Spoilers ahead for the first half of the July 6 episode of The Bachelor:The Greatest Seasons Ever.
The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons Ever went on a blast way to the past for its latest episode, with the first half of the three-hour broadcast devoted to none other than the man who started it all: Alex Michel. Longtime Bachelor Nation fans will remember Alex as the very first star of The Bachelor back in 2002, and his search for love launched a franchise that is still going strong nearly 20 years and several spinoffs later. Unlike many who have appeared on various Bachelor shows, however, Alex has never returned or even reappeared for a chat with Chris Harrison. Now, Harrison has explained why.
Amanda Marsh, who was Alex's choice at the end of his season of The Bachelor, appeared on the episode of The Bachelor: The Greatest Season Ever that revisited the Alex season, even though she and Alex broke up without ever actually getting engaged. Chris Harrison asked Amanda if she has heard from Alex, and she revealed that she hasn't spoken to him in six years. Harrison shared that the Bachelor team has tried to "get ahold of Alex Michel for years" but were never able to. And that's not all.
Before the episode moved on from Alex's season, Chris Harrison went into some detail on Alex's absence:
For the record, we did reach out to Alex Michel many, many times, trying to get him on tonight's show, to recap what has been such a historic part of this franchise, and we have not been able to find him. So, Alex, if you're out there, you're always welcome back in our Bachelor family.
The Bachelor franchise hasn't avoided bringing Alex Michel back because of any transgressions or feelings of bad blood toward him, but just because the production team hasn't been able to find him to invite him! We can only speculate about why he has been so hard to find for Bachelor Nation to try and recruit for a reunion special of some kind. It's possible that he simply doesn't want to revisit the experience.
Alex's relationship with Amanda didn't work out, and Amanda herself said on The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons Ever that people are still associating her with The Bachelor. If Amanda is still getting attention for her time on The Bachelor, surely Alex would as well, and returning to Bachelor Nation even for just a video chat with Chris Harrison would raise interest in him yet again. Not everybody has to be a Bachelor Nation frequent flier a la Chris Bukowski or jump from show to show.
That said, it is interesting that Chris Harrison and Co. have never managed to get ahold of him, even after all this time. Harrison notably didn't say that Alex refused to come or was too busy to come. Not being able to find him adds an intriguing layer to what happened to Alex. Will he change his mind and agree to appear for a chat with Harrison at some point? The longtime Bachelor host did extend an open invitation for Alex to return to the "Bachelor family," after all!
Only time will tell if Alex Michel will ever appear in Bachelor Nation again or fans will have to rewatch The Bachelor Season 1 to see him. For now, you can look forward to new episodes of The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons Ever on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. For more viewing options now and in the not-too-distant future, check out our 2020 summer premiere schedule!
