From left: Chris Harrison, Lauren Zima and Dr. Phil McGraw.Photo:Eric Anthony/Merit Street
Eric Anthony/Merit Street
Nearly three years after hisabrupt exitfromBachelorNation,Chris Harrisonis returning to television with two new shows onDr. Phil McGraw’s new network, Merit Street Media.
Harrison will host a morning show alongside his wifeLauren Zimaas well as a new dating series, according to a press release from the network.
“Not only do I get to return to television, I get to do it with the woman I love,” Harrison, 52, toldEntertainment Tonight.
Daniel Boczarski/Getty
Zima, 36, noted that “our relationship is a big part of the morning show,” adding, “The morning show we’re pulling together is gonna be a place for us to play, to have fun. What matters the most to both of us has always been our audience, so we want to be able to connect with them. What’s more relatable than talking about our relationship and what’s going on in our own lives?”
She added that the show — which is set to debut later this year — will be a place for the pair to “be silly and to play.” She hopes “to give people a light, fun, entertaining moment in their mornings in a time when a lot of what’s out there is tough.”
As for the reality dating show — which Harrison will also co-creating — Dr. Phil promises it will be “so novel, so different.”
Chris Harrison attends the 49th Daytime Emmy Awards at Pasadena Convention Center on June 24, 2022 in Pasadena, California.Amy Sussman/Getty
Amy Sussman/Getty
“It has dating elements in it, but this is so different and so novel,” he toldEntertainment Tonight. “It is flipping the script in a way that I think people are gonna become addicted to it in a week. It is unbelievable.”
Dr. Phil recalled telling the former host ofThe Bachelor,The BacheloretteandBachelorette in Paradiseduring their first meeting, ““If you want to do a relationship show, you can, but think bigger and broader. This is a blank slate.”
“People got to know and love me for two decades hostingThe Bachelor, so, yes, we are going to be creating a reality dating show,” Harrison shared. “For years and years I said, ‘This is the most dramatic show ever.’ We want to create a show where those words actually ring true, so this dating show will be the most dramatic ever — that you can be sure of.”
In addition to the new shows, Harrison will also contribute toDr. Phil Primetime, where he will do “some very penetrating field work having to do with some of these romance scams, these catfish type things.”
Harrison and Zima are thrilled to join forces with Dr. Phil for the new venture. Harrison shared, “Call it divine intervention, karma, kismet, whatever it is, the fact that Dr. Phil created this network in my own backyard here in Dallas, it means the world to me to, not only be returning to television, but to be doing it here in a hometown crowd”
“It’s really exciting to be here,” Zima said. “The studio, the energy here is so invigorating. To have someone who is such a master of his craft like Phil running a network, it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime.”
“What they’re doing here is groundbreaking, innovative,” Harrison added. “It’s going to be fun, of course it’s going to be entertaining. We’re doing television here, but I truly believe what this place stands for. [I’m] proud to be a part of it, and, above all else, we’re doing it in our own backyard.”
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Rachel Lindsay and Chris Harrison.Noel Vasquez/Getty; ohn Fleenor via Getty
Harrison’s June 2021 departure from theBachelorfranchise came months after a controversy in whichRachel Lindsay— the franchise’s first Black Bachelorette — called him out for defending another former cast member’s past racist behavior.
Lindsay spoke out against Harrison after he seemingly defended contestantRachael Kirkconnellduring a14-minute, unedited interview with Lindsay onExtrafor past social media posts in which she dressed in Native American attire as a costume and attended an Antebellum plantation-themed ball. She laterapologized, admitting that her “ignorance was racist” and that “I was wrong.”
In a statement at the time, Harrison also apologized for"wrongly speaking in a manner that perpetuates racism.”
In confirming news of his departure four months later, Harrison alluded to future endeavors.
“I’ve had a truly incredible run as host ofThe Bachelorfranchise and now I’m excited to start a new chapter,” he wrote in a since-deleted Instagram post. “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.”
source: people.com
