It’s not uncommon for villains on The Bachelor franchise to return for the popular spin-off Bachelor in Paradise. While drama is expected and encouraged on the series, Bachelor Nation has never experienced a scandal quite as controversial as its latest one.
In mid-June ABC’s Bachelor in Paradise suspended production following claims of sexual misconduct between DeMario Jackson and Corinne Olympios. After a thorough investigation by Warner Bros. TV, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that the series would continue filming Season 4. While both Jackson and Olympios were invited to participate in the remainder of the season, Olympios made it clear that she would not return. Jackson, on the other hand, said he was still considering returning to the show.
Jackson spoke with TMZ on Sunday to confirm that he will be returning to paradise, or at least the Bachelor in Paradise reunion show. “I’m doing the Men Tell All for The Bachelorette and I’ll be doing Paradise as well,” he revealed. “I owe it to my castmates. They’ve been very supportive of me throughout this whole entire thing and I want to thank them all personally, face-to-face— give them all hugs and bro out or sis out, or whatever. They’ve been so helpful.”
While the scandal painted Jackson, as well as the franchise, in a negative light, he is grateful for the support he has received from his former fellow contestants. “I don’t think you guys understand the support that I’ve had from castmates and producers,” he said. “I just want to give them all a big old hug and tell them how much I love them.”
Olympios hired a team to further investigate the scandal, though they concluded that no misconduct took place shortly after Warner Bros. TV’s investigation came to an end. Jackson is ready to put all the drama with Olympios behind him and has no plans to confront her in a public setting. “That’s not who I am as a person. I’m not one of those petty people,” he said. “I’ll wait for her to [bring it up to me]. If she wants to come up to me, we can talk on camera. We can talk offline. Whether it’s [at the reunion show] or in the future, 10 years from now.” He also added that he would “love to talk to her” and that he has “nothing but love for her and her family.”
Bachelor in Paradise was originally scheduled to air on August 8 on ABC, but the delay in production has presumably pushed the premiere date back to a currently unknown date.