be dealt with, the relationship. I think it’s a relationship that didn’t have a clean, clear break,” said Harrison, 48. “I think there were and maybe are feelings there, and some underlying feelings that maybe they thought they had both dealt with, but I knew once they saw each other, they probably hadn’t really dealt with them all, so I think it’s a hurdle that we needed to clear before we moved forward....

Chris Harrison.Photo: John Fleenor/Getty Chris Harrisonisspeaking outfor the first time about the controversy that led to hisabrupt exitfrom Bachelor Nation. On the first two episodes of his new podcastThe Most Dramatic Podcast Ever with Chris Harrison, the 51-year-old television personality addressed the fallout from his “infamous” February 2021 interview with formerBacheloretteRachel Lindsay. “I was heartbroken. I was gutted. I was embarrassed. I was mad at myself,” he admitted. “I was disappointed in myself....

The Bachelorfranchise has changed hostChris Harrisonfor the better.Harrison, 48, opened up last week at the Television Critics Association winter press tour about how much his life has changed since he began hosting the popular ABC dating franchise in 2002.“Eighteen years ago, it was probably 90/10 or 80/20 [percent] where I was host. Because you have to earn their stripes,” Harrison told reporters. “You have to earn the trust.”“But as I’ve gotten older and I’ve lived in my own life experiences, and obviously they’ve seen me host, and word has gotten around throughout the [Bachelor] family that I am someone to be trusted and someone to be leaned on,” he added....

Photo: Steven Ferdman/Getty Images; Taylor Hill/Getty Images Chris Harrisonis speaking out aboutKaitlyn Bristowe‘ssplitfrom fiancé Shawn Booth. Days after PEOPLE exclusively confirmed Bristowe and Booth’s breakup, the longtimeBachelorandBachelorettehost, 47, revealed that the pair had been “struggling” to keep their relationship going after theygot engagedon the season 19 finale ofThe Bachelorettein 2015. “I’m in very close contact with Kaitlyn, she is a very good friend of mine. … I knew that they were struggling privately, I knew they were really trying to work it out,” Harrison toldExtra‘s Mario Lopez....

From L to R: Tayshia Adams, Chris Harrison, Kaitlyn Bristowe.Photo: getty images (3) Chris Harrisonrevealed why he believed thatKaitlyn BristoweandTayshia Adamswere “doomed to fail” as co-hosts ofThe Bachelorette. On the latest episode of his new podcastThe Most Dramatic Podcast Ever with Chris Harrison, the 51-year-old television personality and former Bachelor Nation host said “the only thing” that upset him when he found that Bristowe, 37, and Adams, 32, were taking over hosting duties was that two hosts were named....

Chris Harrisonisn’t fueling any casting rumors in regards to the nextBachelorettelead.OnMonday night’s episodeofThe Bachelor,Matt Jameseliminated contestantKatie Thurston. Thurston, who made a splash introducing herself with a vibrator on night one, also emerged as a fierce advocate against bullying in the house, and many fans have begun calling for the 29-year-old fan favorite to be named the next Bachelorette.On Tuesday, Harrison spoke withExtrahost and former BacheloretteRachel Lindsay, telling her that as far as he knows, Thurston hasn’t been picked....

BachelorNation, remain calm!AfterPeter Webergot stitches following a “golf cart mishap” in Costa Rica on Monday, the ABC reality series’ hostChris Harrisonconfirmed that the Bachelor is “100% OK.”“He got a cut on his head,” Harrison toldEntertainment Tonightof what he called a “freak accident.”“He did get stitches but he’s 100% OK and production is already back underway,” he added. “He’s still the dashing, handsome pilot we’ve all dreamed of.”A source told PEOPLE earlier in the day on Tuesday that production on Weber’s upcoming season ofThe Bachelorwas continuing on schedule after the new leading man endured a “golf cart mishap” while shooting on location....

Brace yourselves,Bachelorfans, because Peter Weber‘s season is going to have anything but a predictable ending.Longtime hostChris Harrisontold reporters at ABC’s TCA presentation on Wednesday that Pilot Pete’s finale will be a surprising one, but in “a very different way” than the dramatic conclusions ofColton UnderwoodandHannah Brown‘s seasons last year.“This is very dramatic, but in a very different way than, say, Colton’s season, whereas there was this crazy feat of athleticism where he jumped the fence, and Hannah’s was, obviously the twist at the end of hers with Jed and what happened,” Harrison, 48, said....

Bachelorettefans will soon get some much-needed clarity onHannah Brown’scontroversial frontrunnerJed Wyatt.According to the ABC dating show’s longtime hostChris Harrison, the upcoming finale andAfter the Final Roselive special will give the 25-year-old Nashville-based musician his first chance to speak out since hisex-girlfriend told PEOPLEin June that they were still in a relationship when he left to begin filming the show.“There’s a lot of rumors,” Harrison, 47, tells PEOPLE. “There’s a lot of things being said....

Chris Harrisonmay need aBachelor in Paradisecast cheat sheet moving forward. On Tuesday, Harrison, 48, shared a photo of the currentBiPcast on Instagram, and jokingly threw some shade at two of the ABC series’ cast members. “True story I broke 3 ribs sliding into this photo between the biceps of Clay and that guy to my left (not really sure who that is???),” Harrison began his post, poking fun at Chicago native Kevin Fortenberry....

Photo:John Fleenor/Getty,Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Images John Fleenor/Getty,Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Images Chris Harrisonis revealing that he may have been one of the first to know aboutClare Crawley’sexciting news. After giving their congratulations, Harrison said, “This is kind of interesting. Back in May, late May, when we were all in Santa Barbara together…” “Yes, we did the concert and recorded some podcasts,” Zima chimed in. “And we met Clare and we met Ryan....