The impact of the coronavirus pandemic will not be ignored when “The Bachelorette” resumes production with star Clare Crawley.
“When we shoot Clare’s season, it’s going to be indicative of what’s happening in the world,” series host Chris Harrison recently told People.
He continued, “Obviously there will be talks of the pandemic and, ‘What were you doing quarantining and who were you with?’ Those are going to be the conversations that we’re going to embrace. And then when you watch Clare’s season, 20 years from now, you’re going to think, ‘What? What were these people doing? Why did they not hug? Why were they scared to embrace?’ And that’s kind of the beauty of this show is it always embraces what’s happening in the real world.”
Shortly after Crawley, 39, was named the next “Bachelorette,” ABC halted production of the show in March amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Until we can do this show and do it safely, we won’t do it,” Harrison said. “Right now we are just on hold and it’s being postponed. But we’re all chomping at the bit to get back to it and to have Clare be our Bachelorette.”
While Crawley has encouraged other single gents to apply for the show in the interim, Harrison believes the Sacramento-based hairstylist is taking a look at her newly named suitors, which includes Matt James, the 28-year-old BFF of “Bachelorette” alum Tyler Cameron.
“Yeah. I’m sure the first thing I would’ve done, if I got my phone back, was check out the contestants,” Harrison shared.
As for how Crawley’s doing, Harrison said “she’s frustrated,” but staying safe.
“She’s doing what she’s supposed to do, but that means she’s sequestered at home and she lives by herself,” he explained. “Bad timing for Clare. It would have been great right after. She could have been quarantined with the man of her dreams, but now she just has to sit and think about being the Bachelorette.”
Crawley, the oldest “Bachelorette” in franchise history, was initially the runner-up on “Bachelor” Juan Pablo Galavis’s season in 2014. Following back-to-back appearances on “Bachelor in Paradise,” Crawley joined the cast of “The Bachelor Winter Games” in 2018. She got engaged to Canadian Benoit Beauséjour-Savard before calling it quits in April of that year.