Chris Harrison has taken to social media to express how he misses The Bachelor fans, many of whom have made it known the show is not the same without him serving as the host.
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Former The Bachelorette stars Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams stepped in as co-hosts of Katie Thurston's The Bachelorette season after Chris' early 2021 racism controversy, which resulted in ABC and Chris publicly declaring in June that Chris' voluntary leave of absence from The Bachelor franchise -- which began in February -- has become a permanent one and he will not return as host for any future seasons.
Chris wrote in a June 8 statement on Instagram how he's "excited to start a new chapter" and "so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories," but many members of Bachelor Nation have made it clear Chris will not soon be forgotten.
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"You think @chrisbharrison misses us as much as we miss him? #TheBachelorette," one fan wrote on Twitter, according to Us Weekly.
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"I truly do!" Chris, 49, replied on Wednesday.
A Canadian Twitter user reportedly wrote in a separate tweet that The Bachelor shows "just aren't the same" without the longtime host.
And Chris responded, "Miss you all too. So many loyal fans up in Canada. Thank you!"
A third person reportedly gushed about how fans "love" and "miss" Chris, to which Chris replied, "Love all of you too. Always have, always will!"
A number of The Bachelor viewers and former contestants claim they are really upset over Chris' exit, with some people claiming they're done watching the show now that Chris is no longer the face of the franchise.
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Catherine Giudici, who won Sean Lowe's final rose on The Bachelor's seventeenth season in 2013, for example, revealed that Sean is not watching Katie's currently-airing season of The Bachelorette and may not ever tune in again.
"I'm watching it. My husband is kind of boycotting it because of the Chris Harrison stuff, but I'm watching it this season to support the girls," Catherine said, according to Us.
The Bachelor alum Michelle Money also took a strong stance and wrote on Chris' Instagram in June, "You are incredible Harrison. What a loss for the show. Many people won't be watching anymore. Myself included."
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And Ashley Iaconetti -- who has appeared on The Bachelor, Bachelor in Paradise and The Bachelor Winter Games -- admitted she's "disappointed" with the fact Chris has lost his job.
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"I wish he was still going to be around as host," Ashley told the magazine last month.
Ashley's husband and The Bachelorette alum Jared Haibon seems to feel the same way, as he previously said on his podcast that Chris brought a sense of "seriousness" to the show that's needed.
"It makes me wonder, 'Will they get a new host? What will the franchise look like moving forward? Will it be as good without Chris?' For me, it makes me really sad that Chris is gone," Jared told his Help! I Suck at Dating podcast co-host Dean Unglert.
"I said from the beginning I was always hoping he'd be back, that he'd get the opportunity to get his job back. I think he grossly mishandled the [Extra] interview [with Rachel]... but I don't think he should have lost his job. I wish he was given an opportunity to come back."
Multiple sources told E! News last month that Chris is "saddened" and "frustrated" about his The Bachelor departure, adding that the show was his "whole life" and he really wanted to come back.
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Deadline reported in early June that Chris, who hosted The Bachelor franchise since its 2002 premiere, reached a mid-range eight-figure settlement with ABC to exit The Bachelor franchise for good.
But Variety subsequently reported Chris only received $9 million as his supposed big payout.
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A new permanent host of the franchise has yet to be announced.
Bachelor in Paradise's upcoming seventh season will be hosted by a rotating group of celebrity guest hosts: actor and comedian David Spade, former NSYNC boyband member Lance Bass, rapper Lil Jon, and actor Tituss Burgess.
Bachelor in Paradise bartender Wells Adams also accepted a new role as "master of ceremonies" in which he'll be presiding over cocktail parties and Rose Ceremonies.
And according to Reality Steve spoiler blogger Steve Carbone, Kaitlyn and Tayshia will return to co-host The Bachelorette's eighteenth season starring Michelle Young in the fall.
Chris announced in February he'd be "stepping aside" from his hosting duties with The Bachelor franchise "for a period of time" to educate himself on racism in society in a "profound" and "productive" manner after he made offensive remarks in an early-February Extra interview with The Bachelorette's first Black leading lady, Rachel Lindsay.
In the Extra interview, Chris had defended The Bachelor Season 25 contestant Rachael Kirkconnell's racially-ignorant and racially-insensitive actions in the last several years and adopted a dismissive attitude towards photos of Rachael that resurfaced from an antebellum-plantation themed "Old South" fraternity party at Georgia College & State University in 2018.
Chris had called for "grace" and "compassion" for Rachael and also criticized the "woke police" and the "unbelievably alarming" response of anger and frustration to the young woman's actions.
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Chris subsequently issued three apologies for his offense, two on Instagram and one verbal apology during a March appearance on Good Morning America.
On GMA at the time, Chris said he hoped to come back to The Bachelor franchise, explaining, "This is a franchise that has been a part of my life for the better part of 20 years and I love it. I plan to be back and I want to be back."
But Katie refused to star on Season 17 of The Bachelorette in March if Chris was going to participate, and several sources told E! News in April that "many" The Bachelor and The Bachelorette alums from seasons past were "apprehensive" about signing up for Bachelor in Paradise 7 or even declined their invitations in the wake of Chris' racism controversy.
One insider told the website at the time, "A lot of people are removing themselves from the franchise."
The Bachelorette Season 16 bachelor, Ivan Hall, for example, told E!'s Daily Pop in February, "If they have future shows and if they were to ask me to be on Bachelor in Paradise or something like that -- and I'm sure a lot of other contestants feel this way as well -- I wouldn't feel comfortable if Chris is there, to be quite frank."
Ivan added, "[I'm] not saying he can't make a recovery, can't learn from all of this, but, you know... it would just be too soon, really."
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