Longtime Bachelor Nation host Chris Harrison got himself into hot water during the latest season of The Bachelor due to some racially insensitive comments, resulting in him being ousted from hosting the "After the Final Rose" special and subsequently the upcoming season of The Bachelorette. Now, Harrison is evidently out for the upcoming Season 7 of Bachelor in Paradise, but his replacement isn't happening how we expected.
When Chris Harrison had to miss some of the most recent season of The Bachelorette (for reasons unrelated to the scandal during Matt James' season of The Bachelor), former Bachelorette JoJo Fletcher stepped up. Then, when news broke that Harrison wouldn't be hosting Season 17 of The Bachelorette (which premieres next week), fans learned that former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe would host. So, it seemed only natural that if Harrison was going to be out for another season or more in Bachelor Nation, then he would be replaced by another Bachelor Nation alum.
Instead, Variety reports that Bachelor in Paradise will bring in celebrity comedians as guest hosts, with David Spade as the first and currently only confirmed celebrity who will step in during Season 7. Even though Bachelor Nation bringing in newcomers to host isn't unprecedented thanks to who landed the job of hosting the "After the Final Rose" special, David Spade seems like a pretty surprising selection. ABC has not commented one way or the other on reports of Spade stepping up as a guest host, and Spade himself hasn't posted about it on social media at the time of writing.
That said, David Spade is also a noted fan of Bachelor Nation, posting commentary about the shows on his Instagram, and even going on a rant about Peter Weber's season of The Bachelor on Jimmy Kimmel Live that I think pretty much anybody who watched that season could relate to, complete with mentions of Weber's mom Barb, her love for Hannah Ann Sluss, Hannah Brown's knack for turning up, and of course Madison Prewett's eyelashes. He's a kindred spirit to Bachelor Nation fans if ever there was one! Take a look:
Me too, David Spade. Me too. It should be interesting to see if Bachelor in Paradise finds more celebrity Bachelor Nation fans to step in as guest host. While I have to say that a rotating cast of guest hosts who have never appeared in the franchise before sounds like it could get messy pretty quickly, Bachelor in Paradise is always messy anyway. That's a big part of the fun, right? If there was any Bachelor Nation show that could afford to experiment and get away with it, Bachelor in Paradise is it.
As for Chris Harrison's future in the Bachelor franchise, there are no details available just yet about whether he could return following Bachelor in Paradise Season 7. It should be interesting to see the fan reaction to the first season of The Bachelorette hosted by somebody other than Harrison, followed by Bachelor in Paradise with David Spade and more comedians.
Production on the next season of Bachelor in Paradise begins next week, and Season 7 is slated to premiere on August 16. The Bachelorette's next season premieres on Monday, June 7 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC in the summer TV premiere schedule.
