Chris Harrison Says Bachelor Was ‘Very Toxic Situation,’ Franchise ‘Going Downhill’ Without Him

In fact, two years after his exit following controversial remarks that saw him trying to defend then front-runner Rachael Kirkconnell for racist sorority pictures from an antebellum-themed party, Harrison is comparing his time on the show with relationship buzzwords like “toxic.”

Talking on the latest Trading Secrets podcast with Bachelorette alum Jason Tartrick, Harrison described his 19-year tenure as both a “blessing and a curse.” And now that he’s out, he’s come to see that as a blessing, as well.

“I still look at this as a blessing in my life,” he explained of his exit. “It was hard at first. Obviously, it wasn’t immediate that I felt great about everything, because what I went through was tumultuous. I don’t wish it on anybody”

“It was horrifying on a lot of levels and something that I pray to God my worst enemy never goes through,” the former host continued. “But, with that said, I knew I had to remove myself from what became a very toxic situation.”

At the same time, Harrison also said that he believed that had they attempted to power through, he and the show could have probably “figured it out.” He’s ultimately glad it didn’t go down that way.

“I’m proud of that decision,” he said. “I’m proud that I handled it the way I did and I still look at [the show] as a blessing because it changed my life on so many levels.”

He credited the show with changing his life in many positive ways for himself and his kids, including “financially, of course,” but now he can say, “That’s a relationship I don’t need to be in anymore because it wasn’t healthy.”

Nevertheless, like any relationship, Harrison said he had to go through a period of processing and recovery in the immediate aftermath of his exit.

“There was mourning a loss there and I had to realize, like when I left my marriage, take your time and don’t just jump back into the next relationship,” he said. “That’s not the band-aid that’s gonna heal that wound.”

In fact, Harrison has yet to announce his next move in the realm of entertainment, should there even be one, save his ongoing Most Dramatic Podcast Ever. For now, he certainly seems happy focusing on family and love as a newlywed.

As for the franchise he left behind, Harrison thinks that it’s been “going downhill” since he left. After trying out a few hosts, former Bachelor Jesse Palmer emerged as the permanent host. The show also expanded this past fall with its first-ever Golden Bachelor and its upcoming Golden Wedding spin-off.

According to Harrison, though, all of that isn’t addressing the fact that there is a whole lot of new competition in the reality dating arena these days. “Once I left, people started taking their shots at the champ and they’ve succeeded,” he argued.

“Now there’s competition and now there’s shows [that] are in the zeitgeist; they’re being talked about, they’re getting press that we used to get,” he continued. “Again, it’s hard to survive when when you don’t have those eyeballs anymore, because people will talk about another show.”

While the main Bachelor and Bachelorette seasons have been seeing declining ratings over the past several year, the aforementioned senior version actually saw a boost, with the finale of The Golden Bachelor scoring the best ratings of any Bachelor Nation franchise in three years.

Next up is The Golden Wedding, a follow-up to Garry Turner’s journey to find love on January 4. Then comes the real litmus test for the franchise in the form of a new season of The Bachelor. After falling short as a contestant for Bachelorette Charity Lawson, Joey Graziedei takes the lead starting January 22 at 8pm ET on ABC.