'Bachelor in Paradise' Host Jesse Palmer Warned Contestants to 'Not Make It Weird' With Age Gap Romances
Bachelor in Paradise season 10 is merging Golden contestants with younger Bachelor Nation stars for the first time, and host Jesse Palmer says he told contestants “not to make it weird” with age gap relationships.
This season, Paradise will welcome not only former stars of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette but also some contestants who previously appeared in debut seasons of The Golden Bachelor and The Golden Bachelorette.
In an interview with Katie Couric Media, Palmer responded to the question on Bachelor Nation fans’ lips: Are we going to see romances between the Golden stars and non-Golden stars? While we already know of at least one age gap makeout between two of the cast members, Palmer hinted that the show didn’t encourage mixing between the two dating pools.
“We’re obviously going to see two different generations on the beach together. I can’t tell anybody who they can or can’t love,” Palmer said. “I encouraged everyone to stay in their generational lane and just not make it weird. But that’s not to say it won’t happen. People will have to tune in and find out.”
That said, Palmer did hint that the Goldens offered a lot of wisdom to their younger castmates. “One of the things I really appreciate and love about the Golden cast is that they’re just so comfortable in their own skin,” he said. “They have so much experience. They’ve lived, they’ve loved, sometimes they’ve lost. I hope their emotional maturity acted as a great example for our younger cast.”
“One thing I told our younger cast a lot throughout filming was to hang out with the Goldens and pick their brains because they have a lot of knowledge and wisdom, and can lead by example.”
Palmer and Wells Adams, who serves as a bartender on the show, received backlash ahead of the show’s July 7 premiere when they told Us Weekly they were “hopeful” that there would be some crossover between the older and younger cast.
“This happens all the time in the real world. Look at Bill Belichick right now. It’s happening in front of us,” Adams said, referring to the former New England Patriots coach’s 48-year age gap with girlfriend Jordan Hudson. “I don’t know if it will, but I think it’ll be cool to have the Goldens around.”
Former Bachelor Nation stars Rachael Kirkconnell and Jade Roper spoke out against the idea on Instagram, per E! News. “Hm don’t think we should be encouraging 50-year age gaps,” Kirkconnell, who won Matt James’ Bachelor season wrote while Roper responded, “Ew.”
Before you go, click here to see the all the Golden Bachelor stars who’ve dated outside of the show.