The Bachelorette alum Dean Unglert apparently doesn't understand what all the fuss is about regarding Chris Harrison's exit from the franchise as he feels Chris is probably "laughing his way to the bank."
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In the wake of Chris announcing his exit from The Bachelor franchise after hosting the show for 19 years since 2002, members of Bachelor Nation have been mourning the loss, with some former cast members saying it's extremely sad news and the show may never recover.
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The Bachelor alum Michelle Money even went as far as to say she will never watch The Bachelor again since Chris won't be a part of it.
But Dean -- who has appeared on The Bachelorette's thirteenth season, multiple seasons of Bachelor in Paradise and The Bachelor Winter Games -- feels very differently since Chris agreed to a big mid-range, eight-figure settlement and payout from ABC.
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"I don't agree with this somber attitude of being like, 'Oh, a guy lost his job, The Bachelor franchise is never going to be the same,'" Dean confessed to co-host Jared Haibon on the Monday, June 14 episode of his Help! I Suck at Dating podcast.
"I don't have a dog in the race. I've never really been a fan of the show, not to say that I don't understand its presence in modern television, and obviously I've done the show so many times it kind of makes sense for me to have an opinion on it."
But Dean acknowledged, "I just don't understand why everyone is so sad."
"Chris Harrison hosted the show for 19 years [and] did a good enough job at it," Dean continued, "[but now] the guy's walking away with $50 million -- or however much, it's unreported. I think it's eight figures is what everyone is saying, so we're assuming $25 to $50 million."
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Although multiple sources have said Chris is "saddened" and "frustrated" about his The Bachelor departure because the show was his "whole life," Dean believes there is no way Chris is upset with the outcome of his intense negotiations with ABC.
"That guy is not bummed, okay?! Of course he loved his job and he loved working for The Bachelor, but he is laughing his way to the bank right now," Dean said.
"And I don't think there's any reason to feel bad for him. You put 19 hard years into a job and that's a long time... So I'm happy for Chris, I'm happy for The Bachelor franchise."
Chris was reportedly surprised by the decision for him to leave the franchise earlier this month because he "had been left in the dark over a lot of behind-the-scenes franchise decisions," according to Us Weekly.
For example, Chris reportedly had no idea whom ABC had been planning to bring in as the hosts of Bachelor in Paradise's upcoming seventh season until he saw headlines in the news about celebrity guest hosts taking over, including actor and comedian David Spade.
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"I think it's a good, necessary thing for a shakeup to happen... It was going to have to happen eventually. So now it's kind of like, in a weird way, a win-win," Dean explained.
"The Bachelor franchise kind of has a reason to hand it over to someone else, whomever that might be."
Dean added, "Chris gets to make out like a bandit and gets all this money to go on his way. He has more time to golf and spend time with his kids... and it's just kind of like everyone gets to move on."
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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.
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ABC said the network is "thankful" for Chris' "many contributions over the past 20 years" and they wish him well, 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."
"So I personally am happy for everyone -- Chris that he gets to take the money and do what he wants with it and I'm happy for the show because now they get to test a couple of things out and see what works and what doesn't work and eventually hand it over full-time to someone else if that's what they plan on doing," Dean shared on his podcast.
"And I'm happy for everyone else... I fail to see the negatives in this."
Los Angeles-based, high-profile entertainment litigator Bryan J. Freedman represented Chris in the last couple of months and allegedly threatened a heavy lawsuit and to expose The Bachelor franchise's well-kept secrets over the last 20 years unless Chris was satisfactorily compensated.
As The New York Post previously reported in March, Chris was "ready to tell the truth about how things really work" behind the scenes in The Bachelor franchise and had "plenty of evidence" to back up his revelations.
As executives were reportedly weighing their options for a new host recently, a person close to Chris told Variety that his attorney was "outraged" over how the matter was being handled.
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"Chris has had a spotless record for 20 years... He has always been the good company man, but, after the way he's been treated by producers and executives over the past couple of weeks, he's run out of cheeks to turn," a Chris friend told Page Six at the time.
Chris agreed to remain tight lipped and not air The Bachelor's dirty laundry once he was offered the big settlement, according to Deadline.
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.
"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."
Since the start of Chris' scandal, Bachelor Nation has seemed conflicted over whether his reinstatement would send the right message considering viewers have been pleading for more diversity and racial equality in the franchise for years.
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