Mike Fleiss Responds to Reports He Left ‘Bachelor’ Amid Racial Discrimination Investigation
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Mike Fleiss, the creator/executive producer of The Bachelor, announced he was departing the ABC reality franchise after over 20 years earlier this week, but it appears there is more to the story.
According to Deadline, Fleiss’ exit from the series came after a workplace misconduct investigation, which looked into claims of alleged racist behavior as well as verbal and emotional abuse against the long-time producer. It is said that Fleiss was not formally fired, but after a conversation with Warner Bros. TV about the investigation results, he chose to leave.
Variety adds that the investigation was conducted by an outside party over the past few months, and those spoken to included other current and past staffers, many of whom were prominent producers within the franchise.
The complaints against Fleiss included “bullying” behavior, as well as a refusal to increase diversity on the show. A source familiar with the investigation who spoke to Variety stated, “People said he would retaliate against people for having minorities and Black people on the show. He favored certain people over other people. He would say, ‘Minorities don’t get ratings.’”
Responding to Variety‘s report in an email statement, Fleiss wrote, “I had no idea back in 2002 that we were building a pop culture juggernaut. It was a crazy idea then and sure as hell continues to roll — just look at every network and streamer that has ripped us off! Since its premiere 21 years ago, times have certainly changed and I’d have to say we didn’t keep up with the pace of those changes.”
He added that he is proud of the work the team has done over the past five years to make the show “substantially more diverse” but noted, “I could have done more.”
“Judging by the number of staff weddings we’ve hosted at our home and the number of teary messages that blew up my phone when I announced I had turned in my final rose, I’m pretty sure I had more good days than bad, lifted more spirits than hurt feelings and leave the franchise in good hands, with more friends than foe,” he concluded.
The Bachelor has faced criticism for its lack of racial diversity over the years, with the flagship show having only had one Black male lead (Matt James in 2021) over 20 seasons on the air.
In 2021, the show was marred in controversy after racist photos surfaced of contestant Rachael Kirkconnell. Former host Chris Harrison later defended Kirkconnell in an interview, which led to a further backlash that ultimately saw Harrison stepping down from the show.
“By excusing historical racism, I defended it,” Harrison wrote in a statement at the time. “I invoked the term ‘woke police,’ which is unacceptable. I am ashamed over how uninformed I was. I was so wrong. My words were harmful. I am listening, and I truly apologize for my ignorance and any pain it caused you.”
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