The Bachelor alum Sean Lowe is "boycotting" the franchise over Chris Harrison's permanent departure as show host, according to his wife Catherine Giudici.
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Catherine, who won Sean's final rose on The Bachelor's seventeenth season in 2013, revealed that Sean is not watching Katie Thurston's currently-airing season of The Bachelorette and may not ever tune in again.
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"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, 35, recently told relationship expert Rori Sassoon, according to Us Weekly.
"It's been interesting. It's been an interesting season," added Catherine, who shares sons Samuel, 4, and Isaiah, 3, as well as daughter Mia, 18 months, with Sean.
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"It's just the beginning... I'm excited for Katie."
Chris and ABC confirmed in separate statements on June 8 that Chris will no longer host The Bachelor franchise following his racism controversy involving Bachelor Nation's Rachel Lindsay and Rachael Kirkconnell earlier this year.
ABC said the network is "thankful" for Chris' "many contributions over the past 20 years" and they wish him well after intense negotiations, and Chris wrote on Instagram how he's had an "incredible run" as host of The Bachelor since 2002 and made friendships that will "last a lifetime."
However, a person close to Variety said Chris' attorney, Los Angeles-based and high-profile entertainment litigator Bryan J. Freedman -- who threatened a heavy lawsuit and to expose The Bachelor's well-kept secrets over the last 20 years unless Chris was satisfactorily compensated -- was "outraged" over how the matter was being handled.
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And multiple sources told E! News earlier this month that Chris is "saddened" and "frustrated" about his The Bachelor exit, adding that the show was his "whole life" and he really wanted to come back.
Sean isn't the only member of Bachelor Nation who is upset about Chris leaving the franchise for good.
The Bachelor alum Michelle Money, for example, took a strong stance and wrote on Chris' Instagram, "You are incredible Harrison. What a loss for the show. Many people won't be watching anymore. Myself included."
"One thing I know is that you will rise above all of this! Can't wait to see what is next for you! I am proud to call you my friend," she added.
And Ashley Iaconetti -- who has appeared on The Bachelor, Bachelor in Paradise and The Bachelor Winter Games -- admitted she's "disappointed" with Chris' exit.
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"I wish he was still going to be around as host," Ashley told Us last week.
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."
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Jared said it seems like ABC wanted Chris gone for some reason and "moved on from him."
"I wish nothing but the best for Chris. He is a good man, he's a friend... It seemed he got a pretty good payout from this -- to make sure he didn't write a Tell-All, I don't know, is what the rumors are. But it sucks. It's a changing of the guard and I wish he would stay in The Bachelor franchise but he's not," Jared shared.
"[But] I still support the show... and I want the show to thrive. It makes me sad Chris will no longer be the host of the show, and it sucks."
Deadline initially reported that Chris received a huge mid-range, eight-figure hush-money exit settlement, but Variety subsequently reported the longtime The Bachelor host only walked away with a $9 million payout, plus about $1 million in his remaining contractual fees.
Chris reportedly would have made a similar paycheck had he continued to host The Bachelor franchise for just two more years, given his salary was around $5 million per year.
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 Rachel, who starred as The Bachelorette's first Black leading lady on Season 13.
In the Extra interview, Chris had defended Matt James' girlfriend Rachael -- the winner of The Bachelor's 25th season -- as she faced backlash for her racially-ignorant and racially-insensitive actions in the last several years.
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Chris wished for "grace" and "compassion" for Rachael and had 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.
He was also blasted for using terms such as "the woke police" to drive his point home.
Chris previously issued three public apologies for his offense, two of which were written statements posted on Instagram and one that later took the form of a verbal apology during a March appearance on Good Morning America.
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"I am an imperfect man, I made a mistake and I own that. I believe that mistake doesn't reflect who I am or what I stand for," Chris said during the March 4 episode of GMA.
Chris admitted he was "saddened and shocked" at how "insensitive" he behaved in that interview with Rachel. He expressed his deepest apologies and said he didn't speak from the heart and stands against "all forms of racism."
"I am committed to progress, not just for myself, also for the franchise. And 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."
After the interview wrapped, GMA co-host Michael Strahan said he believed Chris' apology was "nothing more than a surface response" and it was clear to him that Chris just wanted to stay on the show.
The Bachelor executives allegedly considered the interview to be disastrous and were confused by Chris' "rigid on-air performance" that didn't exactly come across as sincere, according to Variety.
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Sources therefore told Variety it was determined at that point Chris needed to take a longer leave of absence, although ABC was still planning on bringing him back at the time.
However, the new The Bachelorette star Katie Thurston reportedly refused to star on the show in March if ABC welcomed Chris back as the host.
Insiders claim Katie spoke to Chris directly and explained that she would not feel comfortable starring as the Bachelorette with him on the set leading the show. Variety reported that this conversation upset and hurt Chris.
Former The Bachelorette stars Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe were therefore chosen to co-host Katie's season, and ABC put out a statement in mid-March saying they supported the work Chris said he was committed to doing.
But then in early June, reports began to swirl a rotation of celebrities would serve as guest hosts for Bachelor in Paradise's upcoming seventh season this summer, including actor and comedian David Spade.
A person familiar with Chris' negotiations told Variety that at this point, the network had decided there was "absolutely no chance" Chris would be returning for Bachelor in Paradise and the prospect of him reprising his hosting role later on -- for Michelle Young's Fall 2021 The Bachelorette season, for example -- was "extraordinarily remote."
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News of David and other celebrities hosting Bachelor in Paradise reportedly set Chris off and led to the intense negotiations regarding his permanent exit and settlement.
Although Chris would have liked to keep his job, Variety claims the damage had already been done and his relationship with ABC had been tarnished.
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